2 minute read
SAY IT LOUD
For the past year, the SAY IT LOUD initiative has been debunking the negative stereotypes associated with Black youth by providing them with a digital platform to showcase their brilliance in technology, entrepreneurship, social innovation, literary, culinary, visual, fashion and performance arts.
The SAY IT LOUD objective was launched to promote Black Pride and Positive Cultural Identity. Funded by the Canadian Department of Heritage, the cofounders Roderick Brereton and Farley Flex went on a national journey to engage potential stakeholders from the Black community - from Vancouver to Halifax. Once the stakeholders were secured the word got out to Black youth aged 14-29 that submissions were being accepted. Then COVID-19 hit! The pandemic altered plans to produce a series of preliminary popup presentations across the country and left much of what was planned hanging in the balance of uncertainty. The culmination and highlight of the initiative was going to be the SAY IT LOUD National Black Youth Summit in Ottawa during Black History Month where the top 2 in each category would be awarded. Participants would be flown to Ottawa, put up in hotels and given per diems for a weekend full of guided tours, guest speakers, workshops and of course the presentations from the youth who ”said it the loudest” in terms of Black Pride and Positive Cultural Identity.
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Remnant Creative Arts Say It Loud Canada Winner Performing Arts
Not to be shaken by the impact of the pandemic, the SAY IT LOUD team from Urban Rez Solutions and its partners Brand EQ pivoted in ways that many could not. They went virtual! They rescheduled, trained, engaged and forged ahead with all hands on deck, resulting in a merged virtual event with the BBPA - Black Business Professional Association’s National Black Youth Convention and the SAY IT LOUD National Black Youth Summit, featuring guest speakers, shoutouts from across the country, workshops and celebrity performances including Canadian Hip Hop/R&B star Roy Woods.
Jamelle Davis, Say It Loud Canada Winner, Visual Arts
www.sayitloud.com
The loudest 8 were rewarded with prizes including a $5,000.00 prize each and the runners-up, $2,500.00 each. Set to happen bi-annually, the summit was a resounding success and certainly achieved its goal to not only change the narrative but tell the truth.
