Time for a new kind of black activism in Toronto

Interesting how the young activists feel that they are not recognized, welcomed or listened to by the current generation:

We are graduate students whose work, as well as experience, has made us acutely aware of the plights facing black youth within a society that privileges certain groups over others. We are aware that black youth are under-represented among post-secondary graduates and in the workforce, and overrepresented in the criminal justice system. And we are working alongside members of our community to address these issues. If the older generation of activists has not noticed our work or that of our cohorts it may because ours is, for our community, a new kind of more democratic activism.

Perhaps the most surprising comments in the Star article came from Valerie Steele, president of the Jamaican Diaspora Canada Foundation, whose work we greatly admire. She added her voice to the chorus lamenting the lack of young black leaders. But we had met with Steele before the article came out and explained to her our concern that too many black youth feel isolated and marginalized from the activist community. That too many of these older activists seem to fail to understand the needs and realities of black youth and in so doing actively stifle their voices.

It’s time for the current generation of activists to open the space for young voices, to democratically engage the youth they claim to champion. We strongly believe that the next generation of black leadership must work in concert with those who have slipped through the cracks or who are on the margins of society. Only then can we claim truly to represent our community.

As our antecedents have recognized, the only way to effect meaningful change is to have grassroots-level organizing. To this end, we have established the Jamaican Canadian Youth Council, a youth-led organization. We seek to establish ourselves as a supportive agent to empower, mobilize and motivate young people across Ontario to work collaboratively toward creating programs to generate change.

We know this can work because we’ve seen it happen. Contrary to what the older generation of activists is saying, there is an impressive group of emerging leaders who not only work for the community’s marginalized youth, but with them.

Time for a new kind of black activism in Toronto | Toronto Star.