[Candrama] Artists United Against Racism panel series sponsored by Teesri Duniya Theatre

[Matthew Jones]

Teesri Duniya Theatre Co.<https://www.teesriduniyatheatre.com/>
Panel Discussion Series
Artists United Against Racism
Teesri Duniya Theatre’s 2021-2022 season will also include a four-part creative virtual series. Panelists and artists will help us explore the facets of dismantling white-supremacy in theatre in order to tackle racism in our community.
Artists United Against Racism takes a new approach to combating issues embedded in our community. The project looks at current events and how they reveal the faults in our system racialized people have always known and felt. We’ll use lived experience, research, and facts to elicit discussions about injustice. Our goal is to provide resources which empower everyone to take action and broaden their perspectives.
The series will run from January through February in 2022. It will be financially supported by Canada Heritage (PCH) and the Brian Bronfman Foundation. We are grateful for their generous support in our continuous effort to tackle racism in our community.
Panel Discussion: Everybody Can Combat Racism
Online Event by Zoom; February 4, 2022 @ 1pm EST
Description:
This panel explores themes of relationship-building and anti-racist work in the arts and in everyday practice, with special attention to intersectionality as well as cross-cultural and intergenerational solidarity. Panelists will consider  solidarity work and relationship-building as a practice, and as a method to achieve the goals of anti-racism. Further, this panel will engage how art, theatre and story can be used as vehicles for anti-racist activism and as sites for cross-cultural exchange.
Attend Here<https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89108715777?pwd=c3A4SDBkYmkzdGcyQ2ZXZEdaeTNFUT09>
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Moderator:
Vishesh Abeyratne is an Sri Lankan-Canadian playwright and dramaturg based in Ottawa, Ontario. He recently finished a stint as playwright-in-residence at the Great Canadian Theatre Company (GCTC). His plays include Blood Offering, White Lion, Brown Tiger, A Fabric of Destiny, The Procrustes Pitch, and Exposure. Vishesh writes black comedy and political satire with occasional dips into the speculative genres of science fiction and fantasy. His work deals with identity, race, and the destructive effects of white supremacy and capitalism.

Panelists:
Chinese-Canadian, queer, and non-binary performer Mike Zuming Fan | 范祖铭 (they) is a powerful presence both on and off the stage. Operatic tenor, actor, drag artist, educator, and advocate, Mike transcends discipline, gender, and genre. Mike performs in 10 languages for audiences across North America, Europe, and Australia for Pacific Opera Victoria, Le Monument National, and Tampere Conservatoire. Mike holds degrees in Opera & Voice, Speech Arts & Drama, and Piano Performance. Upcoming engagements include Infusion Baroque and La Scena Musicale. Mike’s notable social justice leadership positions include Artistic Director of Opéra Queens and former PGSS Equity & Diversity Commissioner.

Karen Cho is a Chinese-Canadian filmmaker known for her socially-engaged documentaries. Her films explore themes of identity, immigration, and social justice. Karen has directed the award-winning In the Shadow of Gold Mountain a documentary about the Chinese Head Tax and Exclusion Act, Seeking Refuge a film following asylum seekers in Canada & Status Quo? A documentary on the women’s rights movement in Canada. In 2018 Karen was nominated for a Best Directing Canadian Screen Award for her work on CBC’s Interrupt This Program.  She is currently shooting a documentary on endangered Chinatowns in North America with EyesteelFilm.

Ehab Lotayef is a Canadian IT Manager, poet, writer and community activist, of Egyptian origin.  Ehab is deeply involved in social and community work, including, campaigns against the sanctions and war on Iraq, opposing the blockade of Gaza (organizing and being on board the Freedom Flotilla) and advocating for Native Rights and has served on many civil boards both locally and nationally . Ehab is also a founder and former chairperson of  both "Muslim Awareness Week" (MAW) and the "Non a la loi 21" (#NL21) campaign. As a poet and writer, Ehab published a bilingual poetry collection: "To Love a Palestinian Woman" (TSAR 2010) and the CBC produced his play "Crossing Gibraltar" in 2006.  His writings also appeared in many anthologies and zines and he wrote numerous OpEds on various subjects in many Canadian papers over the years.
Panel Discussion: Costs of EDI

Online Event by Zoom; February 7, 2022 @ 7:30pm EST
Description:
This panel explores the impact, limits and possibilities of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) initiatives for artists, with attention given to the concern of tokenization, and BIPOC and queer artists’ experiences. This panel seeks to unpack the shortcomings and successes of EDI, and asks where institutions and artists need to go from here in order to achieve genunine equity, not just diversity and inclusion.
Attend Here<https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82383147965?pwd=T1Uyd1M4c2pZSHFzSlh0azRwKzRiUT09>
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Moderator:
Zachary (Zakaria) Jericho Couture is a playwright, director, and artist from Amiskwacîwâskahikan (Edmonton, Alberta). He is of Palestinian and French descent. Inspired by his work with Teesri Duniya Theatre and the Islamic Family and Social Services Association, Zachary is committed to using theatre and art for human rights and community development. This work includes having: presented workshops at the University of Alberta on theatre and human rights; conducted an independent project on theatre and social justice; and coordinated storytelling workshops for refugee and newcomer youth. He is currently an undergraduate student at McGill University in political science and Islamic/Middle East studies.

Panelists:
Mariah Inger has been an actress for over 30yrs. She works in Film/TV, Voice, Video Games, Radio & Theatre. She has had the chance to work with some of the industries finest. She is VP of ‘Black Wealth Media’. A company focused on producing & distributing Afro-Centric content for Film/TV & Web. She is also a director & producer... A mentor to emerging marginalized artists (at AMP), a member of multiple boards helping to implement better diversity & inclusion policies, including within ACTRA in multiple facets… And always a proud mother of her adult son, Dezmond.

Deborah Forde - In 1999, after over 20 years in community development, Deborah’s work led her to the practice of professional community engaged arts through the study of Theatre for Development at Concordia. Emerging first as a director, with Bryan James’s Terminal,Terminal and Rahul Varma’s State of Denial, Deborah went on to spend two years supporting other emerging artists through Black Theatre Workshop’s YouthWorks, and 3 years serving the English-speaking theatre community as executive director for the Quebec Drama Federation. Currently, Deborah is director of operations for ELAN and freelances with the goal of continuing to support emerging artists and facilitate community connection to, and through, theatre.
Panel Discussion: Difficult but Necessary Conversation

Online Event by Zoom; February 10, 2022 @ 7:30pm EST
Description:
This panel explores themes of language and representation in media and art, and possible ways in which institutions can reflect systemic discrimination and engage in anti-oppression. Complex debates pertaining to language and art will be addressed, such as cultural appropriation; free speech and the stage; tokenistic or so-called “color-blind” casting”; and the history of racism, popular culture and theatre.
Attend Here<https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89381712757?pwd=L3ZoNU90dGdIdkl1QTFiUjNPRTViZz09>
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Moderator:
Matt Jones (he/him) is a writer, activist, teacher, and theatre creator living as an uninvited guest  in T’karonto, thetraditional territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat peoples. He has published widely about the politics of war, terrorism, and racism in performance and is working on a book manuscript titled The Body at War, 2001-2016: Necro-Performance and the Global War on Terror. He has been involved in anti-war organizing for twenty years, most notably with the Montreal-based Collectif Échec à la guerre. He is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Toronto’s Centre for Drama, Theatre and Performance Studies and he teaches at the Creative School at X University. Please visit www.mattjones.space<http://www.mattjones.space/> for more information.

Panelists:
Montréal-based novelist, poet, playwright and engineer, Rana Bose is a founding editor of Montréal Serai and was awarded the Judy Mappin Prize by the Quebec Writers Federation (QWF) for his commitment to bringing Montréal's English-language arts and culture to the world at large.

Katherine Zien is Associate Professor in the English Department at McGill University. Zien researches and teaches theatre and performance in the Americas, with special focus on transnationalism, social movements, and racialization. Following her 2017 book Sovereign Acts: Performing Race, Space, and Belonging in Panamaand the Canal Zone, Zien is currently working on two research projects, supported by a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Insight Grant. These investigate, respectively, gender and sexuality activism in Latin America and the Caribbean, and performances of counterinsurgency during Latin America’s Cold War. Zien is also co-editor of the Routledge Cultures of the Global Cold War book series.
Nikki Shaffeeullah (she/her) is a director, writer, actor, facilitator, and activist who creates theatre, film, and poetry. Currently, Nikki is a curator with National Arts Centre – English Theatre, and a resident artist with Why Not Theatre. Past roles include artistic director of The AMY Project and editor-in-chief of alt.theatre magazine. Nikki believes art should disrupt the status quo, centre the margins, engage with the ancient, dream of the future, and be for everyone.
Panel Discussion: Turning Commitment into Achievement

Online Event by Zoom; February 11, 2022 @ 2pm EST
Description:
How can we centre civil society in our efforts to combat racial discrimination in our society? This panel examines cross-cultural solidarity and concrete actions that are needed for a community-engaged strategy to combat racism. Panelists will address the specific strategies needed at the grass-roots and local levels to combat racism, both in regard to legal activism, and in regard to art and storytelling.
Attend Here<https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89228021300?pwd=c2lJck12TUU0Um9sMVorY0hRa3BKdz09>
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Moderator:
Deborah Forde - In 1999, after over 20 years in community development, Deborah’s work led her to the practice of professional community engaged arts through the study of Theatre for Development at Concordia. Emerging first as a director, with Bryan James’s Terminal,Terminal and Rahul Varma’s State of Denial, Deborah went on to spend two years supporting other emerging artists through Black Theatre Workshop’s YouthWorks, and 3 years serving the English-speaking theatre community as executive director for the Quebec Drama Federation. Currently, Deborah is director of operations for ELAN and freelances with the goal of continuing to support emerging artists and facilitate community connection to, and through, theatre.

Panelists:
Charles Bender - Since his Gémeaux nomination for hosting the young adult show, C’est parti mon tipi, Charles has become a regular presence on Aboriginal People’s Television Network. He is the lead of Sioui-Bacon and the host of Sans reserve a new talk show on APTN french. On screen, he has appeared in a variety of productions, both in English and in French, such as Eaux Turbulentes (Blik TV and KO TV) and Being Human (Muse Productions). On stage, he has worked with many companies with social justice as part of their mandate such as Teesri Duniya, Ondinnok and Tableau d’Hôte. He was also the host of the four-part documentary series, Le 8e feu (8th Fire), a series tackling a variety of contemporary First-Nation issues, produced and aired by Radio-Canada. He is co artistic director of Productions Menuentakuan and signed both the translation and direction of the 2018 production of Where The Blood Mixes, one of the most celebrated play in contemporary indigenous dramaturgy. He sits on the board of directors of a variety of organisations that promote and defend first nation issues in Canada.

Fo Niemi is Executive Director of the Center for Research-Action on Race Relations (CRARR). Over the years, he has also held numerous part-time positions, including that of Commissioner with the Quebec Human Rights Commission. He also served as member of advisory committees of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police and the RCMP; the Board of directors of the Canadian Race Relations Foundation; the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council and the Quebec Government's Task Force on Racial Profiling. His major recognitions include the Prix de la Justice du Québec and the Human Rights Award of the Lord Redding Society.

Nour Farhat is a lawyer in constitutional and criminal law in Montreal, Canada. Holder of a Master’s degree in criminal law, she has a strong interest for matters related to human rights, criminal and constitutional law.  Farhat has been involved for several years in the promotion and defense of fundamental human rights, especially the rights of marginalized populations. She regularly appears in the media to comment on current legal developments, particularly in Canadian criminal and constitutional law, and presents conferences across the country on issues like human rights and freedoms, systemic racism and access to justice.

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