Hear More Black Voices

As people in the United States, and here at home, take a knee and rally to protest anti-Black racism and police brutality, many are looking for additional ways to educate themselves on the issues at hand. Here is a list of resources - many free to Canadians - that can help.

Podcasts and Interviews

Podcasts and radio interviews are another great way to expand your horizons and spend time listening to Black voices. Here are a few suggestions on where to start: 

• On Fresh Air, Nana aba Duncan's personal address is touching and powerful, in just under two minutes.

• This episode of Atlantic Voice examines Atlantic Canada's history of constructing purpose-built slave ships through a conversation with artist Camille Turner. Turner created an art installation that showed how 19 of the ships used to transport people from Africa into slavery were built in Newfoundland.

• Desmond Cole is the Canadian author of the book "The Skin We're In: A Year of Black Resistance and Power", on racism in Canada. He spoke with Information Morning NS in February 2020 about his book and the institutional issues it examines. You can hear that segment and read a Q&A with Cole here.

• Also on Information Morning NS, host Portia Clark interviewed youth worker Finley Tolliver, activist and academic El Jones, and social worker Jackie Barkley, about the growing political uprising across North America in response to police brutality and anti-Black racism. You can listen to that conversation here. 

• On June 1, The Current examined racism in Canada and the U.S. Host Matt Galloway interviewed Kandace Montgomery of Black Visions Collective, Eric Russell of Tree of Life Justice League, "How to be an Antiracist" author Ibram X. Kendi, and other thought leaders.

Books

The Halifax Public Libraries has compiled an "Antiracist Reading List for All Ages". You'll be able to find many of these titles at your own local library or bookstore. Although many stores and libraries are closed due to COVID-19, it's still possible to borrow ebooks and audiobooks, or to purchase hard copies online. 

If you're interested in reading more from Black Canadian authors, CBC Books shared these six recent works by Black Canadian authors. 

If you're a parent, you might be looking for kid-friendly books that feature Black voices. Nova Scotian author Shauntay Grant's 2018 book Africville is beautifully illustrated and tells the story of the vibrant Black community in Halifax that was demolished by city officials in the 1960s. Last year, Grant took CBC Arts' Amanda Parris on a tour of the area.

Local TEDx Talks

TEDx events have been held across Atlantic Canada for several years. If you haven't had a chance to attend one in person, take the time to catch up now by watching a few talks on YouTube. Watching TEDx talks by local Black folks is an opportunity to learn about topics that are not only interesting, but are important to Black Canadians. 

• Rajean Willis, a clinical social worker from Nova Scotia, delivered her talk "Tuning Into Your Inner Resilience" at TEDxMSVUWomen. Her talk highlighted the resiliency of African Nova Scotian women and girls. 

• Ariel Gough,  a policy advisor an entrepreneur, delivered a talk called "What it's like to be an unlikely", also at TEDxMSVUWomen. 

• At TEDxStJohns, Memorial University professor Dr. Delores V. Mullings shared a compelling talk on decolonizing classrooms. 

• At TEDxHalifax, content creator Musemo Handahu delivered a talk called "Fat and Black with the Audacity to be a Badass."

• In New Brunswick, Nasyir McGill delivered a talk called "Feel Like a Man." He pulled from his knowledge as a personal trainer and wellness enthusiast, as well as his lived experience as a Black man, to share his perspective on emotional literacy and toxic masculinity. 

• Also at TEDxMSVUWomen, Angela Bowden shared an emotional talk called "Dear Black Women, Let's Talk About Healing" in which she spoke on the importance of acknowledging and healing from strength and resilience trauma. 

Educational Docs and Films

These documentaries and films highlight different Black experiences in Canada, and are free to stream on CBC Gem in Canada. 

• In the short doc "Deeply Rooted", filmmaker Cazhhmere sheds light on how she's constantly asked to explain where she's from -- despite being a 7th-generation black Canadian. Cazhhmere returns home to Halifax to delve into her family history that goes back more than two centuries. 

• "Fade Forward" is a short doc that tells the story of the first black-owned barbershop in Newfoundland and Labrador that has become a hub for newcomers in St. John's. 

• The film Across the Line tells the real-life story of a young, Black NHL hopeful living in the racially-divided community of Cole Harbour, N.S. in 1989.