On May 21-22, McGill’s School of Social Work will hold “Black Communities, Emancipatory Research, and Pathways to Liberation”, a two-day symposium that will consolidate and expand the state of knowledge regarding how to conduct research that empowers and uplifts Black communities in Canada.
The symposium’s goal is to centre Black experiences and perspectives in the field of social work by inviting academics, community leaders and practitioners to share their knowledge among each other, as well as with students and faculty of the School.
“What makes this symposium exciting is that it brings visibility to a field that, in many ways, is still emergent — especially within the Canadian context,” says Professor Alicia Boatswain-Kyte, one of three co-organizers for the event. “Many Black scholars have been doing this kind of work for a long time, though they may not have always used the language of ‘emancipatory’ or ‘liberatory’ research.”
The symposium highlights the everyday hard work done by community activists and practitioners and is co-organized by Boatswain-Kyte and Dr. Johanne Jean-Pierre, Assistant Professor of Sociology at York University and Dr. Tya Collins, Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Ottawa.
Reimagining the University as a Space for Real Change
Universities are more than just a space for intellectual exchange; they are also a space where various communities come together to exchange ideas, knowledge and stories. This symposium was organized in that spirit, as “[site] of resistance and [a vehicle] for meaningful change”.
During the symposium, undergraduate and graduate students will have the opportunity to hear directly from the community activists and practitioners who are doing the work of liberation directly in Black communities across Canada.
“Community activists and practitioners bring lived experience, practical insight, and a deep understanding of what it means to work in ways that are relational, responsive, and rooted in care,” says Boatswain-Kyte. “This event is about reimagining the university as a space that can contribute to real change, not by speaking over communities, but by listening, building relationships, and being accountable.”
Advocacy and social justice are at the core of the School’s mandate in educating future social workers. Indeed, initiatives such as Black Access McGill (BAM), which is one of the sponsors of the symposium, was created to break structural and institutional barriers to Black people’s access to social work education and provide an avenue to address the racial disproportionality of social workers in the field.
“For newer generations of scholars — particularly those working in a province like Québec where there’s a strong linguistic divide — it hasn’t always been easy to access tools, language, or mentorship around how to do this kind of research, what questions to ask, or how to navigate institutional spaces while staying grounded in community,” adds Boatswain-Kyte.
Spotlight on Student Research
One way School of Social Work students will engage and contribute to these ongoing conversations is by presenting posters of their research.
MSW student Julian Grau-Brown will be presenting his work on a digital storytelling project with men who are serving, or have served, life sentences. Most of the subjects in Julian’s research were men who entered the system as young adults and are only coming home in their 30s, 40s, or even 60s.
“Their stories speak to childhood trauma, racial profiling, and the different ways they’ve learned to cope over time,” says Julian. “What really stood out to me was how powerful the digital stories were. This method gave the men space to speak on their own terms. [...] It wasn’t just research; it was about visibility, healing, and challenging the dominant narratives we so often hear about incarceration.”
MSW students Anne Weintraub, Zaria Nesfield and Afeefa Ayub will also be sharing their experience completing a graduate research field placement under the supervision of Boatswain-Kyte.
“We intentionally chose a research-based placement as a way to engage critically with the structures that shape social work—and to imagine how the profession can be mobilized as a tool for liberation rather than control,” says Anne.
The poster showcases how academic institutions can be used as platforms for community engagement and action.
“Social work has a long and complex history in relation to Black communities, often reinforcing systems of oppression rather than dismantling them,” says Anne. “This placement offered us an opportunity to interrupt that legacy by contributing to research that centers Black voices, challenges the status quo, and supports community-led change.”
Discussions Across Disciplines
Panel discussions will focus on topics such as Black epistemologies and theories, bringing together scholars who largely work in Québec; Black archival work as a methodological practice, connecting the past to the present; as well as a wide range of methodologies, from quantitative and qualitative to participatory and community-based — and how each can be used in service of liberation.
“We want people to leave with a sense that there isn’t just one way to do this work — there are many,” says Boatswain-Kyte.
The symposium will conclude with keynote talks by Dr. Yasser Payne and Dr. Brooklynn Hitchens, from the University of Delaware, on their 15-yearlong research project, Street Participatory Action Research (Street PAR), which Boatswain-Kyte characterizes as “a powerful example of what it means to center community in every stage of the research process”.
“Throughout the event, we’ve made space for community experts to be present,” says Boatswain-Kyte. “So ultimately, we’re asking: What does it mean to do research that’s accountable to Black communities? What does it look like to generate knowledge that is useful, healing, and transformative?”
To keep up with news from the School of Social Work and Black Access McGill, make sure to follow their social media accounts on Instagram: Black Access McGill and School of Social Work.
The symposium was partially by the Dean of Arts Development Fund (DADF). Learn more about the DADF.