“I woke up when they put Trayvon [Martin] to sleep.”
This was one of the quotes (originally said by poet Shanice Nicole) that Robyn Maynard gave as she began her talk on her new book Policing Black Lives: State Violence in Canada From Slavery to the Present.
On Oct.12, the Senate Room in Robertson Hall was packed with spectators awaiting the arrival of Maynard and the panel. Every chair was filled, and the room was crowded with people standing for the entire three-hour discussion.
The panel consisted of four speakers: Maynard, and three locals, Grace Adeniyi Ogunyankin, Chelby Daigle, and Keya Prempeh, all who shared their own experiences with anti-blackness in the Ottawa area. The event was curated by Carleton University masters student and Graduate Students’ Association (GSA) executive, Debbie Owusu-Akyeeah.
Organized by the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 4600, GSA, and Ontario Public Interest Research Group Carleton, the four individuals were invited to speak at Carleton to address many issues of anti-blackness, including those in the Ottawa region.
Maynard is a Black feminist author, activist, and educator, who has spent most of her adult life dedicated to unearthing and bringing awareness to anti-blackness in Canada. She emphasizes that this is not a recent occurrence, but has been around since pre- Confederation.
“One of the most important things for me, while doing this book tour, is for me to connect these issues to what people are experiencing locally, because in a national perspective, the local particularities are going to get lost,” Maynard said in an interview.
Maynard covered a lot of topics in her book, including the devaluing of Black lives, from slavery to present day, the way Black people have been perceived over the generations, gendered violence, as well as the miseducation of Black youth.
The panel discussion revolved around three main points, anti-blackness in Ottawa, anti-blackness within the Muslim community, as well as the struggles in the LGBTQ+ community.
Between the three panelists, they had many stories to tell about anti-blackness. Adeniyi Ogunyankin and Daigle said they both had their first names changed, partially as a result of other people making fun of them as children.
Daigle focuses on anti-Blackness in the Muslim community, and she told the crowd that, “Canada is okay with discussing Islamophobia, but they are not okay with talking about anti-blackism.”
Prempeh is non-binary, and spoke about their post-secondary experience, having just graduated from Carleton University’s bachelor of social work program. Prempeh mentioned how Ottawa does not have a good support system for them, but also how anti-Blackness affects them as well.
“I know that there is potential for Ottawa,” Prempeh said.
Avoidance was a key theme throughout the night, as all four of the speakers mentioned that conversations need to happen for people to take action. They made it clear that other people are not going to advance their situation, and that Black people must come together if they want changes to happen.
Maynard gave one final piece of advice to those who are wondering how they can help, and what needs to change in Ottawa’s community.
“I think a lot of things need to improve . . . we need to look at the social movements that are happening as ways to inform ourselves,” she said. “There’s a lot of really inspiring activism happening right here in Ottawa. I think people really need to look at ‘how can I support Black people who are actually doing this work, and what are they fighting for.’ And then plug into that.”
