Recognizing the Next Generation of Caribbean Canadian Leadership
It's Caribana season in Toronto, and each year around this time the cultural conversation in the Caribbean-Canadian community is heightened. It is the season of extreme visibility, performance, entertainment options, and tourism. Politicians and other dignitaries circulate, dance, and celebrate, and calypso music is played during television commercials and on news bits. Of course, some members of the community could care less about Caribana and haven't attended the actual festivities since the 90s. Just as there is celebration, there is also criticism and disdain--to ignore this would be unrealistic. It's a festival of great anticipation, and can also be a time of deep resentment. But it's ours, and love it or hate it, it is a time when Caribbean Canadian culture is on full display, and those of us who care often say quick prayers that everything goes smoothly on the surface because the negative repercussions tend to affect us all. Early last Saturday morning in Mal...