PUBLISHED ON DECEMBER 16, 2021 BY HILLARY LEBLANC
When I started this blog in November of 2020, mid pandemic, I didn’t know what it would bring except for a distraction from the disease, sadness, and emptiness of the streets. I was bored in my father’s home, working at Shoppers fulltime during the pandemic up until two months before becoming part of Black in the Maritimes. I’ve said many times that this blog has offered me a space to grow, to learn about my Blackness, to feel part of this community I hope it has offered it’s readership something to look forward to, a perspective on Blackness they hadn’t heard, an opinion on intersectonalities and identities that opened new thought pathways or encouraged conversation. I know the conversations I had with some friends and family who read my work was robust, and I want to thank anyone who participated with my work.
This year we experienced a lot as Black people. The trial for the murderer of George Floyd, the trial for the murderers of Ahmed Arbery. There was plenty of hesitancy of COVID vaccination in Black communities. COVID affected NB heavily, more so than in 2019 and 2020. Blaine Higgs was my personal enemy number 1 as I screamed about the hiring of the Commissioner on Systemic Racism often. Celebrities screwed up and said questionable things, guests said powerful thought provoking things, and by proxy I tried to write something worth reading.
Toward the end of the year, as my life picked up, I was happy to share this blog space with our Co-Host Clinton, and two time guest Savannah Thomas. I firmly believe that the Black experience is not singular. We all seem to experience trauma, racism, ostracization but we all interpret these experiences differently, grow through them differently and have different opinions about the cultural spaces we take up.
I hope to see this blog evolve into a communal sharing of stories, cautionary tales and moments of triumph. As the world continues to change, I hope the lens of this blog does as well and I hope to share different content ideas in the new year.
Thank you for reading, for knowing there is an intellectual behind these spelling mistakes and that (more importantly) Black stories and Black voices are critical to the growth of society and to overturning our white system. I hope you all have a safe, happy and robust holiday season.
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