MEET NINANDOTOO SOCIETY
Our organization’s name, Ninandotoo Society, comes from the Swahili word ‘nina ndoto’ which translates to ‘I have a dream.’ We added another o at the end, because we have a dream “too”!
After supporting “Black Shirt Day,” which received overwhelming support around the world on January 15, 2021, the members of Ninandotoo Society created the Black Excellence Day initiative. We chose to create our own event after consulting with various community members, including Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre, and BC Human Rights Commission, who all voiced that the words ‘Black shirt’ and seeing people march wearing black shirts brought up traumatic experiences of Holocaust survivors.
Being truly anti-racist is about inclusion for all and Black Excellence Day was born. Despite moving away from “Black Shirt Day,” the meaning of Black Excellence Day remains the same: acknowledging the ongoing civil rights struggle of Black and racialized Canadians and fighting for mandatory curriculum on Black history.