The killing of Trayvon Martin in 2012 by a white assailant inspired the Black Lives Matter movement, which quickly spread outside the borders of the United States. The movement’s message found fertile ground in Canada, where Black activists speak of generations of injustice and continue the work of the Black liberators who have come before them.

Until We Are Free contains some of the very best writing on the hottest issues facing the Black community in Canada. It describes the latest developments in Canadian Black activism, organizing efforts through the use of social media, Black-Indigenous alliances, and more.

"Until We Are Free busts myths of Canadian politeness and niceness, myths that prevent Canadians from properly fulfilling its dream of multiculturalism and from challenging systemic racism, including the everyday assaults on black and brown bodies. This book needs to be read and put into practice by everyone." —Vershawn Young, author of Your Average Nigga: Performing Race, Literacy, and Masculinity and co-author of Other People's English: Code Meshing, Code Switching, and African American Literacy

Contributors:
Silvia Argentina Arauz - Toronto, ON
Leanne Betasamosake Simpson - Toronto, ON
Patrisse Cullors - Los Angeles, CA
Giselle Dias - Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, ON
OmiSoore Dryden - Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS
Paige Galette - Whitehorse, YK
Dana Inkster - University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB
Sarah Jama - Hamilton, ON
El Jones - Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax, NS
Anique Jordan - Toronto, ON
Dr. Naila Keleta Mae - University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON
Janaya Khan - Los Angeles, CA
Gilary Massa - York University, Toronto, ON
Robyn Maynard - University of Toronto, Toronto, ON
QueenTite Opaleke - Toronto, ON
Randolph Riley - Halifax, NS
Camille Turner - York University, Toronto, ON
Ravyn Wngz - Toronto, ON

Rodney Diverlus is a Port-au-Prince-born, Toronto-based dance artist, curator, and co-founder of Black Lives Matter Toronto.

Rodney Diverlus' profile page

Sandy Hudson is the founder of the Black Lives Matter movement presence in Canada, a founding board member of the Black Legal Action Centre, and co-hosts the Canadian political podcast Sandy and Nora Talk Politics.

Sandy Hudson's profile page

Syrus Marcus Ware is a Canadian artist, activist and scholar. He is currently a CLA Assistant Professor in the School of the Arts at McMaster University. He has worked since 2014 as faculty and as a designer for The Banff Centre. Ware is a founding member of Black Lives Matter Toronto. For 13 years, he was the coordinator of the Art Gallery of Ontario's youth program. During that time Ware oversaw the creation of the Free After Three program and the expansion of the youth program into a multi pronged offering. He has published four books and in 2020 co-edited (with Rodney Diverlus and Sandy Hudson) Until We Are Free: Reflections on Black Lives Matter in Canada, a collection of reflections on the Black Lives Matter movement in Canada.

Syrus Marcus Ware's profile page

• Short-listed, Saskatchewan Book Awards, Publishing

Short-listed, Saskatchewan Book Award, Publishing, 2020

“Whether in an imagined future or today’s stark reality, Until We Are Free stands as a necessary work that is bound to become central to dialogues in the areas of social justice and global liberation.” —Quill & Quire

"While including a rich history of anti-Black racism in Canada and the origin of the Canadian blm chapter, the book also presents a comprehensive portrait of contemporary Black Canada....Until We Are Free weaves personal narratives, historical facts, interviews with Black activists, poetry, archival documents, and photographs into a dynamic yet cohesive story....This brilliant anthology is bookended by imagined futures written by the editors." —Canadian Journal of History