By Amin Fereg

It’s easy to commemorate the legacy of Black Canadians during the month of February, but it’s important to recognize that Black History is too rich for it to be celebrated during Black History Month. 

​Black history is in fact also Canadian history, and should be treated as such.

Chief Deryn Rizzi is the first woman to be appointed fire chief in an urban setting of Ontario. While she has made history, she has also accomplished an extensive education and is pursuing her PhD. 

 By Moboluwajidide Joseph

The Ontario Council for Agencies Serving Immigrants’ takes on the battle against gender violence through the graphic novel, Telling Our Stories: Immigrant Women's Resilience. Written by immigrant and refugee women, for immigrant and refugee women, the work recounts their experiences as inspirational stories of resilience. The book also has multilingual editions and can be ordered in Urdu, Punjabi, Dari, Arabic, Tamil, Armenian, Somali, Chinese, and Spanish, as well as the official languages: English and French.

​“That is it’s own [oddly] radical act,” Joe Talbot –  Director, The Last Black Man in San Francisco, explains when reflecting on the effect his movie has acclaimed by gathering people in a movie theatre to “be present”.

​With the movie finally having released (in Canada) at the TIFF Bell Lightbox in Toronto, its important and relatable message can now be shared with moviegoers and people alike who are curious about what Joe and lead actor, Jimmie Fails, have to say about their hometown. Both make it clear what their debut movie is and is not.

By Laura-Leah McNeil

The 14th annual CaribbeanTales Film Festival (CTFF) media launch was colourful, and the vibe at The Royal Cinema was exciting. Everyone was eagerly anticipating the special preview of Yardie, which actually released last year, but did not make it to the film festival previously due to unforeseen circumstances.

By  Benjamin Akpan

​As teenagers, best friends Joe Talbot and Jimmie Fails thought of making a movie based on their personal experiences, particularly that of Fails’. In 2015, they began to actively raise funds to produce their film. Four years later, following a successful kickstarter, an acclaimed short film, as well as backing from production companies A24 and Brad Pitt’s Plan B, they finally brought their film The Last Black Man in San Francisco to life. The film is a slow burning and poetic, yet earnest love story to the city they both grew up in, which they have watched slowly disintegrate before their very eyes as a result of gentrification.