Black Resistance: Remember, Recognize and Educate

Stuart Murray 00:00:00
This podcast was recorded on the ancestral lands on Treaty One territory, the traditional territory of the Anishnawbe, Cree, Oji Cree, Dakota, and the Dene peoples, and on the homeland of the Métis nation.Amanda (Voiceover) 00:00:19
This is Humans on Rights, a podcast advocating for the education of human rights. Here's your host, Stuart Murray.

Stuart Murray 00:00:30
February is Black History Month, and for this episode of Humans on Rights, I decided to go to the first major event of Black History Month that is put on by Black History Manitoba. It was an event held at the Manitoba Museum, and it was an amazing event. When I arrived, the Manitoba Museum was a buzz with action. So many things going on, including all of Winnipeg's media that were out in force, which was great to see the local media with their tripods and cameras and table microphones, and interviewing people from the community, particularly some of the organizers of Black History Manitoba. So it was great to see all that activity. But I found myself with my headphones on and my mobile recording unit, which my producer, Matt Kendall, says, if you hold it up, it looks like it's a taser. So there I was, walking around in Allaway Hall. As people were walking around or by me, I was trying to see if they would consider a conversation with me. Well, we met at that point a photographer, a clothing designer, a regular visitor, a community leader in the arts community, an organizer, or an organizer, I should say, of Black History Manitoba, one of their youth ambassadors who's involved at the University of Manitoba Students Union, and a member of the Winnipeg Police Services Community Support Division. So this podcast is about being on the road, on the move, in a very excited and educational forum. The first conversation is with Nate McLeod, photographer, filmmaker. Please enjoy.

Speaker 3 00:02:53
Nate, tell me a little bit about your background and why you're here celebrating Black History Month.

Speaker 4 00:03:02
Yeah, first of all, I was born and raised in Winnipeg great city. Over the years, I've been really interested in art and photography, and I eventually ventured into the photography business. Now I have Mac Photography, which is my business. You could check me on Instagram at MacPhoto underscore. Also, I do work with a company joined together called Moto. So it's like, what's your moto? And Moto is a place where it's a one stop shop. You could have anything from recording with music. We have music studio, we have podcast studio. We have a few photography studios as well, in one place. So you could rent it out for various things, for any social events, anything that you would like to do. I came here to get to know new people that's in the community, get to share what I do with them, and also embrace what they do. And we can maybe work together in the future.

Speaker 3 00:04:01
And why would you say that Black History Month is important?

Speaker 4 00:04:04
Black History Month is important because there's a lot of history in that community. There's a lot to learn. You could never learn enough. There's so much indicating history, american history, all over the world. When it comes on to black history throughout the year, it's not really talked about enough. And it's great to have at least this month to not only celebrate it, but educate other people about the history of black people.

Speaker 3 00:04:32
And you mentioned at one point that you're maybe thinking of making a movie.

Speaker 4 00:04:35
Yes, we're looking to hopefully later on this year, maybe early next year, we're looking to do a movie. I don't want to say too much yet, but it's going to be a comedy, a black comedy. If you remember Cool Runnings, we're doing a comedy similar to that, but with curling. So it should be fun, it should be exciting. We're just looking to get the funding that we need to put this all together and get this done for the city.

Speaker 3 00:05:02
Nate McLeod, a pleasure to meet you. Pleasure to meet you. Here celebrating Black History Month, and I will wait until we can hear some more excitement about that movie. Congratulations. And congratulations on running your business successfully.

Speaker 4 00:05:17
Thank you very much. I really appreciate the time.

Stuart Murray 00:05:26
I noticed the set up of a woman who clearly was very active in the sense that she was a clothing designer, and she was very animated as she talked to about her opportunity to engage people with clothing. Her company is called Royal Reign, and her name is Sharain. And I thoroughly enjoyed my conversation with her. I hope you do also.

Speaker 3 00:05:58
What do you think about Black History Month and why are you here?

Speaker 5 00:06:01
I would say because my ancestors have been through so much. It's a good opportunity, and I'm happy that there's, like, this entity or community surrounding back people that are here in Winnipeg, Manitoba, that are supporting small businesses. So I'm here today to just showcase my business and a few other local back businesses that I support in my store as well.

Speaker 3 00:06:25
Tell me a little bit about how you got started.

Speaker 5 00:06:27
So I started Royal Reign in 2018. It was just like a hobby. I couldn't find what I wanted at the mall. So I decided to create my own small business to showcase the stuff that I would want to wear. And I felt like when I started, a lot of people like these items. And so I started online, just opened my store in Ausburn. So far I've included, like I mentioned, I've included a few other businesses in my store as well so that they could get as much traffic as I would, because a lot of them people don't really know about their business, even though a lot of people don't really know about mine as well. But with the traffic that I get, they will also get to showcase their products as well.

Speaker 3 00:07:12
So the community is becoming stronger and stronger and more vocal. I think that just makes for a stronger Winnipeg, a stronger Manitoba. Why do you think that's happening, Sharain?

Speaker 5 00:07:23
Because a lot of us are coming together as one. Before, we didn't really have somebody or like Black Easter Manitoba. Well, I didn't really know about them. So we didn't have somebody like that who was going to showcase all of our businesses together. But because of them, now we're all coming together as one. So a lot of people are now getting to voice, talk about their business, let people know about their business, talk about the black community, how we can be supportive, how we could be as one with how we can build our businesses together.

Speaker 3 00:07:57
So, Sharon, your T shirt says welcome change. Your business is royal reign. Thank you so much for having the opportunity to chat with me.

Speaker 5 00:08:05
Thank you. Have a good day.

Stuart Murray 00:08:13
Just walking around Alloy Hall at the Manitoba Museum, where they were celebrating Black History Manitoba, I happened to run into a gentleman by the name of James Ham. And James was there simply because he had heard about Black History Month being celebrated at the Manitoba Museum and had a colleague that he had met that he hadn't seen for a long time.

Speaker 6 00:08:41
My name is James Ham and I saw this advertised online. I'm interested in learning about different cultures, different people, different places. I believe that Winnipeg is a strong melting pot. We don't really know enough. So, for me, opportunities like this where you can just come and get a sense of what's happening in the community, who the people are, because everything is changing so fast. Right. I'm super excited because one of the first people that I met was somebody who I knew from junior high. Right. And it's so great to see her here, representing the Caribbean community and sharing that knowledge. So it's passed on. I remember her dad being very active as well, and she's here, and that's wonderful to see. There's a cross section of people there's. Certainly there's the merchants, but there's also service groups, which I think is important for the community. So I think it's a nice mix so far. Yeah. And it's kind of fun. And on a cold Winnipeg Day, it's so nice to get out and we've got this music, and it seems like a positive vibe, and everybody's greeting you with a high and hello, and there's no judgments or anything like that. We're just getting through it.

Speaker 3 00:09:43
Delighted you take some time to speak with me. Enjoy the rest of the day.

Speaker 6 00:09:46
Thank you for your time. Appreciate it.

Stuart Murray 00:09:55
I recognize one person who was walking through Alloy Hall to celebrate Black History Manitoba's event there, and she is known as a community leader in the arts community. Camilla Holland has long been involved at the Manitoba Theater Center, and I was delighted to have a brief conversation with her. I hope you enjoy it.

Speaker 3 00:10:18
What brings you to celebrate Black History Month?

Amanda (Voiceover) 00:10:23
Well, I think Black History Month is an incredibly important part of our community's celebration cycle. I think it's an incredible moment to be reminded that Black Lives matter every day. But we can really lean into the heritage and future of Black lives here in Manitoba. And events like this one, organized by Black History Manitoba are incredibly important to support. It's first Fridays here at the Manitoba Museum. The building is hopping. There's tons of families. There's young people, there's old people. It's a really wonderful celebratory night. And it's so wonderful that Alaway Hall has been turned over to black businesses, to black owned entrepreneurs who are really celebrating the value they bring to Manitoba and the relationship they have with Manitoba. So it's an exciting night to be here. Exciting to support the community. Exciting to see the Manitoba Museum full of people who might not otherwise come.

Speaker 3 00:11:14
If there was one thing that you would like people to take away from tonight, or just the notion that Black History Manitoba is very vibrant and puts a lot of work into Black History Month, what would that be?

Amanda (Voiceover) 00:11:28
I think Manitoban has always diminished that we've got these extraordinary cultural assets and that they're built on the backs of volunteers. And so Black History Manitoba has got an incredible board of trustees. They've got an incredible leadership team. It's volunteers really celebrating and amplifying the important work they're doing, and doing it in a way that involves culture and food and history and business. And it's just an inspiring kind of example of what we can do in the depths of winter. Right. It's February. It's a really chilly night out there. We're just seeing an awful lot of people coming in tonight who want to learn. They want to learn, they want to listen. There's some extraordinary events in the museum proper. And then, of course, this wonderful add on. So I'm just very thrilled to come and be a supporter and be an amplifier. And I would be doing myself a disservice if I didn't say that at Manageable Theater Center. We have a beautiful play coming up this month. The incredible work by Alice Childress Trouble in Mind, which was originally in 1955 when she wrote it. Supposed to be the first black female playwright who was produced in Broadway. She did not end up having the production there because she wouldn't change the ending. The white producers asked her to change the ending to soften it, and she refused. So her play didn't premiere on Broadway until 2022. It's having an incredible resurgence now across the US. And Canada. And at MTC, we're proud to produce it with a really amazing team.

Speaker 3 00:12:49
When is it coming to MTC? Give us the dates.

Amanda (Voiceover) 00:12:51
So it opens on February the 15th. And it closes on March the 6th.

Speaker 3 00:12:57
Thank you for being here. And thank you for all the great work that you do in the community.

Amanda (Voiceover) 00:13:01
I'm thrilled to be here and I can't wait to see this building hopping all night long.

Stuart Murray 00:13:12
I was delighted to meet Tracy Cariohogo, who is involved with Black History Manitoba and is a Youth ambassador and very active at the University of Manitoba Students Union. She was very engaged in selling a lot of Black History Manitoba mugs and information and T shirts, and took time out to have this conversation. I hope you enjoy it.

Speaker 7 00:13:39
My name is Tracy Caru Hogo, and I'm on the Black History Manitoba Organizing Committee as well. So I am a student at the University of Manitoba, and I'm also on the University of Manitoba Students Union's Executive. I am their vice president. Student Life.

Speaker 3 00:13:54
Why do you think it's important? Tracy to celebrate Black history.

Speaker 7 00:13:59
Manitoba I do feel it's very important just because we have so many black Canadians, we have so many immigrants. Even just speaking from the university perspective, we have so many black international students here in Manitoba and here in Winnipeg. And obviously, when people come from their communities and they join our community here in Winnipeg, they want to feel a sense of belonging and a sense of society together. So I think when we celebrate Black History Month, it just shows that we are allies, and it just shows that we are celebrating the work that black people are doing in the community here as well.

Speaker 3 00:14:34
And it's great to see so many young people. Tracy, is that something that you have been involved in?

Speaker 7 00:14:40
Yes, I personally always just been passionate about being black and also being a black woman, just because I know the different systematic structures that can affect me as an individual. But I also feel like it's a way for me to give back to my community because I am here where I am, and I hope to inspire other women, and because other black women have inspired me, other black individuals have inspired me. So I feel like it's part of my responsibility to also grow and develop my community as a black youth today.

Speaker 3 00:15:09
And what are you studying at university?

Speaker 7 00:15:12
So I'm studying psychology and I'm minoring in Women and Gender Studies.

Speaker 3 00:15:16
And where would you like that to take you, Tracy?

Speaker 7 00:15:19
I would actually like that to take me to a place where I'm advocating for black women. I've always been passionate about advocating for black women and giving them a platform that shows what they are capable of, and giving them a platform where they are appreciated for what they have done in their communities, whether it's Manitoba, whether it's Canada, whether it's us, just in general, the whole world. So advocacy is where my heart really lies.

Speaker 3 00:15:43
And if there was one thing that people are listening to this podcast, tracy said, how could I get more involved with Black History Manitoba, which is the organization? How might they go about doing that?

Speaker 7 00:15:55
We obviously have an Instagram BHM winipeg, so they can always reach out in case they want to get involved. And one thing for people to remember is Black History Month. It's February, but Black History is throughout the whole year. So you'll have to be able to celebrate it because Black people exist in January, they exist in February, they exist in March. So why not celebrate them throughout the whole year as well?

Speaker 3 00:16:16
Tracy, thank you for taking some time to speak to me tonight. I know you're very busy, so I appreciate you. I appreciate your time. Thank you so very much and have a great celebration.

Speaker 7 00:16:25
Thank you so much. It was a pleasure talking to you as well.

Stuart Murray 00:16:35
And one of the last people that I will talk to is Dale McDonald. And I should call her Constable Dale McDonald, who I met briefly at City Hall at the first part of February when Scott Gillingham, the new mayor of Winnipeg, officially declared the opening of the month for Black History Manitoba celebration or Black History Month celebration. And so I met Constable McDonald at that meeting and I realized she was manning a booth in Allaway Hall to obviously talk about issues to do with community servicing. Here was my conversation with Constable Dale McDonald with the Winnipeg Police Services Community Support Division.

Speaker 3 00:17:21
What brings you to celebrate Black History Month?

Speaker 8 00:17:25
What brings me here is part of my job as well as I have a lot of relationships with the people here and the community members here. I currently work at the Winnipeg Police Service in the crime prevention diversity section. And I think it's important that our members represent the communities that we serve. So it's important for us to be here and show that our commitment to our diverse communities and showing that our young people that there's opportunities, whether it be police staff, cadets, other areas in our service, and just showing we have information on personal safety, fraud and scam and just bringing that awareness to our community members.

Speaker 3 00:18:04
So you're a member of the Winnipeg Police Service?

Speaker 8 00:18:06
Yes, I am.

Speaker 3 00:18:07
And how long have you been a member?

Speaker 8 00:18:09
This is my 28th year with the Winnipeg police service.

Speaker 3 00:18:12
And what changes have you seen being a member of the police service?

Speaker 8 00:18:16
The change that I've seen is I should mention that I am the second bot team on the job and I've seen our service become more diverse. If you take a look at our cadets, you can see we have a lot of different backgrounds. I believe there's approximately 43 different languages that the officers speak within our service. So I think that's important for our newcomers to be able to communicate in a time of need and we have those resources available if they don't. English is not their first language. So it's very helpful to have, like I said, that representation in our service as well as for our community members.

Speaker 3 00:18:51
So you have a booth set up here in Allaway Hall. We're celebrating Black History Month. If there was one thing you would like people to take away from tonight's event. What would that be?

Amanda (Voiceover) 00:19:03
Oh, wow.

Speaker 8 00:19:04
I would like them to take away that everybody should be celebrated. I think it's important to recognize our history, to educate ourselves and share that awareness with everybody.

Stuart Murray 00:19:23
Just to wrap up this episode of Humans on Rights, I would say that it was very interesting to be mobile, if you will, on the road in a very live and engaging environment. It was amazing to see the activity that was taking place at the Manitoba Museum. The Black History Manitoba organization, under the great leadership of Nadia Thompson and her team, deserve all of the accolades that came their way that evening. And the great part about it is that February, there's so much more to celebrate with Black History Manitoba and Black History Month. And if you go to the website in these episode notes, you can see part of their calendar.

Amanda (Voiceover) 00:20:11
Thanks for listening to humans on rights. A transcript of this episode is available by clicking the link in the show notes of this episode. Humans on Rights is recorded and hosted by Stuart Murray. Social Media marketing by Buffy Davy music by Doug Edmund For more, go to human rights hub CA, 

Tara Sands (Voiceover) 00:20:11
produced and distributed.By the Sound Off media company.