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LEGACY
Over the last decade, Toronto had developed into the largest centre for African music in North America, with each region of Africa contributing its own, distinct, musical tradition. AfroFest, showcasing both local and international musical and cultural performers, has become a annual event drawing crowds in the thousands. African-Canadian artists in general have a passion for their native cultures which provides inspiration in creating their own music, writing, poetry and painting. Numerous festivals celebrate African Identity, bringing African artists together for an exchange of ideas and promotion of their talents. The organization CELAFI (Celebrating Africa Identity) links international black artists and their Canadian counterparts through annual conferences, workshops and performances focussing on visual arts, literature, music, dance and film.(17) In the world of film, most of the of the productions by African-Canadians are social-issue documentaries, reflecting the Canadian documentary tradition. They are also indicative of a more culturally specific response that has been termed "a will to responsibility." This involves a fervent attachment to the history of African people worldwide and an interest in expressing it within Western culture. When a filmmaker takes up a camera, for example, there is an urge to correct the wrongs that have been done or interpreted before -- there is an urge to "tell the true story."(18) In the literary field, English teacher Carol Talbot has published works including Growing Up Black in Canada, which received an Excellence in Education Certificate from the Ontario Secondary Teacher's Federation. Talbot has received the new playwright's award from Theatre Fountainhead for The Gathering. George Elliott Clarke's works include Fire on the Water: An Anthology of Black Nova Scotian Writing, and Saltwater Spirituals and Deeper Blues. He has also written conference papers on "Africville and Africadian Literature: The Death and Resurrection of Africadian Cultural Nationalism" for the Black Cultural Centre and Dartmouth Heritage Museum.(19)
3,4,9,10,11 15 17,18,19,20 The Blacks in Canada,
A History by Robin W. Winks
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Once Opiyo Oloya settled himself in Canada, he made an important move
back to his African roots. He keeps in close touch with the situation
in Uganda and started writing a regular column for The Vision,
Uganda's leading newspaper, bringing both an engaged and removed perspective
of current events as they unfold. Oloya also became the host of a radio
programme, broadcasting the sounds of African music over the airwaves
of Toronto and feeding a growing audience for African music and culture
in Canada.
The Canadian expression of African dance celebrates African identity by
reflecting the collective struggles and resistance faced by the African
diaspora (people of African descent who live all over the world) and their
triumphs and achievements as they reclaim their heritage. Len Gibson is
one of Canada's pioneers in dance. One of his ensembles, titled "One Hundred
Years of Black Dance in the New World," took a detailed look at the influence
that dancers of African descent have had on mainstream dance forms, via
clubs, vaudeville and professional theatre. Usafiri is a Toronto-based
company under the artistic direction of Vivine Scarlet. This company is
committed to the preservation of traditional African dances and drumming
that are traditionally performed on festive occasions.(20)