Black History Month

Happy Black History Month!

During this month and beyond we want to celebrate and uplift Black voices on our campus and within our community. This web page seeks to recognize both historical and contemporary black activists that have been at the forefront of the most important human rights movements. Furthermore, black artists, leaders, thinkers, etc. centering black joy and empowerment, are also worthy contributors whether situated in or outside of activist movements. For allies, we ask you to hold space, honor, and uplift Black voices that have been marginalized historically and to this day. We encourage students and community members to read through these powerful quotes and watch the videos as a starting point to understand the legacy of Black excellence.

UVSS Statement for Black History Month

The Government of Canada announced the theme of Black history month for the year 2025 as “Black Legacy and Leadership: Celebrating Canadian History and Uplifting Future Generations.” This theme represents the diversity, strength and leadership of the Black communities who have taken control of their legacies. It’s deeply important to recognize the contributions of Black students, as well as the barriers they face when pursuing higher education. The Black community at UVic is deliberately minimized. Dismissive narratives fuel isolation and give the University and its institutions cover to ignore and neglect Black students, staff, and faculty. This isn’t just oversight; it’s systemic erasure. There are thriving Black communities on this campus and in this community and it is unacceptable that academic structures participate in their minimization.

Black students navigate constant barriers, including systematic marginalization, delegitimization, erasure, and the trivialization of their experiences and contributions—both in the classroom and beyond. They face persistent racism from authority figures within the institution and the broader community. Too often, Black voices are silenced, dismissed, or tokenized when their truths become inconvenient for the structures and systems that oppress them

This is unacceptable. The lives, leadership and legacy of Black students, faculty, and staff — their communities, and their families — are necessary and vibrant contributions to UVic’s campus. Without their presence, this space lacks the richness, resilience, and brilliance they bring. The barriers and exclusions placed in their path do not just limit them—they diminish us all, leaving a community less whole. Black students deserve to take up space and should be uplifted.

Click here to read the full statement.

Black history is not just for black people. Black history is Canadian history.

- Jean AugustineJean Augustine is a trailblazing politician, social activist, and educator. Jean Augustine was the first Black Canadian woman to serve as a federal Minister of the Crown and Member of Parliament.

We must open the doors and we must see to it they remain open, so that others can pass through.

Rosemary BrownRosemary Brown was the first Black Canadian woman to become a member of a provincial legislature and the first woman to run for leadership of a federal political party.

The hardest thing about being Black in Canada is the prejudice I face and that’s where my fear comes from.

Cameron DavisCameron is a 15-year-old YouTuber who uses the platform to make videos about what it’s like to be a Black teenager living in Canada.

Follow your passion, be prepared to work hard and sacrifice, and above all, don’t let anyone limit your dreams.

Donovan BaileyDonovan Bailey is a retired Jamaican Canadian sprinter and the first man in history to be world champion, Olympic champion and world record holder at the same.

I draw inspiration from my own personal adversity and triumphs and things that speak to my authentic truth and rawness and vulnerability.

Dr. Chika Stacy OriuwaDr. Oriuwa is a physician, spoken word artist, and advocate against systemic racism in health care.

We will not march back to what was. We move to what shall be, a country that is bruised, but whole. Benevolent, but bold. Fierce and free.

Amanda GormanGorman was diagnosed with an auditory processing disorder in kindergarten. She also has speech articulation issues that make it difficult for her to pronounce certain words and sounds. Despite these challenges, her mom says she was inquisitive and a bit of an “overachiever” from a young age.Aug 2, 2021.

The white man’s happiness cannot be purchased by the black man’s misery.

Frederick DouglassFrederick Douglass was an American social reformer, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. After escaping from slavery in Maryland, he became a national leader of the abolitionist movement in Massachusetts and New York, becoming famous for his oratory and incisive antislavery writings.

Black history isn’t a separate history. This is all of our history, this is American history, and we need to understand that. It has such an impact on kids and their values and how they view black people.

Karyn ParsonsKaryn Parsons is an American actress best known for her role as Hilary Banks in NBC‘s ’The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’.

We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Every no takes me to a yes.

Bessie ColemanBessie Coleman was an early American civil aviator. She was the first African-American woman and first Native American to hold a pilot license.

You [can be] physically tired… but at the same time, you’ve got to just tell yourself, ‘I can do it. I can’t give up.’ You’ve got to go out there and perform. Just make magic, make it happen. I try to do that every single time I step on the track.

Andre De GrasseAndre De Grasse is a Canadian Olympic sprinter.

I understood there were many ways of being in the world, that to privilege one rigid set of beliefs over another was to lose something. Everything is bizarre, and everything has value. Or if not value, at least merits investigation.

Esi Edugyan, Washington BlackBestselling Canadian (Victoria-based!) novelist Esi Edugyan writes richly imagined and impeccably researched stories that illuminate complicated truths about race and belonging.

Privilege isn’t about what you’ve gone through; it’s about what you haven’t had to go through. And right now, we are in a time that is calling on us to learn the stories that we don’t know.

Janaya KhanAs co-founder of Black Lives Matter (BLM) Toronto who also identifies as Black, queer, and gender nonconforming, Janaya Khan is a prime example of a leader who reminds us of the importance of listening to others’ stories and listening intently to accounts of racism or any other form of discrimination.

We need to pay attention and understand the challenges faced by those who experience not only disability, but also a range of social identities and circumstances, such as being a woman, an older person, racialized, Indigenous, homeless, transgendered or a person from the LGBTQ2+ community.

Laverne JacobsLaverne Jacobs is currently an associate law professor at the University of Windsor, as well as Canada’s first nominee for the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

As someone who is still kind of a youth, I think that it’s our responsibility to carry those stories. Sometimes people in my age group might forget to honour the people that have come before us … but I think that it’s very important to honour… the people who are still here and honour our ancestors in any way and honour the history of our community.

Aaron ParryAaron Parry is a university student from Hamilton, Ontario. Aaron’s research for the Afro-Canadian Caribbean Association of Hamilton (ACCA) and the Hamilton Black History Council last year led to the creation of the Hamilton Black History Database, which pays respect to the histories and stories the Black community in Hamilton.

Black History Month

Happy Black History Month!

UVSS Statement for Black History Month

Black history is not just for black people. Black history is Canadian history.

We must open the doors and we must see to it they remain open, so that others can pass through.

The hardest thing about being Black in Canada is the prejudice I face and that’s where my fear comes from.

Follow your passion, be prepared to work hard and sacrifice, and above all, don’t let anyone limit your dreams.

I draw inspiration from my own personal adversity and triumphs and things that speak to my authentic truth and rawness and vulnerability.

We will not march back to what was. We move to what shall be, a country that is bruised, but whole. Benevolent, but bold. Fierce and free.

The white man’s happiness cannot be purchased by the black man’s misery.

Black history isn’t a separate history. This is all of our history, this is American history, and we need to understand that. It has such an impact on kids and their values and how they view black people.

We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.

Every no takes me to a yes.

You [can be] physically tired… but at the same time, you’ve got to just tell yourself, ‘I can do it. I can’t give up.’ You’ve got to go out there and perform. Just make magic, make it happen. I try to do that every single time I step on the track.

I understood there were many ways of being in the world, that to privilege one rigid set of beliefs over another was to lose something. Everything is bizarre, and everything has value. Or if not value, at least merits investigation.

Privilege isn’t about what you’ve gone through; it’s about what you haven’t had to go through. And right now, we are in a time that is calling on us to learn the stories that we don’t know.

We need to pay attention and understand the challenges faced by those who experience not only disability, but also a range of social identities and circumstances, such as being a woman, an older person, racialized, Indigenous, homeless, transgendered or a person from the LGBTQ2+ community.

Marie Joseph-Angelique

Dawn Settlement/Dresdan Ontario

Jamaican Maroons

Trauma and Resilence

Slavery in Canada

ZAMI (Black Queer Caribbean organizers)

Hogan’s Alley

SGWU Affair

Anderson Abbott

Rosemary Brown

Profiles: