Efforts by a group of high school students in Victoria to reduce systemic racism and support Black youth has landed them a B.C. multiculturalism grant.
The Black Youth Empowerment group works to ensure there is bystander intervention information available that is culturally relevant, and examining how it can “resonate with the group’s Black identities and experiences,” according to the project’s website.
The group of six students began reviewing the Victoria Centre for Sexual Assault’s project respect content in 2020. From there, it grew.
The group also provides a safe and supportive space for Black youth and discusses how community members can respond to acts of gender-based and racialized violence.
“A lot of the members talk about how they’re the only Black kid in their school, and how isolating that feels. Since being a part of the group, they’ve found a community of people they feel safe to talk about personal experiences with,” said Phoebe Chih, the youth program coordinator.
Most of the members of the group feel a sense of family and understanding, something they aren’t always able to find in their usual community, Chih added.
“I think that remembering that teachers and anyone who works with youth that they are ultimately the role models for students, whether or not it’s just for Black students, they are modelling how other students should behave when it comes to racism.”
The group runs out of the sexual assault centre, but isn’t subsidized by them. Instead, they have one core funding source – the Public Health Agency of Canada — but that funding agreement comes to an end this September.
“We really appreciate the grant because it allows us to continue this work,” said Laura Velasquez, co-director of prevention at the centre.
For now, the group will continue to meet and hold table talks.
Both Velasquez and Chih expressed their concerns for the future of the group, and are actively looking for ways to ensure its continuity.
“It would be really unfortunate to see this program completely dissipate, and it is really devastating that this group won’t exist anymore,” Chih said.
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