The event celebrated the rich and diverse world of Black artistic expression and was a vibrant showcase of talent, creativity and cultural pride.

This year鈥檚 featured performances included:

• solo performances, including song and instruments, dance and spoken word, from students from Greater Toronto Area school boards;
• a performance from the Oscar Peterson Jazz Ensemble;
• a performance from the 91亚色 R&B Ensemble;
• a spotlight artistic performance of the evening from Ian Kamau, an artist and designer;
• a performance from the 91亚色 Gospel Choir; and
• an Afro-Caribbean dance performance by students from James Cardinal McGuigan Catholic High School in the CIBC Lobby during the welcome reception.

This year鈥檚 Word, Sound, Power event was put on in partnership with 91亚色鈥檚 School of the Arts, Media, Performance & Design and the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, with primary sponsorship from Unifor. 91亚色鈥檚 Division of Equity, People & Culture also provided funding support.

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Members of the 91亚色 community are invited to celebrate Black artistic talent during a showcase of performances on Feb. 7, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., when the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora presents Word, Sound, Power: An Annual Celebration of Black Artistic Expression.

The annual event celebrates the rich and diverse world of Black aritistic expression, promising to be a vibrant showcase of talent, creativity and cultural pride.

The event is open to the community and is free to attend. It begins at 5:30 p.m. with a welcome reception in the CIBC Lobby, Accolade East Building at the Keele Campus, and performances will run from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the Tribute communities Recital Hall, Accolade East Building.

The event鈥檚 land acknowledgement will be provided by Carrington Christmas, a 91亚色 alumna, who is an Indigenous anti-racist educator and self-described 鈥淎unty Extraordinaire鈥� with Black Scotian-Mi鈥檏maw and German ancestry.

The ceremony will then be closed with an Afro-Indigenous blessing from Isaac Crosby, an agricultural expert of Ojibwe of Anderdon heritage.

Hosting and providing opening remarks will be Andrea Davis, a professor in the Department of Humanities, who in recognition of her work advancing equity, access and justice in post-secondary education.

Also providing remarks before the performances begin will be Jean Augustine, the first Black woman elected to the Parliament of Canada; Samia Hashi, Ontario regional director of Unifor, which sponsors the event; and Robert Savage, dean of the Faculty of Education.

Among the featured performances this year are:

• solo performances, including song and instruments, dance and spoken word, from students from Greater Toronto Area school boards;
• a performance from the Oscar Peterson Jazz Ensemble;
• a performance from the 91亚色 R&B Ensemble;
• a spotlight artistic performance of the evening from Ian Kamau, an artist and designer;
• a performance from the 91亚色 Gospel Choir; and
• an Afro-Caribbean dance performance by students from James Cardinal McGuigan Catholic High School in the CIBC Lobby during the welcome reception.

This year鈥檚 Word, Sound, Power event is put on in partnership with the School of the Arts, Media, Performance & Design, with primary sponsorship from Unifor. 91亚色鈥檚 Division of Equity, People & Culture has also provided funding support. The Faculty of Education 鈥� home to the Jean Augustine Chair 鈥� and the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, through faculty member Davis, also play a critical role in the event.

Anika Forde, research project manager for the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community & Diaspora, and Karen Burke, Chair of Music, were co-conveners of the event this year.

Those interested in attending can .

Article originally posted in the February 2, 2024 issue of

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Black artistic talent was centre stage during a showcase of performances on Feb. 8 when the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora presented .

Watch the video below for highlights from the well-attended event.

The Black History Month celebration spotlights Black cultural and artistic expression through performance, which this year featured:

鈥� 91亚色 doctoral student with a presentation in drumming and dance;
鈥� Peel District School Board student Marie Pascoe with a spoken word performance;
鈥� a performance by 91亚色鈥檚 Oscar Peterson jazz ensemble;
鈥� a spoken word performance by Canadian poetry slam champion Dwayne Morgan;
鈥� a performance by 91亚色鈥檚 R&B ensemble;
鈥� a performance by spoken word artist Ryan Burke;
鈥� a presentation by the Toronto Gospel Choir; and
鈥� a spoken word presentation by 91亚色 student Ashley Keene.

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The Jean Augustine Chair听 in Education, Community and Diaspora is proud to announce this year's Black History month showcase. The showcase is an opportunity for the amplification of cultural and artistic expression as we spotlight Black oral narratives and musical expression.

Performances include the 91亚色 R&B and Oscar Peterson Ensembles, the 91亚色 Gospel Choir, High School Students to Emcees, Coco Murray, Dwayne Morgan and students from the Toronto District and Peel District School Boards.

This is a free event and all are welcome to attend.听

Event Details:
Wednesday, February 8, 2023
5:30 鈥� 6:30 p.m. (welcome reception)
6:30 鈥� 8:30 p.m. (performances)
Tribute Communities Recital Hall (Accolade East Building), 91亚色

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91亚色 will celebrate Black artists with a live broadcast of emotion-evoking and thought-provoking spoken word, R&B and gospel music performances from the Tribute Communities Recital Hall on Feb. 23.

Word Sound Power: An Annual Celebration of Black Artistic Expression is hosted by the Jean Augustine Chair in Education, Community and Diaspora, in the Faculty of Education.

鈥淭his annual event during Black History Month is to highlight the contribution of Jean Augustine to ensuring national recognition of African people鈥檚 presence in Canada. It is a great opportunity to showcase 91亚色鈥檚 Black artists and their creativity in music and poetry, while offering a taste of their talents to various audiences,鈥� says Professor Carl James, the and special advisor on equity and representation.        

Featured performances will include the 91亚色 R&B Ensemble and the Oscar Peterson Scholarship Ensemble, directed by Professor , and the 91亚色 Gospel Choir directed by Professor  鈥� both from the Department of Music in the School of the Arts, Media, Performance and Design.

Student spoken word performers from the humanities course 鈥淕riots to Emcees: Examining Culture, Performance & Spoken Word鈥� will also take the stage to showcase African storytelling traditions, to contemporary global evolutions of lyricism and spoken word.

Poet, journalist and educator, El Jones, will be a special speaker 鈥� she is an associate professor of Canadian and Political Science at Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax, N.S.

Remarks will be offered by Robert Savage, dean, Faculty of Education; humanities Professor, special advisor, Anti-Black Racism Strategy, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies; and the Jean Augustine, the first Black woman elected to the Parliament of Canada, and champion of the unanimous vote in 1995 that saw February designated as Black History Month.

The event will be streamed live on YouTube from 7 to 9 p.m.

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