Barbershop Conversation: What Did I Learn From My Divorce? Sunday, March 1, 2026 | 12:00 PM – 2:00 PM
A unisex community conversation hosted by The Black Daddies Club, exploring divorce, healing, and dating after loss. This gathering creates space for emotional processing, stress reduction, and community-based mental well-being.
Aging, Blackness & Love- Panel discussion Friday, February 27, 2026 | 7:00 PM – 11:00 PM George Brown College – Waterfront Campus
A multigenerational community panel exploring aging within Black heterosexual and Black LGBTQ2S+ communities through a mental health lens. This conversation will explore caregiving, menopause, dating after divorce, dementia, planning for death and estate planning, love, and emotional well-being across the lifespan.
Panelists from Toronto and New York will share lived experiences that center resilience, care, and connection while aging Black.
Panelists: Michael Roberson Samantha Montpetit-Huynh Ngozi Iroanyah Bee Quammie Minnelle Williams Vidoll Regisford Jade Elektra
Moderators: Tasha Thomas Melizia MensahPart of the Journey to Black Liberation Symposium 2026. Registration now open. Link for tickets JTBL 2026 | Instagram, Facebook | Linktree
Keynote Conversation: Black Liberation Is Non-Negotiable Saturday, February 28, 2026 | 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM George Brown College – Waterfront Campus
This keynote conversation features Dr. Andrew Campbell, Director of the Centre for Black Studies in Education (CBSE) at the University of Toronto, in dialogue with Dr. Siyabulela Mandela—peace and human rights activist, scholar, and grandson of freedom fighter Nelson Mandela.
This cross-border fireside conversation explores Black joy in education and contemporary visions of Black liberation across global contexts, connecting lived experience, scholarship, and global freedom movements.
Moderated by Pacinthe Mattar, Egyptian-Canadian journalist and writer, the dialogue examines what Black liberation looks like today—and why it remains non-negotiable.
Keynote Panelists: Dr. Andrew Campbell (Toronto) Dr. Siyabulela Mandela (South Africa)Part of the Journey to Black Liberation Symposium 2026. Registration now open. Link for tickets JTBL 2026 | Instagram, Facebook | Linktree
We are pleased to share an invitation for students and community members to attend the Journey to Black Liberation Symposium – Youth-Led Day, taking place on Friday, February 27, 2026, from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at George Brown College’s Waterfront Campus.
This student-led day centers Black youth voices through:
Youth-led panel discussions
An open plenary session
Honest conversations on Black identity, mental health, and liberation
The Journey to Black Liberation Symposium is a community-led gathering that brings Black youth, artists, educators, and organizers together to explore Black identity, creativity, mental health, and collective liberation. This Youth-Led Day is created by youth, for youth.
Who can attend:
Black students across the GTA
Secondary and post-secondary students
Youth leaders and changemakers
Community members and organizations
Please note that seating is limited and registration is required. Teachers must accompany students who are attending.
We encourage you to share this opportunity with students, families, and community partners who may be interested.
“There cannot be true Black liberation until we are all liberated and free as Black people.”
Founded in 2018, the Journey to Black Liberation Symposium and Black Liberation Ball was created as a collaborative space between Black straight communities and Black LGBT2QS+ communities. At its core, the gathering exists to foster cross-border dialogue on the issues impacting Black communities globally, while affirming that there are multiple entry points into Blackness.
The journey toward Black liberation cannot be limited to heteronormative experiences alone. Our collective liberation must reflect the full spectrum of who we are.
As Black people navigating different intersections and lived experiences, there is power in gathering, power in collective resistance, and power in celebrating our differences. Across our varied hues, sexual identities, ages, abilities, and ways of moving through the world, we remain deeply connected by our shared pursuit of freedom.
From Thursday, February 26 to Sunday, March 1, 2026, the Journey to Black Liberation Symposium and the Black Liberation Ball will feature a series of plenaries that honour the beauty, complexity, and multiplicity of Blackness. We invite you to join us in sharing joy, building community, and continuing this collective journey.
Plenary tickets and free registration will go live during the first week of February 2026.
Some of you may know me personally. Others may have come across my work through the Black Daddies Club — and for some, this may be your first introduction. My name is Brandon Hay, and I am currently a Gestalt Therapist (in training).
My journey into therapy began after a deeply personal rupture: my divorce. That experience forced me to re-examine everything I thought I knew about manhood, fatherhood, and identity. I had built much of my self-worth around being a husband and father. When that structure collapsed, I felt completely unrooted.
My first experience with therapy came through couples counselling toward the end of my marriage. While the therapist was skilled, I spent much of the time explaining the cultural nuances of my experience as a Black man. That invisible labor added another layer to an already difficult process.
Later, I began individual therapy with a Black woman therapist from the Caribbean. I felt more seen. But even then, I noticed my own discomfort — wondering if I was being judged, or if I was revealing too much of myself.
Those early experiences taught me something crucial:
Therapy isn’t just about what’s said — it’s about who’s in the room. Our healing is deeply shaped by identity, culture, and lived experience.
Years later, a colleague told me she was studying Gestalt therapy. I attended an orientation session at the Gestalt Institute of Toronto, and something shifted. Gestalt’s emphasis on present-moment awareness, embodiment, and relational connection helped me understand what my body had been trying to tell me — long before I had the language to describe it.
As I moved deeper into my training, I noticed I was the only Black man in my cohort. That reality brought forward questions that still guide my path today:
What does healing look like for Black people? If our trauma is cultural, historical, and systemic — shouldn’t our healing be as well?
These questions led me across the African diaspora — from Ghana to Brazil, Barbados, South Africa, and Kenya — where I connected with other Black therapists and healers to explore what collective and culturally relevant healing might look like.
In 2020, I launched Sunday Dinners, a therapeutic space for Black men and Black-identified men. What started online during the pandemic has now become a trusted in-person community for dialogue, connection, and care.
All of this work has led to my newest chapter:
Inner Movements Therapy (I.M. Therapy)
I.M. Therapy is built on the belief that healing is not linear, but cyclical, relational, and embodied. Through this practice, I combine my lived experience, community organizing, and Gestalt training to support others — particularly Black men — in navigating their own paths to healing.
This is where my story continues: at the intersection of personal transformation, community care, and the ongoing question of what it means to be fully human as a Black man in today’s world
The Black Daddies Club co-created the inaugural Black Families Un-Conference (BFUC) in 2021, offering a three-day, two-night gathering for families that identify as Black or Racialized. This unique experience provides families with the opportunity to step away from the city and reconnect with nature at no cost to participants.
In May 2025, we hosted our third annual BFUC, welcoming 88 participants from 17 families. The retreat was held at Tims Horton Camp, who generously provided accommodations, staff, and camp programming. Families, regardless of their composition, shared space, built connections, and created lasting memories together.
Over the years, the Un-Conference has grown with the support of key community partners. This collaborative event from the Black Daddies Club,Justice Fund, Tim’s Horton Camp, Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC), BRI Counselling and UNISON CHS.
BDC would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to all the families who joined us, the dedicated organizing committee, Tim Hortons Camp, and the counsellors who supported the weekend. Your energy, commitment, and care made the 2025 Black Families Un-Conference a meaningful and successful gathering.
We are also grateful to the Lawson Foundation for supporting the evaluation of this year’s Un-Conference. The 2025 BFUC report will be made public in the coming weeks. To request a copy once released, please email us at info@theblackdaddiesclub.com
Survey for Black men who are not currently in a committed romantic relationship
Thank you for taking the time to participate in this important survey! This survey is being conducted as research to be included in season 2 of the CBC documentary series For the Culture with Amanda Parris.
Please note: All responses will remain anonymous (unless you choose to identify yourself at the end of the survey). The information you provide will only be used for research purposes within the context of the series. Your candidness is greatly appreciated.
We are thrilled to announce that registration is officially open for the 3rd Annual Black Families Un-Conference, happening from May 23rd-25th, 2025!
This year is extra special as we celebrate 18 years of Black Daddies Club’s work with Black fathers and their families. We are proud to co-present this incredible event in partnership with the Justice Fund, Toronto Community Housing Corporation (TCHC), and Tim Hortons Camp.
We are also collaborating with various community organizations to provide culturally-based therapy for Black and Racialized families in attendance, ensuring a truly supportive experience for all.
The Black Families Un-Conference is a free, three-day camping experience designed specifically for families who identify as Black or Racialized. It will be hosted at one of Tim Hortons Camps in Ontario, offering a safe, welcoming environment where families can create lasting memories together—something that many may not otherwise have the chance to experience.
Join us for a transformative experience that allows families (parents/guardians and children) to bond, relax, and thrive in a safe space.
Space is limited—register today!
Link for Expression of Interest or scan QR Code on flyer
