Black Girls Gather (A Book Club) is new WIBCA program. It will consist of a group of young women meeting every week and discussing readings done from a pre-determined list of books. The list of books will mainly feature black female authors. The activities of the club will include reading discussions, movie screenings, creative writing workshops, poetry readings, visits from special guests and art
sessions all revolving around the books studied. The purpose of this project is to expose young girls to black literature and engage in discussions around themes such as coming of age, racism, discrimination, identity, feminism, love, family, friendship, etc. all while building a network of support, mentorship and sisterhood for girls coming from visible minority communities in Montreal. Black Girls Gather: A Book Club targets young women, specifically visible minorities between 12 and 18 years old. The young women will be separated into two groups, comprised of 10 to 12 people each. Black Girls Gather: A Book Club would welcome English AND French speaking youth. Black Girls Gather (A Book Club) will introduce participants to a more positive side of black culture. The books read by the book club participants will be written by black authors and will focus on black narratives across the world. Through these literary works, the participants will be able to relate to the characters and reflect over a variety of themes relevant to their Black Canadian experience such as coming of age, racism, discrimination, identity, colourism, feminism, love, relationships, family, friendship and activism. As a group formed solely of young black women, the participants will be able to open up in ways they are unable to when in white spaces and talk about racial as well as gender issues they have faced and how it has affected their conceptions of themselves and of the world around them. The variety of workshops will allow the participants to learn more about black history and culture and to discover new facets of the black experience they were never exposed to before like writing, art, dance, hair care, social justice, poetry, entrepreneurship etc. Through the discussions, activities and events organised like the Talent Show, the participants will feel empowered and supported and will be encouraged to be innovators, creators, and actors in creating a successful future for themselves. With visits from guest speakers and workshop leaders, participants will be introduced to role models within their community whom they can both look up to and rely on for guidance. Finally, results from the project will be used to convince school boards in Montreal to reconsider their curriculums and to make a distinctive effort to include more representative reading materials.
