♪
[clock ticks]
Black future, to me it means
like the progression of the Black race, you know, like--
and the history like acknowledging both
and seeing how we can move forward in the future.
Recognizing where we've been and where we can be
rather than dwelling on our struggles.
They're still there and very present in our
day-to-day lives,
but this is a way we can move past it together as a whole.
I think what we do with Black futures is more about like--
Thinking about how Black people
will progress further with what has gone on in the past.
So just celebrating Black excellence
and I guess our culture.
This is
While there isn't a clear beginning to the idea
of Black futures, the consensus is that
it became popular around the early 2010s,
but it really picked up in 2015.
That's when an organization called
Movement for Black Lives
and reframed it into
They describe it as a visionary forward-looking
spin on celebrations of Blackness in February...
A group of students in Guelph Ontario
are organizing their own version
of Black Futures Month.
Black History Month just focuses more on like
a dreadful past, we turned it into
Black Futures Month, so it's then celebration
again of black excellence
into good instead.
Woman:
And they're doing all kinds of activities.
My hair has fight and it has grip,
it's determined, it has a fighter spirit--
All with the goal of...
♪ [upbeat]
Still reflecting on the past, educating people
on the past, but then also talking about the future
and how we can become better.
Black Futures is more than something that is tied
to Black History Month.
Kleaver Cruz started something called
the Black Joy Project.
It started off as a personal 30 day challenge
on social media to share photos of Black joy.
That started in 2015 when I woke up feeling really sad,
depressed, maybe the saddest ever felt,
and I had this moment of, like,
divine, of these words,
Black and joy floating in front of me that
led to putting pictures on
that led to putting pictures on
I want a hub or some type of network to bring
together these experiences of joy that later could
live somewhere that people can just run to when they
want to learn about joy or other people that are
inquiring or talking about or conjuring this thing.
That, yeah, I just, I, I want,
I see it as a circle.
I want more of us connected.
To me Black Future, like, it means like, a month
where all of us could come together,
no matter if you're Black, White, Asian,
or like, you know, any race you are.
We all come together as one and we all celebrate
the one as one.
We celebrate it because we want everyone to know
our past and where would we have been coming from
and the some of the struggles we face and also our
achievements during like those years.
There's also a really strong personal impact it can have
on people and how they look at their own lives.
Focusing on Black Future has given me a way
to feel hope for a change
because most of the time when I think about
Black history, I feel a rage for what was stolen from us
years ago and the way that we're still trying
to rebuild it, but when you think about
the future, there's a chance for it to change.
You can't change the past, but you can't change
the future.
And that's why I think it's been better for me
personally to focus on the future rather than being
angry about the past.
What is in the future for us?
That I think Black Futures is a way to do two things
at once, is reflect, so understand,
look back at and learn from history.
And then also to imagine and project of what
is possible,
where are we all going, where can we go,
what's the infinite directions that we can take?
♪ [lovely]
Woman:
Man:
..you know, not having a time and a place for Black history.
Woman 2:
..and that is, that it's embraced all around the world.
Man 2:
Woman 2:
So while it can mean different things
to different people, it's clear that
Black Futures is having a big impact
and it's exciting to see where it goes from here.
That's it for,
For
♪ ♪