CREDIT: FSU PUBLICATIONS AND COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT

What a difference a year has made. We came out of locked-down services and remote learning in 2022 to be present for face to face service and in-person learning in 2023. Yet as remote as we were, I still remember the excitement buzzing across the virtual landscape when Fanshawe signed the Scarborough Charter on Anti-Black Racism and Black Inclusion in Higher Education one year ago this month. By signing the charter, Fanshawe made a visible commitment toward fighting racism and promoting inclusion on our campuses and thus began a year of change. One of those changes was creating the position of Anti-Racism and Inclusion Specialist, which I very humbly and gratefully accepted in July 2022. Since then, it has been a busy six months of planning, creating, initiating, researching, developing and implementing. It has been an honour to work every day towards developing anti-racism programming, training and awareness pieces to offer our Fanshawe community, engage with students on various outreach projects and events, and get to know so many of you on a personal level. It is with extreme pleasure, that the EDI team is in a position this year to offer a number of inperson events and activities to commemorate Black History Month at Fanshawe College for the first time and nudge our anti-racism efforts a little bit further.

Being anti-racist means more than just not being racist. Being anti-racist in itself is a call to action.

To educate, to inform, to share posts, to call people out, to speak up and engage in difficult conversations. Our country, our city, and our community has sat too long in a comfortable space with racist ideals and attitudes, and now it’s time to step out of that comfort zone and actively engage in anti-racism strategies.


I follow the daily blog posts of Indigenous healer Sandi Boucher (sandiboucher.com), who says that Allyship is a verb, not a noun. You are an ally when you are in action.

In keeping with that sentiment, we are presenting Four Calls to Action during Black History Month; one for each week of the month. Follow the FSU and Fanshawe’s official social media platforms to remain up to date on what’s happening and we will announce a new call to action every Wednesday beginning Feb. 1. Each of the Four Calls to Action will feature a partnership with a different area at Fanshawe. We would like to acknowledge and thank our college partners for their participation in this initiative.

If you have a chance to visit the Library Learning Commons between Feb. 10-24, you will be able to engage with their Black History Month interactive display and sign up for the Reading Week challenge. The librarians have selected a Black Canadian author to feature and there will be prizes and giveaways for students who enter the challenge. This year’s book is Shut Up You’re Pretty by Tea Mutonji; a gritty, visceral account of a teenager’s arrival from the Congo with her family to Scarborough, Ont.

The EDI team is quite excited to join with the FSU to present a Black History month Guest Speaker event on Feb. 16 in the Oasis from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. We promise a couple of engaging speakers with an entertainer or two. Watch for some advertized food specials to be offered in the Oasis during this event.

You can also check out the many Black History Month activities and events that will be taking place in and around London during the month of February. The organizing committee has been working diligently with the London Public Library and Museum London to bring some quality showcase events to the community.