All in Canada
During Black History Month in 2023, Montreal-based artist Franck Sylvestre performed a puppet show geared toward Black children. The show included a puppet named “Max” who appeared with coal black skin, jagged teeth, bright red lips, wide eyes, and an ape-like nose. Many Black community organizations publicly denounced Sylvestre and his puppet.
It is a uniquely challenging time to be employed or a student at a university, especially if you are Black woman or a student(s) with divergent opinions. From the high profile firing of Claudine Gay at Harvard and its aftermath, to the tragic suicide of Dr. Antoinette Candia-Bailey, Vice President of Student Affairs at Lincoln University, to the Toronto Star’s investigation into my own university’s Law School and the student letter in support of Palestine, where there's a bad news story, institutions of higher learning are in it.
On September 21 and 22, 2023 the Mapping Ontario’s Black Archives (MOBA) Team co-produced Artists and Archivists in Dialogue (AAD), a SSHRC-Connection Grant-funded two-day speaker series and creative showcase that was held at Toronto Metropolitan University’s ILC and Toronto’s Tranzac Club.
