Monday, June 29, 2020
The University of Waterloo Library has compiled a Black Lives Matter — Canadian reading list, which is based on the Black Lives Canada Syllabus // #BlackLivesCDNSyllabus (BLCS). The list is designed to improve the discovery of books that expand and build on current understandings of the Black Lives Matter movement in Canada.
The BLCS began in 2016 as a Twitter hashtag created by lawyer and community activist, Anthony N. Morgan in response to actions taken by Black Lives Matter Toronto to raise awareness about anti-Black racism in Canada. It was later compiled as a web-based list by writer and researcher Huda Hassan.
Scope of the list
Titles included in the list draw heavily from the BLCS, and are predominantly non-fiction and scholarly in nature. The list has been expanded by library staff to include additional titles about anti-Black racism in Canada and the lived experiences of Black Canadians, including members of the African Caribbean diaspora, not included in the initial list or published since the BLCS was compiled. The aim in doing so was to build on an existing resource while complementing more generalized Anti-Racism Resources, including ones for families with children and young adults, maintained by the Human Rights, Equity and Inclusion Office.
The great Black North: contemporary African Canadian poetry
Accessing titles
The Library is closed as part of the University of Waterloo’s response to the global pandemic. The closure has limited access to hard copies of the highlighted titles on the reading list. Several electronic books are included on the reading list and can be accessed online. The Library is working with campus partners to launch a phased approach to a new service called Print Pickup @ Porter.
Currently this service is available to faculty, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows who, for the purposes of research, require access to University-owned print materials not available electronically. In the meantime, you are encouraged to order copies of these titles from local public libraries currently offering curbside pick-up or from one of your favourite independent bookstores as an alternative means of access. You can also help library staff identify new titles to add to the Black Lives Matter reading list. Use the Library's Purchase request form and select Underrepresented voices from the Subject focus pull-down menu.
Share your thoughts online about what you’ve learned using #BlackLivesCDNSyllabus.
Black like who?
Credits
Along with Morgan and Hassan, the Library would like to thank Mita Williams, Scholarly Publication Librarian at the University of Windsor, for influencing this initiative through a series of blog posts (post one, post two, post three) regarding the creation of the Leddy Library’s Black Lives Matter — Canada reading list.
