Members of the Black Daddies Club go on a five-kilometre hike at Rouge National Urban Park. The hike, one of a series this summer, is designed to celebrate the organization’s tenth anniversary, nurture a love of nature in children and build community. (Paul Smith/CBC)
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/black-daddies-club-hike-1.4177351
“We need [Black] communities that we can bring all parts of us to, and not just some parts of us.”
– Syrus Marcus Ware, Black Lives Matter Toronto, 2014
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Black Daddies Club (BDC). When I started BDC in November 2007, it came from a need in my lived experience as a Black father. Living in Malvern, in the east end of Toronto, I was constantly being told that there weren’t any resources or programming for Black fathers in my neighbourhood. I also recognized that the majority of media outlets in Canada, when speaking about Black fathers, spoke primarily of negative stereotypes, painting the spectrum of Black masculinities with broad strokes, and stigmatizing Black men as “deadbeat dads” who are irresponsible, criminal, dangerous, and un-human.
Over the past 10 years, there have been many beautiful people who have supported BDC in a multitude of ways, through sharing their narratives as Black parents in our research projects, or in various documentaries that BDC has co-created with folks in the Black community. We have forged meaningful partnerships that have created fortifying experiences for Black families and community members over the years. Significant is the fact that BDC has never applied for government funding for any of the over one hundred activities produced over the last decade. We have worked with community partners, volunteers and community members to make this work happen. To all the volunteers that have put in their time, sweat, money and love…the folks at BDC wish to convey our profound gratitude.
I have learned a lot over the past 10 years, and I am still learning a lot about myself. I earned a Master’s degree by taking my community work into academia and interrogating Black masculinities and Black love. I have made some really dope friendships along this beautiful journey. I have also found, while doing this community work, that it has been difficult to find communities and spaces where I am able to un-mask myself—to take off my armour and be vulnerable—which is such a necessary part of being able to sustain this work. I have gone through depression, and worked multiple odd jobs to sustain the community work that I am doing with BDC. I have been through burnout more times than I can count, and learned that this work requires self-care and self-love.
I have met some awesome people and heard many incredible stories. I have found myself feeling hopeful, as well as hopeless, doing this work. I feel hopeful because I have had the opportunity to witness social activism, in response to anti-Black racism, become more mainstream. Groups, such as Black Lives Matters Toronto (BLMTO), are furthering the Black liberation work in Toronto—work started by groups such as the Black Action Defence Committee (BADC). However, my feeling of hopelessness comes from speaking to elders who came to Canada in the 1970s, faced issues of erasure and oppression attending high school, and now have grandchildren facing similar issues in their school system in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). It makes me wonder, is anti-Black racism declining or increasing, on a systematic and political level, in Canada?
For our 10-year anniversary, BDC is celebrating Black love, unapologetically declaring that 2017 is the time for Black folks to love ourselves completely, and more than ever before. As we look at Canadian statistics they show that Black communities are showing up in various Canadian research findings in the areas of criminal justice, unemployment, subsidized housing, children’s aid services, and many more.
In an era in Canada where we see police murder Black people and get no jail time; an era where we see that the intersection of mental illness and Blackness can be deadly; in an era where we see racialized and marginalized communities become erased in the name of revitalization and gentrification—from Africville to Regent Park; in an era that teaches Black children to grow up hating themselves or not seeing themselves as human beings. We, as the Black Canadian community, must push back and resist those racist ideologies. We must re-imagine our Black future here in Canada, while recognizing this is stolen land. It is important for us to do the work of collaborating with our Indigenous brothers and sisters, the original caretakers of this land.
Black Daddies Club will be celebrating our learnings of the past 10 years through the Black Love Matters 2017 Un-Conference. This un-conference is a series of events building awareness about our distinct ways of engaging with each other, as Black people. We began in 2016 with Breaking Bread brunches, where we engaged with the Black community across the GTA to start shaping the conversations the community would like to engage in at the un-conference. After a year-long process of community consultations, requests were put forward that the following elements be a part of the Black Love Matters 2017 Un-Conference:
Some of BDC’s upcoming events in 2017 are:
We hope to see you at the Black Love Matters 2017 Un-Conference
– Brandon Hay, MES (Founder of Black Daddies Club)
Apart of the Black Love Matters Un-conference, Black Daddies Club will be hosting a summer series called Black Family Matters, apart of these series will be our yearly summer hikes. The Black Daddies Club summer hikes will be a series of hikes that takes place one sunday a month for the Months of June (25th), July (23rd) and August (13th), 2017. The purpose of these hikes are for Black Families to gather at Glen Rouge conservation park (Scarborough/ Pickering border) Sunday morning’s starting at 10AM to 2pm, and spending the early part of the day, walking and discussing topics as a group. Some of the goals of the hikes is to create community at basic level, but on a deeper level, these hikes are about reconnecting with the land and having our children as well adults reconnect with what it means to learn from nature.
The process of the hikes, we gather at 10am at the base camp, near the parking lot. We then form a circle, and speak about the walking agreements of the hikes, such as walking in pairs, not littering, staying clear of poison ivy (staying on the trail), be safe. Each month there will be a topic posed at the beginning at the hikes, and people will speak about these topics during the hikes and at the end of the hike we will speak about the learnings from the hikes, both lessons from the conversations and nature.
People have to engage with three different people throughout the duration of these hikes, this promotes the idea of people speaking with new individuals and getting to know knew people.
What: Black Daddies Club annual Family and Friends Hike
Venue: 7450 Kingston Rd, Scarborough
Dates:
Sunday June 25th, 2017/ 10am to 2pm
Sunday July 23rd, 2017/ 10am to 2pm
Sunday, August 13th, 2017 (last hike)/ 10am to 2pm
Cost: Free, bring snacks and water for yourself and family
Dates and topics for the hikes:
Sunday June 25th, 2017
Here are some of the potential questions that we will take up on the hike this week:
( what are three things you have done, or said to someone to show them that you appreciate them and what are three things someone have done or said to you that showed you that they appreciated you?)
( What does love mean to you? What have you done today to take care of yourself?)
Grandparents did you treat your grandchildren differently than your own children?
How important are your parents in your life, how different do you think your life would be if your parents were not in it?
What part does your grand parent play in your life
Do you feel that they love or treat you differently than your parents
Sunday July 23rd, 2017
Here are some of the potential questions that we will take up on the hike this week:
(Topic: Share an experience when you felt a lot of courage
Share a story of when u felt really confident and positive about yourself
Sunday, August 13th, 2017 (last hike)
Here are some of the potential questions that we will take up on the hike this week:
Topic: What kinds of things would you like to know about adulthood?”
“what questions would you ask your younger self or a child/youth?”
These hikes are open to people of all genders, race and religious background, however the premise of these hikes are on the importance of the Black families, Black community at large gathering and claiming space to have dialogue together. With that being said, we also see the importance of other cultures being apart of these walks, so that there can be mutual learning and sharing in the process of these walks.
Apart of the Black Daddies Club, Black Love Matters 2017 Un-Conference, we will be introducing “A Jamaica Mi Come From” jam series, the purpose of this event is to raise funds for Black Daddies Club, to ensure that we are able to continue to do community based initiatives.
A Jamaica Mi Come from is a cultural series celebrating the Jamaican diaspora through various disciplines in arts and culture. In July 2017, we will be having the first ever session of “A Jamaica Mi Come From”, where participants will be exposed to Reggae music that comes from Jamaica. These musical selections will be spun by various DJ’s from Greater Toronto Area (GTA), these DJ’s will be exploring various eras of reggae, moving from Ska to Dancehall. The night will also feature Toronto based fashion designers who also have roots in Jamaica, and their designs capture the mix of what it means to be African-Jamaicans living in Canada.
The event will take place at Handlebar in kensington Market, located on Augusta, on Saturday, July 1st, 2017(Canada Day), from 9pm to 2am
Cost of this event is a sliding rate starting at $10
We are super excited to announce that, Secrets of A Black Boy, Black Daddies Club and Black Love Matters 2017 Un-Conference workshop course at York University partners to bring this dope play and important panel discussion around The Politics of Gender and Blackness in the Greater Toronto Area. To Theatre Passe Murialle on Tuesday, November 15th at 7:30pm to 10:30pm.
This event is open to the public, you can purchase your tickets here PURCHASE TICKET INFO
Arts Box Office | 416.504.7529
TAIBU Community Health Centre and Black Daddies Club is partnering to get the word out for the Black Men Health Challenge. This TAIBU led initiative is a great opportunity for Black men, fathers, grandparents, etc. to come out and network with each other but also get healthy together and building a stronger community in the process.
For more information please contact Estella
email: ewilliams@taibuchc.ca
Tel: 416-644-3539 ext. 224
Piece Of Mind Theatre has partnered with Black Daddies Club to offer tickets to their upcoming theatre festival. We will be giving away tickets to Black Daddies Club members and their children to see the play.
Venue: Palmerson Library from
Dates of festival: October 11-16th
For more information please visit their website at www.pieceofminefest.com and on facebook FB: https://www.facebook.com/
If you are interested, send an email to info@blackdaddiesclub for more information
Black Daddies Club and York University is proud to announce that the Planning in Toronto workshop course entitled Black Love Matters 2017 Un-Conference is now open for enrollment, please share with folks that you think might interested…deadline is approaching quickly
Black Daddies Club is excited to announce that one of our community partners Kids Upfront Toronto have shown support to this years Family and Friends Picnic in a major way.
We are super excited to build with you all this Sunday, September 4th for Black Daddies Club annual Family and Friends Picnic at Petticoat Creek Park in Pickering. It is our pleasure to announce that one our community partner’s the City of Toronto has provided two 48 seat shuttle buses to ensure that this event is accessible to community members across the Greater Toronto Area.
There is a bus that will be dedicated for community members living in Toronto west, this bus will be making stops at Jane and Finch Mall and Lawrence West Mall (across from Lawrence West Subway Station). There will also be a bus dedicated for community members living in Toronto east, this bus will be making stops at Scarborough Town Center Mall, Malvern Town Center Mall, and Kingston and Galloway.
If you are interested in taking this free shuttle service it is important that you RVSP with Darlene atdarlene@theblackdaddiesclub.co
Thing to remember:
This event is a potluck, but you can also purchase food at the picnic from one of our food vendors.
There is a general admission fee to get into Petticoat Creek Park due to fact it is a provincial park, non of this fee will go to Black Daddies Club, but rather to Ontario conversation, this cost is mandatory to all patrons entering the park. There is also afee to get into pool and splash pad area, children must be accompanied into this area with an adult.
Park Admission
Adult (15 +) $6.50
Senior (60 +) $5.50
Children (14 and under), with their family FREE
The theme of the picnic this year is “How can we support Black children and their parents living in the Greater Toronto Area?“, there will be a discussion taking place at the picnic as one of the many activities that will be taking place on September 4th, between 12pm to 7pm. We look forward to sharing space with you all, from grandparents to grandchildren and everyone in between.