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Black history is human history. But, shamefully the Canadian public school system has erased the majority of it. This erasure is so pervasive and spans country-wide, that it’s common to go through an entire K-12 education without ever learning about Canada’s legacy of slavery, or its legislation of Black segregated schools, or the incredible Black women who have contributed massively to our society or anything, really. That’s why it’s so important to celebrate Black history month; so we can learn and teach these untold stories.
Following the Black Lives Matter movement's recent nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize, we come together to honour the Black women who have paved the path of excellence for present and future generations. Tonight we Celebrate Herstories!
We are fortunate to welcome guest speakers Annie Djiotsa, Alison Mclean and Nancy Nyandika, who will be discussing the inspiring journeys of notable Black women throughout history; and the importance of keeping their legacies alive through storytelling and good works of their own that emulate these sheroes of the past.
Meet Our Guest Speaker Annie Djiotsa
Annie Djiotsa was born in Cameroon in Central Africa. She immigrated to Canada nearly 30 years ago. After completing a Master’s degree in Public Administration in Montreal, she joined the Canadian Armed Forces where she served for almost two decades, until retirement in 2019.
Annie went back to school in Geneva and graduated in March 2020 with a Masters in Conflict and Fragility Management. Annie currently enjoys volunteering for her community.
Currently, she is a board member of the Cordova Bay Community Association and serves on the Saanich Parks, Recreation and Community Services Advisory Committee. She is also an advocate for the fair and equal treatment and representation of Black Canadians and to that end, works with Black-led organizations to further this cause. Annie is the mother of two young adults.
Meet Our Guest Speaker Alison Mclean
Alison Mclean’s background is in Health Systems research— specifically around equitable access to high-quality prenatal care in Canada and the United States.
Alison has extensive experience working with populations that face marginalization and oppression as well as diverse groups of people, both here in North America and internationally.
As a Black woman in academia, she has experienced a lot of racism and discrimination but she has used her experiences and knowledge on the topic to develop equity focused anti-racism curriculum and training.
She is an emerging leader in decolonizing research and healthcare practice who is committed to working towards transformative, anti-racist, justice-oriented policy and programming for all. Alison acknowledges that I live and work on the ancestral, unceded and traditional territories of the Anishinabewaki, Huron-Wendat and the Haudenosaunee Nations.
Meet Our Guest Speaker Nancy Nyandika
Nancy Nyandika is a recent graduate of the Master of Arts in Intercultural and International Communication
program at Royal Roads University. She was on the executive council of the RRU Afro-Heritage Association. She currently works for a women's empowerment-centered non-profit in Victoria.
Nancy is grateful to be living, learning and working on the ancestral home of the Esquimalt and Songhees First Nations of the Coast Salish area. Having been born in Kenya, she is indigenous to the East of Africa.
Guided by Utu or Ubuntu, she is an Afro-optimist, a trained intercultural communicator and advocate who is passionate about the empowerment of communities. She believes in empowerment that is community-led and guarantees a seat at the decision-making table and is sustainable in the long-run for everyone.
Please join us for an evening of Black history taught by Black women and pay homage to the ancestors on whose shoulders we all stand.
As E.l. Jones writes in her poem Black Sheroes, “for real knowledge you need to honour Afrikan women present, future, and past”. And so we shall.
You don’t want to miss this Black history month event!
For media enquiries, please contact domi@sniwwoc.ca at least 48 hours prior to the event.
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We acknowledge that this event is hosted from the traditional territory of the Lekwungen people, currently and specifically the Esquimalt and Songhees Nations.