CanAsian & Anti-Racism
From our inception, we have been painfully aware that opportunities for choreographers of Asian descent in Canada have been systemically limited. We also recognized however, that to restrict participation in our activities on the basis of race would be exclusionary and unethical. Consequently, we formed the vision of the organization around our commitments to Asian-based ideas, practices and aesthetics, the cultivation and sharing of those ideas, and the support of new creations that incorporated them.
At this moment of great change in the world, we are examining our ethos again. While CanAsian Dance stands with those working to fight systemic racism, and in particular, anti-Black and anti-indigenous racism, we are re-examining our programs and procedures to ensure that we are part of progressive change and not part of the problem. We are exploring how we can make tangible contributions to the movement. We join those who are amplifying knowledge of the history of oppression and of racial injustice.
We encourage you to join us by reading, watching, listening, learning, self-examining, speaking out and voting.
Here are some informed sources for your perusal:
A Torontonian’s perspective on anti-black racism in our city
A powerful perspective on 'walking while black' by a man for whom walking is an essential practice. He is a performer of sorts, although not by choice. The stakes of his performance are life and death - "A pantomime undertaken to avoid the choreography of criminality." Read Garnette Cadogan here
A talk about our unconscious biases
Historian Kyle G. Brown on the impact of slavery in Canada - CBC Ideas
Resma Menakem on racialized trauma and healing
Dr. Robin DeAngelo discusses ‘White Fragility’
How Studying Privilege Systems Can Strengthen Compassion”: Peggy McIntosh