A Black archive – a repository that speaks to the diverse Black diaspora – does not currently exist in Canada. The material record of Black history and presence in Canada is scattered in disparate collections across the country – whether these be private family collections, or within public institutions or group associations. This dearth of resources poses a longstanding challenge to Black Canadian Studies. These fragmentary, unknown, undiscoverable, incomplete, and/or inadequately catalogued materials create barriers to a richer and fuller understanding of Black history and experience in this country. 

Access to relevant materials is further complicated by traditional cataloguing, which is steeped in a colonial logic often reinforcing an anti-Blackness. Black history is buried within white histories – and takes a great deal of sifting and sorting and re-orienting to make it discoverable and accessible. Canadian archives are not classified by race or ethnicity, and so the very structure of the archive erases the lived experiences of Black Canadians from public memory. Communities who might contribute their collections for study are reluctant to do so as they are wary of current archival practices that distance or invalidate their histories. 

The Black diaspora is the fourth largest group in Canada, with histories that can be traced back over six centuries. There is a richness of archival materials held by members of the Black community across the country that reflects these deeply entrenched histories. Black histories are connected to diverse communities defined as Black, and to different institutions, movements and areas of life. The Black Archive will connect and preserve these materials, making them accessible for research, education, advocacy, policy and overall illumination of the experiences and contributions of Black peoples in Ontario in a comprehensive way. 

This archive rejects the traditional positioning of archival research as the preserve of the elite. Key and unique to our proposed approach is that we envision a Black Archive that will challenge the marginalization of Black history and introduce innovative ways of stewarding Black ephemera by foregrounding community participation in the creation and preservation of narratives expressing Black experiences. It re-imagines the archive as a community hub that is both a repository and a communicator of community knowledge.