Omayra Issa Profile picture
Jun 12, 2020 7 tweets 6 min read Read on X
Dispatches from the Prairies.
A Thread.
1/ In their own words, a few Black people on the Prairies reflect on what #BlackLivesMatter and this historical moment mean to them.
2/ Amara Brown, 14, from Yorkton, Sask.
"Well for me, I think the BLM movement is amazing. I see this as a change on the right direction. If people are protesting and screaming for equality, others may do the same." #BlackLivesMatter #skpoli Image
3/ (...) "In the end, people may become more comfortable with talking about racism or racial inequality or simply bringing up the protests. No one at my school ever talks about that, and even my best friends don’t bring up the protests." - Amara Brown #BlackLivesMatter #canpoli
4/ @OUTSaskatoon Board Member and #yxe resident Natalya Mason. "Seeing this growth in global solidarity for the black community feels empowering and also surreal. I’m so excited to see a new generation of people learning and growing and fighting for a more just society." Image
“I’ve been saying to the media that, yes the traction we’re receiving is great but where will you be when our trauma stops #trending?” Winnipeg based activist and researcher Alexa Joy. #BlackLivesMatter #canpoli Image
"We're living in important times. We need to understand that BLM isn't a trend. It's a step toward equality and a better society." Regina resident Cécile Kayijuka #BlackLivesMatter #canpoli #skpoli Image
Aleg Rugero lives in #yxe. As a young Black man on the Prairies,
#BlackLivesMatter means just that to him. "I just wanted to be treated equally." #GeorgeFloydProtests #skpoli #canpoli Image

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More from @OmayraIssa

Sep 22, 2020
Dispatches from the Prairies.

1/ I have never said this publicly. But, I will also say it now. As a Black woman reporter in Canada & specifically in Saskatchewan, I have for years held myself from reporting on hate groups for my own safety.
2/ Hate groups run by white supremacists are extremely dangerous to me in the practice of my job as a Black journalist. As we know, women and specifically women of colour are disproportionally attacked by trolls. It is profoundly sad to feel unsafe as a Black journalist.
3/ I hope I will still be safe after tweeting this. Frankly, my heart is racing right now.
Read 4 tweets
Sep 10, 2020
Dispatches from the Prairies
On #SuicidePreventionDay, facts in #Saskatchewan
A Thread
1/ Overall suicide rates are four times higher in the Indigenous population than in the province's general population. #skpoli
2/ The @fsinations analyzed coroner's reports from suicides in Saskatchewan between 2005 and 2016 and concluded that a First Nations teen girl is 29 times more likely to kill herself than a non-Indigenous teen girl.
3/ Tristen Durocher is a 24-year-old Métis man from Northern Sask. He recently walked more than 600 kilometres to Regina, where he set up a teepee and began a 44 days ceremonial fast to call for a legislated suicide prevention plan. #SuicidePrevention #skpoli
Read 10 tweets
Sep 9, 2020
À l’approche du discours du Trône du premier ministre canadien, la Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne demande à @JustinTrudeau un engagement à déposer un projet de loi sur la modernisation de la Loi sur les langues officielles d’ici la fin de 2020. #rcsk #frcan Image
La FCFA veut aussi que cet engagement figure dans la lettre de mandat de la ministre des Langues officielles. #frcan #cndpoli
« Ça fait depuis 2018 qu’on en parle, de la modernisation. (...) Avec tout ce qui s’est dit et écrit sur cette question, il n’y a aucune raison de ne pas passer à l’action maintenant  », dit le président de la @fcfacanada, Jean Johnson @Jean_H_Johnson. #frcan #francophonie Image
Read 4 tweets
Sep 7, 2020
At a press conference on the #GreatGreenWall in the #Sahel and #Sahara
Deputy Secretary-General of the @UN @AminaJMohammed says it is vital to complete the wall. "The #GreatGreenWall provides solutions to properly respond and recover from the current challenges." Image
The #GreatGreenWall is meant to tackle climate change, land degradation, and loss of biodiversity in the #Sahel and #Sahara from Senegal to Djibouti. 65% of African land is currently degraded. #ClimateChange #desertification
Close to 18 million hectares of land have been restored by the #GreatGreenWall. The target is 100 million hectares by 2030. In an update today, @UNCCD says 8,2 million hectares & $4.3 billion are needed to reach the goal.
Read 9 tweets
Sep 6, 2020
Dispatches from the Prairies
1/ I started the Dispatches from the Prairies months ago, in the midst of the #BlackLivesMatter protests, as I was reporting on the historical & present day echos of the movement on the Prairies as a way to give context & analysis to the facts.
2/ Since then, I have expanded the Dispatches from the Prairies to map out the complexities of race, blackness and to include literature, politics, stories of present day Black Canadians on the Prairies, photography of this gorgeous geographical space, and much more.
I’ve been Black on the Prairies for twenty years and it’s been a fascinating ride.
Ps: if you’re Black on the Prairies, get in touch. My DMs are open.
Read 4 tweets
Sep 4, 2020
Dispatches from the Prairies
A Thread
1/ This morning, a group of Conservative MPs holding a rally in Regina's Victoria Park to voice support for the statue of #JohnAMacdonald that stands there were met by protesters calling for the statue's removal. #cdnpoli #skpoli
2/ The event was hosted by Andrew Scheer, MP for Regina-Qu'Appelle, Michael Kram, who represents Regina-Wascana, and Warren Steinley, the MP for Regina-Lewvan.
3/ Those opposed to the statue say it should come down due to the fact that Macdonald created the blueprint for residential schools and deliberately starved Indigenous peoples on the plains.
Read 7 tweets

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