The Ottawa Swing Dance Society (OSDS) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting swing dance and swing dancing culture in Ottawa, Ontario, on unceded Algonquin territory. The Ottawa Swing Dance Society (OSDS) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting swing dance and culture in Ottawa, Ontario, on unceded Algonquin territory. OSDS hosts a weekly Friday night social dance
with intro lessons.
If you are new to our community, please read our safety policy at www.swingottawa.ca/new-at-osds/safety-policy
If you are completely new to swing dancing, please read our FAQ section to come prepared to OSDS at www.swingottawa.ca/new-at-osds as well as our summary of the history of Lindy Hop at www.swingottawa.ca/new-at-osds/what-is-lindy-hop
Jazz music and dances are Black American art forms. Lindy Hop emerged as a defiant, joyous response to financial hardship caused by the Great Depression, harsh living conditions, and systemic racism.
As a community that enjoys this amazing dance and music, it is important to know and celebrate its history. It’s also equally important to celebrate its culture, its values and the very people and communities who have created it. Not only out of respect and in an effort not to be appropriative, but because Lindy Hop is a dance of Black liberation, and simply because of our shared humanity.
