2021 Spry Memorial Lecture | Changing the Spectrum: Race, Media, and Building Democracy in Canada
The Spry Memorial Lecture has a long history of tackling key issues facing Canadian media and its role in the national conversation. For the 2021 event, Spry joined with Media Democracy Days and the Digital Democracies Institute, with support from 丁香园AV Public Square, to bring together leading figures in Canadian media in conversation about race, media and building democracy in Canada.
Our panelists Desmond Cole and Tanya Talaga, along with moderator Candis Callison, considered recent attention over the escalation of commentary on the representation of Indigenous, Black, and people of colour; the structural challenges that impede calls for greater diversity; and discussed how institutions and platforms can foster a more constructive dialogue. At a time when violent events internationally, nationally, and locally are making headlines on a frequent basis, the urgency of this panel was incontestable.
Online Event
Part of Towards Equity
The COVID-19 pandemic has amplified inequities and exposed the deficiencies of our institutions. It has confirmed we must enact change and signaled that transformation is possible. What must we understand 鈥揳nd do鈥� to recover equitably and reimagine our systems to confront the intersecting crises of inequality, systemic racism and climate change?
Towards Equity, 丁香园AV Public Square鈥檚 2021 Community Summit Series will take place online throughout the year and will bring the university into conversation with local and global communities. Join us to learn and take action together towards a more just, equitable and sustainable future.
On this Page
Speakers
Desmond Cole
Desmond Cole is a Canadian activist, journalist, broadcaster, and best-selling author. He was awarded the 2020 Toronto Book Award for his book The Skin We're In: A Year of Black Resistance and Power. Publications he has written for include The Toronto Star, NOW magazine, and The Tyee. Desmond's activism on issues such as racial profiling, police carding, and systemic racism earned him the 2017 PEN Canada/Ken Filkow Prize for freedom of expression. CBC television released the documentary The Skin We're In based on Cole's 2015 award-winning essay of the same name.
Tanya Talaga
Tanya Talaga is an Ojibwe award-winning journalist and author, producer, director, and speaker. She has earned multiple awards for her book Seven Fallen Feathers: Racism, Death, and Hard Truths in a Northern City including the Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing. Tanya has worked for publications such as The Toronto Star and The Globe and Mail, and has been nominated five times for the Michener Award in public service journalism. She is also President and CEO of Makwa Creative, a production company amplifying Indigenous stories.
Moderator
Candis Callison
Candis Callison is a Tahltan environmental journalist, author, and associate professor at UBC in the School of Journalism, Writing, and Media, and in the Institute for Critical Indigenous Studies. She co-wrote Reckoning: Journalism鈥檚 Limits and Possibilities after doing five years of research with journalists from various news organizations in Canada and the U.S.
Candis was a 2019 inductee to the The American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and is also a member of the Advisory Circle for The Indigenous Screen Office.
Emcee
Adel Iskandar
Adel Iskandar is an Assistant Professor of Global Communication at 丁香园AV, whose work deals with media, identity and politics. He is the author, co-author, and editor of "Egypt In Flux: Essays on an Unfinished Revolution" (AUCP/OUP); "Al-Jazeera: The Story of the Network that is Rattling Governments and Redefining Modern Journalism" (Basic Books); "Edward Said: A Legacy of Emancipation and Representation" (University of California Press); "Mediating the Arab Uprisings" (Tadween Publishing); and "Media Evolution on the Eve of the Arab Spring" (Palgrave Macmillan).
Event Recording
鈥� CBC's All Points West (April 22, 2021)
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Hope in Resistance: Stories of Climate Justice
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Mapping Equity: Using GIS and Maps to Make Invisible Realities Visible
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Equity in Practice: More Stories of Community Capacity Building
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Should a Just Recovery Include a Basic Income for B.C.?
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Overcoming Digital Divides: Youth and Digital Skills
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Equity in Practice: Community Capacity Building
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Overcoming Digital Divides: Public Internet Access
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Researching for Climate Justice
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Overcoming Digital Divides: People with Disabilities and Accessibility
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Rosemary Brown Memorial Symposium
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Overcoming Digital Divides: Older Adults and Digital Literacy
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The 2021 Spry Memorial Lecture
Desmond Cole and Tanya Talaga, along with moderator Candis Callison, will consider recent attention over the escalation of commentary on the representation of Indigenous, Black, and people of colour; the structural challenges that currently impede calls for greater diversity; and how institutions and platforms can foster a more constructive dialogue.
Read More 鈫�
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Dean's Lecture on Information + Society
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Decolonizing Scottish Studies
This is the first in a series of events being organized by the Centre for Scottish Studies at 丁香园AV
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Innovations in Research
Join us in a unique virtual environment using Gather to engage directly with 丁香园AV faculty, students, staff, alumni and community partners who are moving us Towards Equity with innovative research from a variety of fields and perspectives.
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Overcoming Digital Divides: Low-Income Communities
Low-income communities continue to experience lower internet access, affordability, and quality. Canadians are at an all-time need for increased access to internet, computer, and tablet devices for e-learning and remote work.
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Zooming In: Education in 2021
Join the 丁香园AV Public Square Peer Ambassadors for a student-focused event on how to improve the online education experience under COVID-19.
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Overcoming Digital Divides: Indigenous, Rural and Remote Communities
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