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Sent Away
My mother decided to send me away to be raised by her older sister and husband who are Christian Missionaries. The area where she lived was a dangerous area. The tree cut from its roots bear no fruits? I was sent to live in Lachute, Quebec. -
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My Personal Literacy History
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The Bible
In 1982 we moved from Quebec to Mississauga. Since my aunt and her husband were Christian missionaries, they were asked to relocate to continue their work elsewhere. It was at this time I started to read and study the Bible as my main literary text. -
The Escape
My exploration of other books to read begins! I was a regular reader of the National Geographic magazine. However, as a way to escape my predicament, I resorted to reading the Hardy Boys collection. I could not change where i was physically but I could mentally. I did this by reading as much as I could. I completed the whole Hardy Boys collection. -
The Return
After pleading with my mother to let me come back and live with her and my older brother, she submitted. This was to be a significant transition from the suburbs to the inner city. It was a whole different world - it was about survival! To be literate was key to self maintenance. -
Likkle Jamaica
I found myself in a world unfamiliar to me. Police were not the only ones to carry guns. Teenagers died young and life wasn't so much fun. We were labelled as public enemy # 1. -
Wisdom's Barber Shop
A part of my literary journey was not only through observing what was happening on the streets but also going to the local barber shop for a hair cut. This was a school. It was a place where i could hear about various topics such as politics, economics, slavery, Islam,Christianity and history. It was also the place where i could have some kind of a father and son relationship with the elders there, since my father was not in Canada. -
The Black Power Movement
The sun was rising, after being exposed to racial profiling, gang violence, racism, and a dysfunctional educational system based on lies i found the Black Power movement. This was a movement that preached mental slavery can only be defeated through literacy and true education. My brother was a great role model for showing me that reading about all subjects was important to the development of the whole self of an individual. Sometimes he would read about biology, nutrition, or history. -
Hip Hop and Spoken Word
To add to the political rhetoric of the Black Power movement's message of knowledge of self was the Hip Hop movement that arose from the ghettos in America. Some historians say it originated in Jamaica. HipHop was a key factor in helping me increase my thirst for knowlege which comes from reading. -
Malcolm X
As my journey continued, I tried to understand myself and the society around me. I began to read the autobiography of Malcolm X. This was my inroduction to the concept of self-education through reading but also mastering subjects such as history and gaining self discipline to overcome my weaknesses as a person. Malcolm X's life was an inspiration to me and a lesson; to be educated, one did not need to rely on the institutions of education especially if it supported the capitalistic system. -
Bob Marley
Bob Marley was also a great influence on my journey to becoming truly literate. His lyrics were a source of spiritual inspiration in renouncing the luxuries of the world and living a simple life based on love. Many of his lyrics encouraged people to help the oppressed and change the system through love. -
Revolution
I needed 1 more Ontario Academic credit to graduate from highschool. I was in and out of school at this point. My friend, who was a poet, encouraged me to enroll at Vaughan Road Academy's Interact program. I was accepted after an interview. I took History and had a teacher all to myself! I would be his only student for that class. It was exaclty what I wanted & needed. By studying the French revolution and political philosophy he helped me to realize the importance of education. -
University
It was due to the ispiration of my history class and the realization that change will come through literacy and education that I applied to University. I enrolled in the Political Science program. I was in great anticipation to meet the enlightened people that was populated by the university. I truly believed that this is where the universal movement was to take place to liberate all people from oppression. I was dissappointed. It was not the place of the higher learning that i imagined. -
The Way
Aside form being interested in politics I found myself drawn to reading about different religions and spiritual paths. Eastern religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism were intriguing to me. The mystical path of the bodhi, sadhu and yogi were alluring to me; to delve deep into the self & realize and experience the truth of existence that lay deep in every being's heart. The speech without being spoken, reading what is beyond words and that which is not written. -
Expanding the Mind
I immersed myself in reading, as I had done in my childhood. This time though, I chose reading material which provoked deep thought and inner reflection. I read religious texts and biographies of influential people. I read and learned from non-fiction stories. The lessons learned and the knowledge gained from reading remains with me through my adult years. -
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Reading to My Children
During these years I was married and started a family. I had a step-daughter who was 3 years old and later 3 children who are now 10, 9, and 6. I was determined to introduce them to the invigorating world of reading. We took trips to the library and I gathered books for them to read at home. We collected a vast range of books for the children - everything from ancient tales to stories about wildlife. I immersed my children in the stories we read & culivated in them a love for reading. -
At Risk Youths
I started working in a highschool located in Toronto. The school had students who were addicted to various intoxicants, sold drugs, carried guns, were incarcerated at some point in their lives, and many times were without a father. I began a HipHop club to promote literacy, academic achievement and most importantly survival skills.There was a good percentage of students who were at high risk of being murdered. Through the Hip Hop club, we started a book club. -
Behind Bars
After witnessing a continous string of Afro-Canadians being arrested at the school, I began to create workshops that would help students who came back to school after being incarcerated. The focus was to provide support by facilitating discussion circles where they had a chance to speak about their feelings. These circles were a platform to encourage the students to read. We also watched different documentaries that were applicable to their life situations. -
Literacy and Hip Hop
After collaborating with various educators, I was encouraged to develop a full year program that utilized Hip Hop to encourage literacy amongst the at risk students. The program would incorporate studio time as well as a class revolving around the socioeconomic and political condtions in society that gave rise to the art form of hip hop. This was also supported by my friend Napoleon from the hiphop group called The OutLaws who used to be under the direction of Tupac Shakur. -
Critical Pedagogy
As I embark on my journey in becoming a teacher, I discovered Paulo Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed. It all starts to make sense now. “Education either functions as an instrument which is used to facilitate integration of the younger generation into the logic of the present system and bring about conformity or it becomes the practice of freedom, the means by which men and women deal critically and creatively with reality and discover how to participate in the transformation of their world."
