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Youth Development

Pack a lunch and explore your history

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BY: KATHY MCDONALD

Last week members of the curriculum department at the Peel District School Board (PDSB) embarked on what is being dubbed the “Peel Black Heritage Tour”. The tour was led by award-winning author, PDSB teacher and President of the Ontario Black History Society (OBHS) Natasha Henry. Poleen Grewal, an Associate Director at the PDSB said in a tweet “…We appreciate that you are supporting us to re-learn and unlearn Canadian history – Black History is Canadian History” This week I am featuring various aspects of this tour as per the Phiona Lloyd – Henry highlights that were posted on Twitter. Ms. Lloyd- Henry is a brilliant, newly minted vice principal at the PDSB who is currently the Board’s Equity Resource Teacher. I retweeted her post on my account @TrusteeMcDonald.

The reason why I feel compelled to share this experience is that I hold a deep-seated belief that children thrive best when they have a deep understanding of their history and culture. Most of the places on the Peel Heritage Black Tour I have traveled with my own four kids. When we arm kids with a sense of belonging and let them see themselves as more than just “sons and daughters of slaves” or “illiterate immigrants” we make it easier to navigate the Canadian landscape. Everyone, not just African and black people will benefit from participating in this tour. Note that this tour by no means captures the entire black and African history of Canadian peoples. It is a start, a start in Ontario.

There is also a rich history of people from other Caribbean communities like the Hakka Chinese and members of the Indo-Caribbean communities to name a few. During the last provincial elections in Ontario, Sara Singh became the first ever female with Indo-Caribbean heritage elected to the Legislative Assembly in Ontario. One of Jamaica’s most prominent sons of Chinese descent G. Raymond Chang, the third chancellor of Ryerson University, was a financial wizard that was a Director at CI Financial, a company that managed over $180 billion in assets. The two aforementioned examples are only two of numerous examples of excellence of descendants of the Caribbean that we should be teaching our children. We need to impress upon them the plethora of achievements that African, Black and Caribbean peoples have achieved. We need to be authors of our history. We cannot sit back and let mainstream media tell our story.

The Peel Black Heritage Tour started in Toronto. Some of the sites that were visited included: 330 University Avenue site of the former home of Canada’s first doctor in 1835: Did you know that Osgoode Hall was the site of John Anderson’s escaped slave extradition case and was the site of many black protests during the early 1860s? St James Cathedral was always an integrated church that welcomed black loyalists, the Cathedral event hosted Emancipation Celebrations from 1830 to 1860: Visit the Mary Ann Shadd Cary plaque on King Street East: Walk over to St Lawrence Hall one of the oldest public buildings in Toronto. Some of its prominent speakers include abolitionist Frederick Douglass: 363-365 Adelaide St. East was home to William Jarvis one of the largest slave owners in Toronto.

There is an abundance of plaques scattered throughout the city. Stop and read them you just might learn something new. Did you know that Albert Jackson, Toronto’s first black postal worker has his own plaque? Go for an adventure to Windsor and visit St. Alphonsus Church or the Tower of Freedom, the International Underground Railroad Memorial Site. Gaze at the Detroit River imagine the “the fluid frontier, the movement of black people-through coercion, through personal choice – freedom, employment, social events.” Stop by the Sandwich Baptist Church or The Nazrey African Episcopal Church which acted as a terminal for the Underground Railroad, a school and a community hub for the Amherstburg black people. The Amherstburg museum and the Windsor Community museum are “likke but tallawah” (small but mighty). My favorite stop on this tour, the spot where my family enjoys the most, a spot that never gets boring, Uncle Tom’s Cabin. The children can actually go into a crate that was used to transport escaped slaves to freedom. There is so much to see and do so much to learn. Whether you visit London or Owen Sound, Leamington or Windsor. Black history is all around. Go seek it out. Embrace it. Your children will benefit from the experience.

Hopefully, by the end of the tour, the participants did as Ms. Lloyd – Henry tweeted “learn about the presence, experience, and legacies of black people in southwestern Ontario and Canada.” Now that they are armed with this knowledge I look forward to its integration in the PDSB curriculum. It is my hope that this tour will ultimately lead to transformational practices and attitudes towards the black and Caribbean students in the PDSB as well as all students. It is with great anticipation I wait to see such learning translate to the PDSB classrooms where all staff will inspire success confidence and hope in all students. Secondly, I hope parents will be inspired to journey to some of these historical sitess and embolden their children to continue to be resilient, confident and the amazing students they are called to be. So, pack a lunch and fill the gas tank and away you go. Walk Good! Belle Marché

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Youth Development

Understanding the multiple layers involved in navigating education spaces Parents of Black Children launch Navigating the Education System

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BY PAUL JUNOR

The work of the advocacy group Parents of Black Children (PoBC) has made a significant and revolutionary difference by bringing issues to the forefront that help Black families at all levels.

For over two years now, it has organized events, workshops and initiatives that have provided important information to the Black community to bring empowerment, knowledge and deep understanding of the multiple layers of the complex dynamics involved in navigating education spaces.

There are five core principles that underlie PoBC understanding of racism:

  1. Racialization
  2. Racism is about power
  3. Critical racial theory
  4. Our stories matter
  5. Racism is founded on White supremacy

On Tuesday, November 23rd, 2021, they launched the document Navigating the Education System,” which was a very empowering, enriching and inspiring tool for diverse Black families. Kearie Daniels, one of the cofounders of PoBC and author of the document, moderated the launch. Furthermore, Claudette Rutherford, one of the cofounders of PoBC and author gave an extensive presentation of the details of the document, sharing useful insights, practical knowledge and interesting information.

PoBC shared a pdf document subsequent to the launch, which provided additional details in a fifty-three-page package. It contained relevant, contextual and vital resources. PoBC’s Advocacy Team supported the document, which includes Charline Grant and Xavier McLaughin.

In the introduction to the document the mission of PoBC is to “Provide support to parents of Black children across Canada and the United States. We advocate and work towards change and concrete action in our education system and adjacent systems such child welfare and the justice system.”

The launch of this vital document is a culmination of all the advocacy and activist work that PoBC has been extensively involved in. It serves to remind members of the Black community that there are resources, tools and supports available to ensure that Black children are able to thrive academically, excel mentally and flourish intellectually in spaces that may not be welcoming to their presence.

The document states that the navigate guide is “Geared towards families in Ontario, but the information can be applied to any jurisdiction where there are Black children and families.”

The document “Table of Contents” is useful and helpful. There is vital information on:

  • School board terms you need to know
  • Education organization you need to know in Ontario
  • Black families and the Child Welfare System
  • Black families and the education system
  • Black students and Individual Education Plans (IEPs)
  • Black students in High School.
  • Developmental delays in learning exceptionalities
  • Supporting students with learning exceptionalities
  • Selecting a school system
  • System abuse

PoBC presented a webinar on “System Abuse”. The document states,

“The system is not neutral. These systems were designed as part of a colonial framework that must be dismantled.” Furthermore, the document “Serves as a means to demystify the pitfalls within the education system and light a path towards a decolonized education system.”

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Youth Development

Toronto prepares families for COVID-19 vaccination of children

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Photo by Charles Deluvio Library on Unsplash

BY PAUL JUNOR

There have been concerns, fears and anxieties as parents, caregivers and guardians anticipate the possibility of having their children under twelve vaccinated.

The Boston Globe reported on Friday, October 29th, 2021, that the FDA approved the administration of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to children between the ages of five to eleven. These children will receive one-third of the dose administered to teens and adults.

The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention met on Tuesday, November 2nd, 2021, in order to finalize details with respect to which children should be vaccinated first. In anticipation of these developments, Team Toronto has initiated a series of outreach and education sessions, as well as town halls in order to inform the Toronto community.

Parents of children between the ages of five to eleven who attend public schools will be receiving an email and an invitation to respond to a survey to “Support vaccine planning.”  This invitation will also be extended to parents whose children attend private independent schools as well. The survey will be administered by Toronto Public Health (TPH) and the City of Toronto VaxTO in order to “Better understand parents’ intent to vaccinate their children, how they would prefer to have their children receive their COVID-19 vaccine, and to obtain critical information on socio-demographic factors such as race and income.”

John Tory, Mayor of Toronto, is optimistic and positive about this development. He states in the press release, “While our work to get 90% of eligible residents vaccinated is continuing, we are also readying for when the vaccine will be available to protect kids five to eleven. We want to hear from parents, so we made sure we designed a vaccination program that works for kids and their families. This is just one more example of the outreach we are doing to prepare for this effort. This work is so important and will help us get kids vaccinated so they have the best protection against COVID-19 and so our schools can be as safe and as open as possible.”

Councillor Joe Cressy, Chair of Toronto’s Board of Health who has been at the forefront of advocating for the vaccination of margnizalied and at-risk communities is supportive of this campaign. He states, “At every stage of our immunization campaign, connecting with people on the ground has been critical to our success. Now, as we prepare for the rollout of vaccines to children aged five to eleven, we’re committed to engaging directly with parents, families, and community leaders to have active conversations about vaccinations for kids.”

In addition, Dr Eileen De Villa, Toronto’s Medical Officer of Health is a strong proponent of this campaign. She states,” When vaccines are approved for use and when we have supply we will ensure that we bring every resource to bear on this critical component of the vaccination campaign.”

The survey will be available as of Sunday, November 7th, 2021. It consists of fifteen questions that will be available online at s.tphsurvey.chkmkt.com in multiple languages. Parents and guardians will receive them from their children’s public school boards. In addition, there will be town halls for specified multilingual communities as well as neighbourhood-based telephone halls to ensure that the public has access to timely, necessary and relevant information for informed decision-making.

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Youth Development

Act as if what you do makes a difference. IT DOES

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BY SABRINA S. – 12 YEARS OLD

The school year is coming to an end, I’m sure that this year was hectic for everyone. Last year, we had a pandemic strike in the middle of the year and the world was sent into lockdown.

We didn’t get to go to school for the rest of the year.

Many students got to choose if they wanted to do school in-person or online, I chose online since I didn’t feel safe.

First day of school was very weird, most people don’t turn their cameras on, don’t even get me started on the wifi issues. I would lag out of the google meet many times and miss most of the instructions on the assignment. That is when friends come in handy, though I don’t get to see my friends that often, we still connect with some online games and phone calls through snap chat.

I don’t know where the time went, it just flew by. Last month was September and suddenly, I feel like we skipped eight months. I only have a week of school left! Because it is the last week of school, I have a lot of homework and final assignments to do but I know I’ll get through them and finish the school year.

I haven’t had time to go outside as well, I’ve been too busy with my assignments.

If my school year was this hectic, imagine the teacher’s year. I’m very grateful for everything my teachers have done for me and my classmates this year, they definitely deserve the three-month summer break. I’m sure my teachers doubted teaching online, but everything went okay and I learned lots.

“No matter how hard it is, or how hard it gets. I’m going to make it!”

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