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Harriet’s Legacies:
Race, Historical Memory and Futures in Canada

Organized by Ronald Cummings, Natalee Caple, Gregory Betts, Kevin Gosine, and Tamari Kitossa
Day events at Pond Inlet, Brock University
Evening events at the Niagara Artists Centre

This important conference will highlight the historical presence of Black Canadians in Canada. The title refers to the crucial role that St. Catharines played in the Underground Railroad and the abolition of slavery. Harriet Tubman, who is recognized by UNESCO, as a freedom seeker, abolitionist and ‘conductor’ was the city’s most renowned participant in the Underground Railroad. Tubman and the Black citizens who helped to build St. Catharines are soon to be recognized by the opening of a new elementary school in downtown St. Catharines. The timing of the conference will help to connect the university and the broader community around shared goals of unity in diversity, the recovery and memorialization of Black history in Ontario and the promotion of general knowledge around the multiple accomplishments of Black Canadians.

FEATURING PERFORMANCES + PRESENTATIONS BY
dann j. Broyld, Carole Lynn Stewart, Jennifer Harris, Jessica Ratcliffe, Kate Siklosi, Victoria Partyka, Anique J. Jordan, Carla Chambers, Kaie Kellough, Jacqueline Valencia, Klyde Broox, Clifton Joseph, Lillian Allen, Paul Barrett, Cecil Foster, Carolyn Thompson, Leslie Sanders, Wilma Morrison, Natasha Henry, David Hemmings, Kit Dobson, Deanna Henderson, Ronald Cummings, Nalini Mohabir, Zainab AMadahy, Bonita Lawrence, Paula Madden, Ciann Wilson, Jane Andres, DJ Marinko Marinkov, Bill Ralph

THURSDAY 22 OCTOBER  2015 > beginning @ 8:30AM
A day of conference presentations, musical performances, and a catered lunch followed by keynote presentations by two-time Juno Award winning Dub poet Lillian Allen and Dr. Paul Barrett, author of Blackening Canada. An evening of music, dub poetry, and a special living tribute to Austin Clarke.

FRIDAY 23 OCTOBER 2015 > beginning @ 9:00AM
A morning of conference presentations and roundtable discussions, followed by a guided tour of the Black history of Niagara Peninsula by Niagara Bound Tours. Evening events feature a discussion and demonstration of the vinyl history of Dub, Techno, and Hip Hop followed by a screening of NFB classic King of the Hill, featuring St. Catharines’ own Ferguson Jenkins, the greatest Canadian baseball player of all time.

Register here:
http://www.eventbrite.ca/e/harriets-legacies-race-historical-memory-and-futures-in-canada-tickets-18553504030

 

Sculpture by Frank Rekrut
Photograph by Gregory Betts
Poster by Natasha Pedros, Niagara Artists Centre