Blackness is a diasporic identity and exists globally in the power of community-building and organizing. Blackness transcends nationalism and internationalism with a strength derived from solidarity rooted in a shared social-political consciousness. Yet, despite the popularity of Black organizational spaces globally, the Canadian Sociological Association (CSA) had no such group before 2020. Most mainstream Canadian scholarly associations did not have such a group either. Sociology, one of the disciplines charged with the theorization of race and ethnicity in society, had no collective voice for Black scholars in Canada. We changed that. We are building upon the work of Black sociologists W.E.B. du Bois, Ruth D. Peterson, C.L.R. James and that of Canadians such as Agnes Calliste, and Wilson Head. This essay presents the mandate for the CSA Black Caucus, its history and foundational moments, and its goals for the future of Black sociology in Canada.A series of national and international events have led to the creation of the CSA Black Caucus. The emergence of Black Lives Matter, a recent iteration of Black advocacy, draws attention to racism in the criminal justice system while building upon a rich tradition of resistance to enslavement, segregation, and racial discrimination (Calliste, 1996;Cooper, 2007Cooper, , 2016Small & Thornhill, 2008). The racial profiling of Black graduate student Shelby McPhee in 2019 at the Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences, held at the University of British Columbia, instigated nationallevel discussions about the need for institutional change in academia (CBC, 2019). The May 25, 2020 murder of George Floyd by a White police officer resulted in global and broader awareness of anti-Black racism. Meanwhile, several post-secondary institutions and scholarly associations publicly pledged to engage in a process of critical self-examination to meaningfully address anti-Black
I dedicate my dissertation to my mother, Chantal Confiant, and my son, Kanyon A. Roberts, who have been an indispensable source of love and support. v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The process of writing this dissertation has been long, arduous, introspective and at times, extremely emotional. Overcoming its challenges-from getting access to organizations and participants to time and financial pressuresis certainly not done singlehandedly. I wish to acknowledge the unwavering support of my family, friends, colleagues, and professors, who have all contributed to helping me achieve my educational goals. Their constant faith in my abilities, guidance, and encouragements have kept me focused on, and enthusiastic about, writing and making contributions to my field of study. I would like to extend my deep-felt gratitude to my advisor and chair, Dr. Vrushali Patil, who has not only been an academic role-model to me, but also a conscientious, punctual, and critical reviewer and editor of my work. Dr. Patil has played a fundamental role in helping me grow as a writer and a critical feminist scholar. I am also beholden to Dr. Percy Hintzen for mentoring me and challenging me to sharpen my theoretical arguments and contributions. Dr. Hintzen's extensive and important feedback undeniably improved the quality of this dissertation. I also want to extend my appreciation to Dr. Benjamin Smith for guiding me through the maze of doctoral requirements and deadlines. He has been a force of encouragement throughout the dissertation process. I am thankful to Dr. Cem Karayalcin for his support and commitment. In addition to my supportive committee, I would like to acknowledge Dr. Caroline Faria at the University of Texas for her role in helping me develop my writing skills, her support and feedback. I would also like to thank Dr. Patricia Price at Guttman College for vi her support as I was applying to the Ph.D. program in Global Sociocultural Studies (GSS)
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