In this month of February, Black History Month, I invite you to take a few minutes to visit the Noir & proud. This project of exhibiting a part of black history, which we encounter on a daily basis, remained a dream for a long time. Today, thanks to the vision of inclusion and the openness of the TCM team to new ideas, here we are, from dream to reality.

 

My name is Wilgis Agossa. Arriving in Canada as an immigrant more than ten years ago, I see myself here today, as in my native country, Benin, at home. Here, at home, at home, I learned to integrate, to live differently. 

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I accepted difference and rejected the indifference of my neighbor. I tried to know my neighbor and call him my brother. At the Festival du voyageur I learned to indulge my sweet tooth and enjoy French-Canadian food. Around the fire, I learned the songs and stories that rocked your childhood. A few times your hood kept me warm. I even did a few dance steps after my third glass of caribou. I enjoyed the stories of Louis Riel and Georges Forest and read books by Gabrielle-Roy. This is also my home!

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At your place, at mine, we are not all the same. Some feel marginalized, misunderstood, not accepted and often too different. Others feel welcome here, accepted as at home. Each of the people who agreed to have their photo taken, to express their voice or to put themselves in the spotlight as part of this project, has their Canadian story. Each of them, like thousands of others, are looking for a small place on this log around the fire to get to know you but also to share their story so that it is recognized and becomes part of our common history. I hope that it is time for each of us, whatever our origins, to break down our barriers. It is time to make room for our neighbors and recognize in each other a brother, a sister, a friend, a neighbor.

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 I hope that this opportunity to bring our community together around this project will make you recognize and get closer to a person you often meet without ever paying attention. Next time, don’t hesitate, say hello!

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Wilgis Agossa