{"id":35705,"date":"2025-01-16T19:09:45","date_gmt":"2025-01-17T00:09:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/?p=35705"},"modified":"2025-01-16T19:09:48","modified_gmt":"2025-01-17T00:09:48","slug":"abc-focuses-on-allyship-as-black-history-month-events-near","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/abc-focuses-on-allyship-as-black-history-month-events-near\/","title":{"rendered":"ABC focuses on allyship as Black History Month events near"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Black History Month is little over two weeks away, and members of the Aurora Black Community Celebration are putting the finishing touches on a flag-raising ceremony that will kick off a series of programs \u2013 not just for the month of February, but throughout 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Tuesday, January 31, from 6 \u2013 8 p.m., the Aurora Black Community Association and the Town of Aurora invite you to attend a special Flag Raising Ceremony and Reception at Town Hall that will feature, in addition to the flag-raising itself, poignant speeches by leaders and community members, as well as a Jamaican-inspired meal to enjoy on site or at home afterward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The theme for the Black History Month events organized or sponsored by the Aurora Black Community Association is \u201cOne Heart, One Love,\u201d an overarching theme which will also touch upon the themes of, \u201cRecognizing our Worth\u201d, \u201cRising Together\u201d, \u201cAmplifying Voices and Creating Equity\u201d, and \u201cBridging Gaps and Inspiring Change.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI find the way we really have to be intentional is to know Black History is relevant 365,\u201d says ABC Founder Phiona Durrant. \u201cIn that month, there are so many amazing programs that we can do or need to do, but it also gives us the opportunity to enjoy others\u2019 events. We\u2019re partnering with NACCA (Newmarket African Caribbean Canadian Association) to be a part of that and it allows us to really spread the celebration throughout the year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As such, to support NACCA\u2019s programming, the ABC has opted to shift their annual Black History Month Gala to the tentative date of April 11 to maximize their outreach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to the Gala, the ABC is also engaging the community throughout this time with a window-decorating contest for windows \u2013 homes and businesses alike \u2013 in Aurora, Richmond Hill, and Newmarket, and creating resources for non-Black teachers to educate their students on Black History and allies who contributed to emancipation and freedom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe thought the contest was an interactive way for the community to display what Black History is to them,\u201d Durrant explains. \u201cMaybe it is a restaurant that is looking for culturally-ethical food that they love or cook differently and they want to share the story of this culturally-appropriate dish or item. It just gives exposure to businesses because communities can go around, take a picture, share what they learned.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Participants will be eligible for a number of prizes, including a grand prize of an Air Canada Gift Card.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The educational resources in question are being prepared for all teachers, but have been inspired by those who have reached out to the ABC for tips on how to teach Black History in classrooms if they do not have the lived experience, including highlighting White individuals in history, such as early abolitionists, who stepped up to support the Black community when others were reluctant to do so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe want to make sure we have an eclectic view on the different steps and the different people who make the change, the freedom that we\u2019re enjoying today,\u201d says Durrant. \u201cWe just want to encourage people to not limit themselves and just participate \u2013 be comfortable with asking questions and let\u2019s grow together.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rounding out programming for the winter and spring include two film screenings hosted by the ABC in partnership with the Aurora Film Circuit in March, and a partnership between the ABC, the York Region Food Network, and the Aurora Public Library on the foods that connect us all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more on the ABC and their upcoming programs, visit aurorablackcommunity.com. Additional information on NACCA\u2019s Black History Month initiatives, visit www.naccacommunity.ca\/black-history-month-2025.html<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThroughout Black History Month 2025, we will honour those who have charted their own paths\u2014those who, in the face of immense challenges, chose to rule their destinies,\u201d says NACCA Chair Jerisha Grant-Hall. \u201cWe will lift up the stories of pioneers in politics, science, the arts and education who broke barriers and made their mark on history. We will celebrate those who refused to be defined by the limitations of their time, choosing instead to write their own stories and, in doing so, inspire generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Brock Weir<\/strong><\/p>\n\r\n\"Facebook\"<\/a>\"twitter\"<\/a>\"mail\"<\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Black History Month is little over two weeks away, and members of the Aurora Black Community Celebration are putting the finishing touches on a flag-raising ceremony that will kick off a series of programs \u2013 not just for the month of February, but throughout 2025. On Tuesday, January 31, from 6 \u2013 8 p.m., the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":35706,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-35705","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general_news","category-news"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/2025-01-16-034.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3D2k4-9hT","publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-25 06:52:02","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35705","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35705"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35705\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35707,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35705\/revisions\/35707"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/35706"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35705"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35705"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35705"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}