Black History Month is soon approaching. As parents, we want to ensure that educators are intentional and purposeful in their approach to celebrating Black History. We thought we would share some dos and don’ts to keep in mind when planning for Black History Month so parents can understand what a positive educational experience should look […]
Do You Know the Dos and Don’ts of Planning for Black History Month? Read More »
We are full of gratitude for all the educators, parents, and caregivers who joined us this weekend for Breaking Barriers: Achieving Black Student Excellence. While many painful and difficult facts about the challenges Black students face in educational spaces were presented, innovative solutions sprung out of the hard conversations, and a real collective commitment to
How to Break Barriers! Read More »
You may recall our blog post from a few weeks ago discussing how colouring worksheets can uphold bias, reinforce stereotypes, and erase racialized children from the curriculum. Here’s an update on what happened after speaking up about that worksheet. My child’s teacher responded to my email: “Sometimes we get caught up in the hoopla of
When Speaking Up Works!A Success Story (And How You Can Speak Up Too) Read More »
When Theodor Seuss Geisel (aka Dr. Seuss) stepped into an elevator in 1955 on his way to a meeting with his publisher, Houghton Mifflin, he encountered Annie Williams, the elevator operator. She was “an elegant, and petite woman who wore white gloves and a secret smile”.[1] Ms. Williams would later serve as the inspiration behind
How Blackface can be a teachable moment…in the Classroom and at Home Read More »
At Parents for Diversity, tennis isn’t usually at the top of our agenda, but parenting and solidarity with marginalized parents is always one of our top priorities. We are delighted for Bianca Andreescu and congratulate her on the astonishing achievement of becoming the first Canadian to win a Grand Slam singles title. Sports are a
Why White Moms Like Me Need to Reject Misogynoir Against Black Moms Like Serena Williams Read More »
By Simone Aba Akyianu Micro-aggressions are like bee stings. We can recover from the sting, but we never forget how it feels. Maybe you rock an Afro, maybe you have curly ringlets, or wear Senegalese twists, box braids, cornrows, locs or Bantu knots. Recently, California and New York State each passed a law to prohibit
Touching Black Hair as Micro-Aggression Read More »
by Leslie Robertson Our 5 year-old twins have been reading these books with their mamas for months now but it’s time to return them to the library. All three feature diverse characters and are overt in tackling broader social issues of either class or racism. Last Stop on Market Street is a very sweet story
Our Kids’ Book Pics Read More »
Outrage over a recent hockey game reverberated through social media after a Black hockey player, Jonathan-Ismaël Diaby, was targeted by racist taunting and slurs. People are angry not only because of the racist incident in which a so-called “fan” called Diaby the n-word and mimicked a gorilla, while his family and girlfriend were harassed by
In March, 2018, Parents for Diversity, along with black organizations in the National Capital Region, met with then Attorney General of Ontario, Yasir Naqvi, to discuss systemic racism in schools. During the meeting, parents shared their experiences of being silenced by teachers and school boards, and feeling alienated when their children experience anti-black racism. The
A Weekend of Workshops on Addressing Anti-Black Racism in Schools Read More »
