Black history in Canada is not a day, a month, or even a moment in time. It is an ongoing narrative filled with the rich and diverse stories of the Black folks across this land. Join host Mariam Waliji as she interviews (and occasionally gets interviewed by) Silence Genti on this month's storytelling episode of Pollinating Purpose. Together they discuss the power and value of journalism and storytelling, what it means to slow down and reflect on necessary change, and Silence offers an insight on what the hope and future of the LBHCC is.
This episode features Silence Genti of the London Black History Coordinating Committee as this month's guest. Tune in for a rich storytelling episode where Silence shares some of the history - and future - of the LBHCC, as well as how the organization has navigated some of the challenges they have faced as an organization.
Resources
Music
Intro and background music written and performed by the wonderful Jessica O'Neil.
Find her as Yessica Woahneil on music-streaming platforms.
Sponsors
This podcast is made possible in-part through the generous in-kind sponsorship of Rogers TV London and financial contributions of Libro Credit Union.
32:39
SPEAKERS
Mariam, Silence
00:00
Music: Pollinating purpose a caring approach to business theme music by Jessica O'Neil
Mariam 00:08
Pollinating purpose a caring approach to business, welcome everybody. Tomorrow belongs to those of us who conceive of it as belonging to everyone who lend the best of ourselves to it and with joy. A quote from one of my absolute favorites, Audre Lord. Welcome to Pollinating Purpose A Caring Approach to Business by Pillar Nonprofit Network. I am your host and ultimate dog lover Mariam Waliji. I also am the Social Enterprise Program Manager and Coach here at Pillar Nonprofit. For those of you who are new here Pollinating Purpose is a show all about supporting organizations who seek to have social impact through their work, whether nonprofit for profit or grassroots organization, you'll learn key considerations to starting or growing your social purpose organization in a long term and sustainable way. Alongside this learning, you'll also have the opportunity to hear from folks who are doing similar work in their own communities. Today, I am absolutely thrilled to me welcoming Silence Genti from the London Black History Coordinating Committee as our guest. We'll have the chance to chat with Silence, learn about the history of the organization, the work that they're doing, and the impact that they seek to have. For a little bit more about Silence. Silence is a father to Lua and Louis, he is passionate about creating a better community and world for his children. He's a community builder and equity advocate and storyteller. A former journalist in his native Zimbabwe, he finds no strings storytelling, a crucial element in creating and extending capacity. Silence is a longtime member at the London Black History Coordinating Committee and consults with different organizations on equity, communications, and developing tools. He is a founder of Story House, a local company that uses a storytelling approach to web development and communication. Silence welcome. Thank you so much for being here. I am so happy you're here. Thank you, and welcome to pollinating purpose.
Silence 02:35
Right. I hear I'm the first one so hey!
Mariam 02:40
The disillusionment of podcast magic, though this is episode four of this series, I record four interviews in a day. And Silence was my very first guest of our very first round of recordings. That's just our little secret, though. Yes, yeah. Um, so if you could just share a little bit about like, what inspired the creation of the London Black History Coordinating Committee?
Silence 03:11
So the London Black History Coordinating Committee was founded in 20 zero two 2002. And I think the idea was it was to promote, and educate and uplift the community. Right. This specific area was, of course, black history. I think at the time, the founding members thought that we needed to do more to promote black history. And its place in in London history and Canadian history.
Mariam 03:45
Yeah because I mean, for me, personally, so often, I hear about, you know, black history, it's in the context of the United States. But Canada has such a rich, rich history as well. And so is that kind of part of it like creating that distinction?
Silence 04:00
In fact, actually, for me, in particular, the primary reason why I joined was that when I was attending some of the events, they didn't speak to my story because I was born in Zimbabwe. Right, right. So yes, I may know about Martin Luther King, and Malcolm X. But that's not my specific history. Right. So I, specifically for me, I wanted to be involved so that I could also tell a little bit of the history of the Africans who have moved to Canada and have made Canada home and make sure that it has a place in Canadian, I guess, black history as well.
Mariam 04:40
So when I was reading your bio, it mentioned that you used to be a journalist in Zimbabwe. Yes. So does that kind of play into that desire to have stories and narratives available?
Silence 04:51
Yeah, so I am. There's a quote I don't know who said this. A long time ago. They say that a community without a newspaper is dead.
Mariam 05:02
While I couldn't find the source of the quote, there are certainly plenty of articles and research papers discussing the importance of journalism and communities. More specifically, many of them speak to the importance of localized news and place specific coverage to contribute to a more informed and engaged society, which has connections to engagement with municipal politics, voter turnout, and community organizing.
Silence 05:30
Right. And I think I take that to mean that any community that doesn't have a platform to share information, is dead right? So I think I've strived to be involved in everything that allows our community to just share information and grow because I think without information we can grow. Right. So yes, that's definitely part of its storytelling, and narratives that are part of that. Yeah.
Mariam 05:54
Beautiful. Thank you. And so as you mentioned, the London Black History Coordinating Committee has been around since 2002, which is 20 years ago. It was a bit of a moment when I when I made that connection. So what have been, you know, some of the challenges and the barriers? You know, you said that you've been a part of it since 2008. So, you know, what kind of, yeah, what kind of barriers have you faced in this type of work?
Silence 06:22
Yeah. I think there's a lot of challenges in different ways. When you're speaking internally, like so within the community, the black community is not homogenous, right. So it's not one community, there's a lot of sub communities within, you know, if people who were, you know, their families were born in Canada, with families that came from the states that were families that move from Africa or the Caribbean, so it's not a one homogeneous community. So I think striving to serve the needs of those different communities is can be a challenge.
Mariam 07:03
This is such an important point, particularly when looking to serve or support specific groups. Black communities are not a monolith. Indigenous communities are not a monolith, individual communities, and people for that matter, will have different needs based on their own unique experiences. And that needs to be accounted for in how we offer support.
Silence 07:30
Right. And I think the other issue as well is funding. Right? I don't think they I feel that there hasn't been enough funding to support some of the work that we do. So I think right now we have about I can't even remember the number of volunteers that we have, but you know, no one on the committee is paid basically. Right. Right. So that means that if we are doing work on the work of the committee, it has to be, you know, after our full time jobs, you know, after we've taken care of the needs of the family, and sometimes there's not enough time to actually do the work. So yeah, so those are some of the challenges.
Mariam 08:15
Yeah, and that is a common problem in the nonprofit sector is that, you know, either it's heavily reliant on volunteers or, you know, yeah, there's just there's a lot of work for the availability of funding. Yes. So, you know, in the context of both, you know, black communities not being a monolith, like they're not homogenous, and this issue of funding, like, have you found ways to overcome those barriers? Like, are there things that you're working on them? How are you trying to navigate that?
Silence 08:49
So we just recently had a strategic strategic session. And I think one of the primary goals that we can have is to seek more volunteers. Right, so more people to help in the work so that, you know, we're not all carrying this heavy load. And I think there is an awareness that we do need to do more as well, in terms of seeking funding. Right. And I want to mention this, too, I think one of the primary challenges that we're having right now, and maybe I could see this in the context of the story, there's a story that I used to have here when I was growing up. This is the story of the eagle.
Mariam 09:40
And here we get to experience Silence's skills as a storyteller. Enjoy.
09:48
Right? So when it gets old, it flies away to your mountain, right? And then it plugs away. All its feathers because you know, it's old. It plucks away the the nails because they've come become bent and it rests in the mountain until...it's a painful process, right? Can you just imagine plucking all your feathers and then it rests in the mountain until it heals. Right? So until the new feathers grow, new nails, even the beak as well. And then it flies away looking as fresh and young is, is as a young eagle, I guess. And I think that's sort of the process that we're at right now the LBHCC..
Mariam 10:46
LBHCC - London Black History Coordinating Committee, just if you need to the reminder.
Silence 10:52
...is, you know, we've been around for 20 years. And right now we're just at a place where we have stopped, we want to look at what we're doing. Are we still serving the community in the way that the community wants us to serve, has our mandate changed? What should we do better in the next 20 years? Right? It's not a always a pleasant process, because then you have to look at some of the things that you may not have done well, right. But I'm feeling really good about, I think the willingness of everybody on the team to just stop and reflect and use this moment to grow the organization.
Mariam 11:38
I remember a conversation I had with my dear and wonderful pal, Misha Bower, many months ago, where we talked about how much movement can happen when we pause. And that can feel counterintuitive sometimes. But when we're constantly moving and working and progressing towards that next thing, we don't actually allow the previous work to really take effect, or see the impact and effectiveness of it. We talked about how when we pause we can use that moment to almost take a deep breath and allow ourselves or our organizations to expand and grow. Take that work and see where it lands and settles. There is growth in the pause. There is movement in the pause.
Silence 12:38
So I'm really hopeful that and we actually getting help from you guys through this strategic process. So I'm really hopeful that I think like the ego, we just gonna rise, we're going to be better. We're going to be young and fresh. And you know, yeah,
Mariam 12:53
I love that. And we will be coming back to the PCIP program that Silence is mentioning in a little bit. But before we do, can you share a little bit about the work that The London Black History committee coordinating committee is doing? Like, you know, if you were to summarize the best that you can, because I'm sure it's very expensive, but you know what, you know, what is the work being done? How would you? How would you describe that.
Silence 13:20
So there's a lot of, I guess, educational events that we put up, right. And I think more and more we've become all year round organization as opposed to just, you know, operating in February, which is what most people think. But we actually, you know, we do more upside February than then people think.
Mariam 13:44
Because black history, black joy, and black futurism exist all year baby. It's an all day everyday kind of thing.
Silence 13:57
There's a lot of advocacy as well that we do. Sometimes dealing with, you know, the city in different official organizations in terms of promoting black interest and black history in particular. We have some great projects going on. Right now we are working with the Pioneer Village on the Fugitive Slave chapel, which is going to be moved from its current location to the Pioneer Village Fanshawe Pioneer Village. Right. It's a great initiative because I think what it signifies is that black history is not just for black people, but it's for for all Londoners and all Canadians. So I think having the chapel at the Pioneer Village, we allow more people in our city and outside to experience and learn more about that particular piece of history.
Mariam 14:57
Yeah, I think, you know, you said that Black history just isn't for Black folks. That's something that I think like I believe, as well as that, you know, being able to be empathetic is also knowing the stories of other people. And so it's yeah, it's beautiful work that this committee is doing, because it's so vital in order to like build that empathy and compassion and community care, you know, beyond just like our own distinct communities.
Silence 15:26
Right. Yeah. Yeah.
Mariam 15:27
Thank you. So going back to the Pillar Community Impact Project, I guess, Community Impact Program. In my defense, this organization is ripe with acronyms. And this program was new, and I was still getting used to all of the different names. That's my excuse. Make sure I get that branded, right. Yeah. Can you share a little bit? So you mentioned, you know, part of the strategic process has been with the PCIP program, but can share a little bit more about what you've been working on?
Silence 16:06
Yeah, sure. So I think the my understanding, because I'm not with Pillar. I mean, my understanding is that Pillar looked into the community and where the community stood in terms of needs, and realize that I think that there needed to be a change in terms of what kind of resources were made available to the community. Right. So instead of, say, focusing on the awards, which I love, by the way, right, maybe it was a time to focus on the specific needs of the different community organizations. And if, in our earlier conversations, I think we did point out that, yes, we had a point where we need to think about what structures we need to have as an organization, particularly because we're 20 years old, right, we need to think about, you know, the specific resources, we will need to grow for the next 20 years, and that that's where the problem is coming in. So you will be providing it'll be providing support, in terms of strategic planning, in terms of governance, in terms of as well as specific structures around fundraising. So yeah, yeah, so I'm really excited about that. And I'm really hopeful that, you know, we will get to the end of this in a far, much better place than when we started.
Mariam 17:32
Okay, amazing. Yeah, that's, you know, being able to go further with the work that you're doing. That's always the goal with these sorts of things, you know, you want, you want to create that long term sustainable work. And kind of going back to something that you said earlier in regards to, you know, reconsidering the work that's happening, and ensuring that you're fulfilling the need that exists. How are you? How are you able to, or how are you going about, you know, validating what's being asked for, like, one of the ways in which you're, you're trying to hear the community, I guess.
Silence 18:12
Right. I think we just really going back, old school, just talking to people. Yeah, you know, hey, what do you think about the London Black History Coordinating Committee? You know, what you change? You know, what are we doing? Well, what should we keep? So, in a lot of ways, it's just really one on one conversations that that's that's what I've been doing. We also have, you know, surveys that are online that people are filling up. But for me, the really trusted path, I think, is just talking to people one on one whenever we get the chance, so yeah, yeah.
Mariam 18:57
Beautiful, thinking about the future, you know, how do you hope to see the community change and improve with the work that you're doing? Big question.
Silence 19:12
Yeah. So there's, there's a proverb from I think it's from West Africa, and they say that, to speak wisdom. One has to speak from the corners of their mouth. Right. And what that means is that the, I guess there's no one right path. I think there are different ways we can just do our work in a certain way. I think there comes a time when we have to change how we approach our work. Right. And I think we are open to that. I think we are appending to we're open to changing how we've operated over the last few years. And that's the key thing. So I think in terms of the future where we're really open, you know, anything goes, you know, whatever. Because I think people get stuck to a lot of organizations get stuck in their own way. You know, if you have been, you know, I think Pillar is going through the same thing too, right? Is you're trying to figure out that, if how you've been working still works, right? Or if you need to change, right, so if you've been speaking from the, I guess, to use that proverb, again, from the center of your mouth, now you're gonna speak from the corner of your mouth? Because it's a different environment. Right. So yeah, you know, we are open, we open to change.
Mariam 20:48
Yeah, the past two years have certainly meant a shift in in how we choose to operate. And the PCIP program is, you know, an indication of that. For those who are unfamiliar, we used to have the awards. So it was this beautiful Gala, it was wonderful. It was such a beautiful celebration. And you know, we also recognize that things are different right now. And there are different needs in the community. So we're putting the awards on hold. And instead, we have the PCIP program, which is offering support to organizations that could could benefit from it, where we're very excited about this shift. And yeah, just like, you know, thinking about what's needed and trying to hear what's needed, and those changes.
Silence 21:36
I'm just going to turn the tables on you. Yeah. So what's been the challenge for you in this past two years a you do that transition?
Mariam 21:46
Once a journalist always a journalist?
Yeah, well, for me, personally, you know, I started at Pillar in the midst of the pandemic, I didn't work here prior to that. It's really for the work that I do in social enterprise support, it's really recognizing that people want to do good in, in the work that they're doing. And they really want to have impact. So how can I shift the ways in which we're offering that support, to really, to really help, and to create tools that are tangible, and allow for learning for a wide range of folks who are a part of a community, they see the need in their community, and they want to do something about it, you know, they have the community context, they know their communities, and now we can offer tools to support them in, in actually doing that work. So that's how the creation of this, you know, the show came to be is that we wanted to make this information accessible in a different way, from, you know, some of the typical programs that we used to offer. So that's yeah, that's been it for me. All right. Yeah. The journalist in you is coming out. Yeah. Okay. So I do I do have a question. You know, we're talking a lot about community and doing work with and for community. So often, I feel like that also involves collaboration. You know, you've mentioned collaborating with Pillar on this PCIP program, what have been other, you know, communities, organizations, people that your organization has been able to collaborate with? And like, what, what kind of drives that desire to work together?
Silence 23:34
Right. So it's interesting that we, because we're doing our reflections recently, and I think a lot of the partnerships that have come up, have really been organic more than anything else. Like we didn't go out to seek this panel. It just just happened. And they're good matches, right. I think one of the greatest partners we've had over the last actually 20 years, it's been London Museum, okay, right. They, you know, they have been there since the founding of the organization. They have provided support in different ways. We also have a partnership with London Crosscultural Learner Centre. They do a lot of the administration for for the organization for our community. They, you know, provide other resources as well. London library, they've been a great partner as well. Over the last, I think, maybe 10 years or so. So, yeah, lots of great partnerships. A lot of it has been organizations who, you know, we have an interest in Black history and in Black communities as well. And it's been great and I think going forward, we will probably have people dedicated towards seeking partnerships because we want to make the work that we do grow.
Mariam 25:05
So okay, cool. Um, I'm because I've I know a little bit about the work that's been done with the London Museum, can you share a little bit of like some of the specific projects that you've done together? Right, right.
Silence 25:19
So they've hosted the one of my February events for Black History Month, this is the opening ceremony for Black History Month. It happens the first Saturday of February, every February. And this is a place where, apart from the official programming, which is, you know, you're gonna have people speaking, you're gonna have performances, there's going to be a little bit of food from the different communities from the different communities. For me, the biggest part is really the networking part. Because so this is where I go, if I want to know that that person is still living in London, right? You know what I mean? Because if I don't see that, I'm like, oh, maybe they moved to Toronto. If you don't see, there's a saying that if you don't see somebody in certain communities in six months, chances are they've moved to Toronto, and that was before COVID. I guess. So. Yeah. So that's a really special event? I think in terms of connectivity, it's free, people get to just meet and mingle. I think they've also they did a great project where an exhibition of like, artifacts from different black communities. I think that was three, four years ago. And I think we're always looking at making new projects together. So I'm really excited. You know, the prospects?
Mariam 26:52
Oh, yeah. I mean, like you said, Black History Month, is a part of it, but it's not all of it. And yeah, so to hear about, you know, some of the other things that are...
Silence 27:04
That's actually been one of the challenges right now is that a lot of people call us the London Black History Month Coordinating Committee, but it's not, it's London Black History Month, sorry London Black History Coordinating Committee, without the month.
Mariam 27:16
Without the month, it's all year long. At the risk of repeating myself, black history, Black joy, and Black futurism, exist all year, baby. It's all day, everyday kind of thing.
Silence 27:34
Right. Right. Right. So yeah, so I try as much as possible to correct people. There's other months besides February, yes.
Mariam 27:43
Yeah, exactly. You exist outside of one month. Yeah. Okay. And as kind of a final question, where can folks find out more information? You know, about you about the Black History Coordinating Committee, the work that you're doing? Yeah, where can people find out more?
Silence 28:05
All right, so we do have a website lbhcc.ca. We also on Facebook, and little bit on Twitter, and Instagram. But I think the main space would be lchcc.ca and from there'll be from there there'll be other avenues as well.
Mariam 28:23
Perfect, thank you. And, you know, before, before we wrap up, is there any final thing that you'd like to share anything that you'd like to say to our wonderful audience?
Silence 28:35
Umhmm, that's a tough one. So yes, so just a few days ago, I I was privileged enough to be part of a conversation around the importance of community organizations, right. And what came out of that was that community organizations are really important. Because they enrich communities, right. There are gaps in terms of what the, you know, the government or other agencies have sure agencies can do. And that's where community agencies come in. Right. They so I think, let's not forget that, you know, let's not forget how important we are to to our communities. You know, despite the struggles that, you know, the challenges of the last two years, you know. I'm all for that, that all of us will put through.
Mariam 29:48
Amazing. Thank you so much for being here Silence. It's been an honor. It's been a blast and really, really grateful you joined us.
Silence 29:56
Well, thank you for inviting me. Yeah, wonderful conversation.
Mariam 30:02
So I have one more question. And it's one question that we'll ask everyone without thinking too hard about it. What is one thing that is bringing you joy?
Silence 30:21
People, people, people bring me joy.
Mariam 30:24
Amazing. I love that. Yeah.
Silence 30:28
And two of my favorite people are Louis and Lua my kids.
Mariam 30:32
That's a good one. I like that. Thanks, Silence. Thank you once again, to silence for joining us from the London Black History Coordinating Committee. And for all the work that's being done by that organization. It is needed and welcome in the city. And I'm so excited to hear and see all the changes that they're making for the new direction and growth that they're they're kind of leaning into what Silence was sharing about community organizations being at the helm of change is such an important and vital conversation to be having. And I'm thrilled that we get to have it here on the show. If you are interested in learning more about the London Black History Coordinating Committee, we will have information linked on our website for this show, where you can find out more. And thank you for joining us. If you'd like to learn more about Pillar Nonprofit Network and the work that we're doing with the Pillar Community Impact Program, as well as our other programs, you can head over to our website at pillarnonprofit.ca. And if you'd like to stay up to date on the different workshops and offerings available here, I highly recommend signing up for our free newsletter. It has all the good fun information. I again am your host, guide, business bud Mariam Waliji. And this has been Pollinating Purpose, A Caring Approach to Business. I want to thank you again for coming along for the ride. I am so thrilled that you're here.