By “We just got tired of only hearing people talk about Black history during Black history month,” says ByBlacks.com publisher Roger Dundas. “We wanted to do something that would encourage all of us to acknowledge our past and present trailblazers all the time.”
“I’m hoping this campaign goes beyond social media and gets people to realize how little they know about Black struggles and achievements in Canada,” says ByBlacks.com editor-in-chief Camille Dundas. “I’m still amazed that the Black history curriculum in Canadian schools is so thin. We have children growing up having no idea what role their ancestors played in the foundation of Canada.”
The campaign is particularly timely given we are celebrating Canada’s 150th birthday next year. “It’s important for us to recognize the contributions that Black Canadians have made in shaping the history of Canada,” says Roger Dundas.
The social media campaign not only features historical figures but also present-day personalities, businesses, entrepreneurs and groups that are making history in Canada. The campaign is funded in part by The Canadian Periodical Fund. It was launched on August 1st 2016 (Emancipation Day in Ontario) and will run til August 1st 2017.
“We’re six weeks into the campaign and the online response has been overwhelming, the number of retweets and shares are incredible. It just shows how hungry people are for this kind of information all year round,” says Camille Dundas.
If you know someone who should be featured in the campaign, tweet @ByBlacks using #BlackHistory365.
