Desmond Cole's story about the devastating bullying he endured by his elementary-school principal serves as a milestone moment in his own understanding of insidious, unwanted attention and powerlessness. He also re-visits a story he shared with Wordfesters on his last visit to Calgary in February, 2020, about the violence against, and false arrest of, a Black Halifax mother named Santina Rao (who wrote about her ordeal with more grace than we deserve). Cole encouraged us to sign petition asking the Crown clear her name; it garnered 70, 000 signatures and last fall, that mobilization resulted charges against Rao being dropped. “That’s what we can do together,” Cole says. “That’s the power of collective action.”
Pick up a copy of The Skin We're in here: https://wordfest.com/2021/imagineonair-featured-books/desmond-cole/
Is luck a thing? Yes, says Tessa McWatt, and there are many, many kinds, both good and bad, that shape us from birth. The author of The Snow Line has been nominated for G.G. awards more than once, an honour she’d credit to luck to some degree. She tells us a story of how gambling on a dark horse ...
Ben Philippe learned that when the maps came out, his dad’s recurring restlessness was poised to upend life as the family knew it. The author of Sure, I’ll Be Your Black Friend, shares his generous outlook on race, friendship and family.
Pick up a copy of Sure, I'll Be Your Black Friend here: htt...
Discovering who you are and where you belong are at the heart of each of these writers' bracing and brilliant memoirs. A conversation about multi-racial identity, battling stereotypes, and finding community.
Pick up a copy of Martis' They Said This Would Be Fun here: https://wordfest.com/2020/i...
