GUELPH – The Guelph Black Heritage Society (GBHS) has partnered with a teacher in Waterloo Region to produce a curriculum-based program to highlight what is locally being called Black Heritage Month.
“This is a real passion for me,” said Lorraine Harris, the teacher at the Waterloo Catholic School Board who developed the program called “My Place in this World.”
“As a people, our story didn’t begin with the brutal slave trade. It’s time to change the narrative and build self-esteem and pride in our youth.”
Harris said the Atlantic slave trade stripped Black people of their language, their religion – even their names – when they reached North America, and it’s been an uphill battle to win constitutional rights and freedoms ever since.
And while it was necessary to tell that narrative and have it recognized as a blight on history, “we have spent a great deal of time looking at slavery and this narrative,” Harris said.
“We’re at a point now where people are aware. We have tried to celebrate this pain and the heroes of the day, but there’s room for more,” she said.
“We need to go beyond that. Our story begins in Africa. That’s our heritage. That’s our roots.”
Harris said to hear the slavery story now can actually be detrimental to Black youth. It’s a story of shame and sadness, she said, and hearing it year after year can chip away at a student’s sense of worth and value in the world.
“The slavery narrative is a history of suffering. But our heritage is one of magnificence,” Harris said.
She has created material for teachers to use in the classroom or online.
The first unit is called “The Great African Kings and Queens” and Harris said she’s excited for all young people, but especially Black youth, to learn about the power and wealth and majesty of their heritage.
“Great civilizations existed before Atlantic slavery,” she said.
“We want to hone in on youth, build self-esteem and create excitement about who they are and where they come from.”
The program is geared to primary, junior and intermediate students. Harris hopes to add a program for secondary students next year.
Denise Francis, president of the GBHS, said her group is also lobbying for Black History Month to become Black Heritage Month.
“I grew up in Guelph and Black history only consisted of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railway. Now I know our history is much more than that,” Francis said.
Education has been a focus this year at GBHS with their #ChangeStartsNow initiative.
The momentum that formed over the summer with so many Black Lives Matter marches is still in full swing, Francis said.
She said an anti-racism workshop held last year had 200 registrants and more than 60 people attended a Youth Art Show recently. GBHS is also planning an anti-racism summit in April.
“The community wants to learn,” Francis said.
“They are active and engaged, so we know there’s appetite out there for this.”
Teachers or school boards that want to learn more about the program can email info@guelphblackheritage.ca.
