EMPOWERMENT THROUGH EDUCATION
Blacbiblio.com advocates a philosophy of empowerment and acceptance through education. This philosophy incorporates three intertwining concepts.
Today, everyone learns in a global world.
Today families, schools and all community institutions share the responsibility for preparing young people for living and learning in a global culture. Canada has always been shaped by the confluence of multiple cultures on its shores. How did we receive culture? How did we create belonging and open opportunities? These stories implicitly beg these questions. All Canadians can learn from this journey.
Our current understanding of the world is mediated by our past.
The ABC’s helps young people acquire an empowering set of “navigational” skills which include the ability to:
‣ Access unknown information from a variety of sources.
‣ Analyze and explore how history is “constructed”.
‣ Evaluate the stories’ explicit and implicit messages against one’s own ethical, moral and/or democratic principles.
‣ Express or create their own messages using a variety of media tools.
Learning about silent voices is an ‘alternative’.
Canada has always had a history embedded in multiple cultures, though most are woefully unaware of how other cultures made a difference. Thus, we are working so that all Canadians develop better cultural literacy. The power of history is its ability to inspire independent thinking and foster critical analysis. The goal of historical education is to make every person feel valued and transform the world so that all benefit from its richness.
OUR HISTORY
Blacbiblio began in 2006 with the mission to educate Canadians about their unknown Black history. In 2010, in response to the lack of Black Canadian stories in schools across the country, we began to develop the ABC’s of Canadian Black History Kit: A Journey of Discovery into Canadian History.
The Kit, launched at McGill University in 2016 encompasses science, sports, history, business, education, politics, and geography among other topics. It spotlights 26 historical characters and events within Canada. With its fascinating Canadian Black stories, it will bring diversity and inclusion into your classroom.
We are committed to an inclusive Canadian-focused education.
OUR AUTHORS
Dr. Dorothy W. Williams
President and Founder of Blacbiblio.com, Inc.
Linton Garner
Sales and Marketing Director
The ABC’s of Canadian Black History, a treasured resource for Quebec teachers, was created by respected community activist, historian, author, and professor, Dr. Dorothy Williams, who grew up in Montreal’s historic Black community of Little Burgundy. She created Blacbiblio.com, to foster accessible resources and a bibliographic record of the historical presence of Blacks in Canada. Dr. Williams is in-demand speaker on Canadian Black history, with a Master’s in History and a Doctorate in Library and Information Studies.
Linton Garner, another veteran Montrealer, brings decades of community and education development and his passion for history and storytelling to his role in the design and marketing of the ABC’s. Linton has developed expertise in the educational needs of visible minority youth and has consulted with provincial school boards on youth retention, community networking and curriculum development.
