Re-imaging Black Excellence on the Canadian Cultural Landscape

This July, the Black Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub (BEKH) sat down with Allen Alexandre, a social entrepreneur and co-founding member of The Afro-Canadian Cultural Centre of Montreal (CCAM), to explore issues faced by Black artists and what his organization has been doing to address them. As he embarks on a mission to celebrate and elevate the vibrancy of the Black community, he is also championing the ideals of multiculturalism and showcasing Black culture as Canadian culture. Acknowledging that there are many who feel that the narratives of Black Canadians have been overshadowed and their contributions to shaping Canada's social fabric overlooked, Allen asserts, "Historically, as Black Canadians, our stories have been told as being the stories of people that just kind of showed up here and found ways to basically just work. But we have not contributed to making Canada into what it is." In this feature article, we embark on a journey to explore the potential for Black communities to enrich the wider Canadian culture and economy through the creation of culture. Coming off the heels of celebrating Canada Day, the BEKH and CCAM explore an opportunity to tell a comprehensive story about the true essence of Canada and celebrate the myriad of identities and contributions that collectively define us as a nation.

The Afro-Canadian Cultural Centre of Montreal (CCAM) exemplifies inclusivity, innovation, and empowerment in the arts and culture sector. With the mission of encouraging creativity, preserving heritage, and fostering unity among all cultures and Canadians, CCAM serves as an inclusive cultural home for Black artists. However, as Allen Alexandre astutely observes, Black organizations in the arts and culture space grapple with chronic underfunding, limiting their capacity to fully focus on their vital missions. This landscape has given rise to an ecosystem where impact becomes fragmented, and the potential for transformative change is diminished. In response, CCAM aspires to create a stable and empowering platform, where organizations and individual artists alike have the tools they need to flourish creatively, share their talents, and produce meaningful and impactful work. By democratizing the opportunity for artists to sustainably pursue their crafts without financial worries, CCAM seeks to nurture a thriving arts and culture community that celebrates and magnifies the diverse voices and contributions of Black communities within the Canadian cultural tapestry.

Post-Pandemic Canadian Arts and Culture

The arts and culture sector has proven itself to be a highly lucrative pursuit, as evidenced by the remarkable growth in the culture sector's GDP over recent years. Throughout 2022, the Nominal GDP for the culture sector soared by an impressive 10.3%, with live performances leading the way as the fastest-growing domain, experiencing a remarkable growth rate of 27.2%. As COVID-19-related attendance restrictions gradually eased, cultural domains witnessed increased activity, contributing to this exponential growth. In the fourth quarter of 2022 alone, the culture sector's nominal GDP surged by an additional 1.5%, reaching an impressive $16.8 billion. Notably, this surge surpassed the growth rate of the total economy, underlining the immense potential and economic viability of investing in and promoting the creation of culture.1

However, as the cultural sector thrives, it is crucial to address a pertinent question: How much of this nearly 17 billion dollars trickles down to the Black community, who have been instrumental in shaping and enriching Canadian culture? To truly benefit from the economic boom in the cultural sector, Black communities, as creators, must have the opportunity to build businesses that can monetize their creations. Allen Alexandre notes that, “We know in Black cultures we create art. We create because it's a beautiful thing to do. We live through it. It lives through us. But we lack oftentimes the capacity to monetize that and find the right opportunities that allow us to really, you know, for Black artists in particular, to say I can set aside my nine to five job and really focus on my craft.”

In essence, entrepreneurship becomes integral to bridging the gap between the creation of culture and its profitable realization. By empowering Black creators with entrepreneurial skills and resources, we can foster a thriving ecosystem where those who contribute to culture also reap the rewards of their invaluable contributions. As we champion the Afro-Canadian Cultural Centre of Montreal (CCAM) and other initiatives, we recognize the transformative potential of entrepreneurship in harnessing the economic power of arts and culture and ensuring that those who create it stand as the rightful beneficiaries of its profound impact on Canada's cultural and economic landscape.

Challenges

The struggle of Black artists and organizations struggle to benefit from their creations lies in the arduous task of balancing their core mission with the necessity to pursue external financing. “You would be very hard pressed to find any organization within the Black community, that is, the arts and culture space, that can claim to actually have their own space. Oftentimes what you find is that a lot of organizations actually need to find ways to essentially almost run away from the core mission in order to build projects that allow them to have enough money to really stay afloat. And because they need to get out of there and do so many different things, they can never really actually have the impact that they need.” This constant juggling act often hampers their ability to have the desired impact on their community, as they are forced to divert their focus away from their true artistic passions.

In recognition that we are in the UN International Decade for People of African Descent, which the Canadian federal government signed on to in 2018, the government has implemented impactful programs like the Black Entrepreneurship Program, which seeks to foster economic empowerment and opportunities for Black entrepreneurs. However, as Allen Alexandre aptly points out, “We know the intentions are there. We know a lot of work has been done, but there's so much more that needs to be done and we cannot just come and say we're going to do that for four or five years and then we forget about it. These issues have been around for hundreds of years. So that also requires a long-term commitment to make sure that if we say that we are what we are, that we want to be a fair and equitable country in everything that we do, that we're also putting the means behind those words to make sure that they're being translated into reality.” While the efforts of the federal government are critical, achieving lasting change requires more collaboration from all levels of power. The transformation we seek calls for collective action, with provincial, municipal, and community stakeholders working hand in hand with the federal government.

Forming Partnerships and Building Trust

CCAM is presenting the capitalization of culture as a solution to addressing Black social and economic issues. As Allen Alexandre emphasizes, “Recognizing that there’s something that is there to say, Black

communities are finding solutions to their own issues, to their own problems. And they are not asking for a handout from government. They are not asking for handouts from anyone. We're coming with the solution. We are asking government to become part of the solution and to become partners in finding those solutions.” For this partnership to be effective, the federal government cannot be the sole partner. The provincial and municipal governments must also play an active role in actualizing these solutions, as their policies and actions have immediate rippling effects on the day-to-day lives of their constituents.

However, to unlock the transformative potential of this approach, CCAM recognizes the pressing need to dismantle systemic barriers that hinder Black artists from accessing crucial financing. These barriers have given rise to a culture of mistrust between existing organizations and Black artists, creating an environment where even available resources are met with reluctance due to fears of exclusion and lack of recognition. “So that mistrust that currently exists between existing organizations and Black artists and Black cultural organizations, has really created an environment where even when those findings are available, people don't even want to go to them because they always feel… Listen, I'm going to get excluded because of what I'm bringing to the table. It is not considered normal. It's not really considered priority for those institutions.” In response, CCAM aims to break this detrimental model, creating new solutions that foster a safe and inclusive space for Black artists and entrepreneurs to embrace their authenticity fully. “What we're saying at CCAM is, we need to create a system where whatever you have as an idea, as an artist, as a cultural entrepreneur, we are basically removing all notion that bias is around… We want to encourage you to go further. We want to give you the means to really get there, we want to give you the tools to get further. We want to give you the environment, the safe environment that allows you to feel free to express yourself in whatever way that you want…”

Critical to mending the culture of distrust is acknowledging the diversity within the Black community. Black is not a monolith, and Black culture, people, and businesses come in all shades and forms. Ignoring this fact risks undervaluing and undermining the immense contributions made by individuals within the Black community. The Black Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub (BEKH) plays a pivotal role in understanding this intersectionality, delving deep into the economic realities of Black business to champion the ecosystem’s value both as a whole and as individual entities.

The journey to a more inclusive and prosperous future begins with acknowledging and celebrating the contributions of Black businesses. Their unwavering commitment to crafting and sharing culture has the