Free to Be More: Creative Activism in the Era of Black Lives Matter
What does it mean to practice the future together?
Creating an anthology is a big job! It is a unique and collaborative process. This isn’t just about art - it’s about storytelling, healing, and the power of collective dreams.
In this first episode of the ABC podcast, we explore the intersection of art and activism through the insights of Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware and Ra'anaa Yaminah Ekundayo, co-editors of 'Free to Be More: Creative Activism in the Era of Black Lives Matter.' Published by University of Regina Press.
Discover how creative expressions shape social justice movements and envision a more free and just future. And, if you’re a twin, you really should listen to the end!
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Key Topics
The role of art in Black Lives Matter and social justice movements
How Black artists harness creativity to mobilize change
The concept of Black aesthetic renaissance and its impact
The importance of community and collective action in activism
Future-oriented art practices and speculative fiction in activism
Want to learn more? Some of the books, organizations, scholars and artists mentioned:
Wildseed Centre for Art and Activism
Until We Are Free. Edited by Rodney Diverlus, Sandy Hudson, and Syrus Marcus Ware
21 Black Futures The Anthology. Created by Obsidian Theatre
Wires That Sputter. Britta Badour
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Alison Stratten (00:04)
Today it is my pleasure to welcome to Academic Book Club the co-editors of Free to Be More Creative Activism in the Era of Black Lives Matter, Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware and Ra'anaa Yaminah Ekundayo What would it mean to practice the future together in ways that birth new possibilities? That is the question posed by Free to Be More. The book celebrates the artists at the forefront of a Black aesthetic renaissance.
Alison Stratten (00:31)
And how they harness the arts to shape a more free and just future. In the wake of police violence in the United States and Canada, communities rose up in rage, grief, and resistance. Alongside them came an outpouring of creative expressions from Black artists who produced art to help make sense of the moment and mobilize for change. As violence persists, Black artists too continue.
Alison Stratten (00:55)
To dance, draw, write, and express their outrage and hope.
Alison Stratten (01:00)
Dr. Ware is assistant professor at the School of the Arts at McMaster University, exploring social justice frameworks and Black activist culture. He's a Vanier scholar, visual artist, activist curator, and educator, with works presented across Canada and internationally. Syrus is part of the Black August Arts Residency Collective and co-founder of Black Lives Matter Canada.
Alison Stratten (01:25)
He is co-founder and executive team member of the Wildseed Center for Art and Activism in Toronto, and co-editor of the best-selling book Until We Are Free, Reflections on Black Lives Matter in Canada.
Alison Stratten (01:37)
Raana Yamina Ekundayo is a Tiohtià:ke -based emerging multimedia visual activist scholar whose work explores the intersection of art and activism, particularly the entanglement of Black identity, community, and futurity. They are co-founder and chair of Black Lives Matter Sudbury and a cultural curator.
Alison Stratten (01:57)
Who works with various communities and mediums exploring radical love, self-care, and joy as an act of resistance and means of liberation. They hold a master's in architecture and are currently pursuing a doctorate in art history at Concordia University.
Alison Stratten (02:13)
Thank you for listening wherever you are in the world. And if you're a twin, you might want to listen to the end. Let's get started.
Alison Stratten (02:20)
Thank you both, Syrus and Ra'anna for being here with me today and sharing your time with Academic Book Club. I'd love to start with learning about how you came to create Free To Be More and some of the books, ⁓ authors, maybe artists and activists who have inspired and informed the work and putting the book together. Either of you can start.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (02:41)
Absolutely. Well we you know, we had made this with Sandy Hudson and Rodney Deverlis. I I had had the opportunity to work on Until We Are Free, which is a book on the the same publisher. And even as we were writing and working on that book, I did an interview with Ray Van Wings about art in the movement. and it was, you know, one chapter and it was just scratching
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (03:04)
.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (03:06)
the surface of obviously what was such a s
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (03:09)
so much more of a deeper conversation that needed to happen about artivism, about art based activism, about creative activism. ⁓ so started to think about pulling it together into a second anthology. ⁓ and right away knew that Ra'anna had to be involved. ⁓ and so we started working together on dreaming of what could this possibly be? How do we talk about this Black cultural renaissance that's happening right now? How do we talk about the incredible art-based activisms that have shaped, you know, the last decade ⁓
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (03:38)
of our sort of social world. you know, how do we talk about the artists who are making work about social justice frameworks and, you know, helping us to move towards a freer future? So we started sort of dreaming up this book from there.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (03:44)
Yeah. Yeah.
Alison Stratten (03:55)
And
Alison Stratten (03:56)
Rana?
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (03:56)
⁓
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (03:57)
Yeah, I was just gonna say, ⁓ from my side, I didn't get to participate in Free to Be More, but the second I got a copy, it's funny that Syrus should mention the chapter with him and Raven, because that chapter became ⁓ a reference point constantly for me during my dissertation, which I'm doing now. And I was like, this chapter is so important, art and activism, arts and activism. ⁓ And I've been very enamored with Syrus' work for a long time. then... ⁓
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (04:21)
We've connected through Black Lives Matter and then he sent me an email and he was like, do you want to help with this book? And I was like, this can't be real. Like these Syrus Marcus Way are reaching out to me to participate in this book and this anthology. And it just kind of went from there. And it's been such a magical process of learning and like working alongside Syrus and like getting to involve different members from our community that bring together this beautiful book. And honestly, it's been such a magical process, truly. ⁓
Alison Stratten (04:49)
how I felt when you both agreed to come and talk to me. I was so excited.
Alison Stratten (04:53)
it's wonderful to inspire people that way. And what about some of the books like when you think about with other than your other book, were there any other creations like this that sort of inspired you?
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (05:02)
Well, I mean, obviously so inspired by Tony Cade Bambera's idea of irresistible revolutions and that art the role of the artist, ⁓ you know, is to make the revolution irresistible, to make changemaking seem so possible that we can't help but all want to get involved. And so really inspired by her research and her writing. ⁓ you know, I think that there's there's so many incredible books that have come out recently. I'm thinking about Lamar Bruce's
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (05:24)
.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (05:26)
Jarrell Bruce's book, ⁓ that looked at madness and Black artists, Lauren Hill and
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (05:31)
Buddy Braffett at you know these or not Buddy I'm I'm forgetting the his name, but but these musicians who who were sort of making these connections between Mad Justice and organizing and, you know, their experience. That that book definitely stands out.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (05:47)
Yeah, I would add Black Futures, like the anthology, that book very much the idea of like dreaming like we're already there, connectivity, community, what can we imagine? And I mean, until we are free with something that I've been reading for years just going back to so like seeing this as like the next point of that has also been a really cool thing for me as well.
Alison Stratten (06:04)
It really speaks also to your process. That's also what I want to ask you about. So as co-editors and and as this sort of idea of a collection, right? And you you mentioned bringing forward a lot of different people. Can you tell me both individually? So how at how is it individual you approach it with your own also outlook? And also collectively, how did you work together? What were some of the stories or interactions that you really see and feel in the book?
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (06:28)
Ooh, that is such a fabulous question. I guess I can go first. I guess individually for me, it's really informed like how we do it collectively as well for me, like leading with compassion and curiosity is really helps the process of like bringing together some chapters and contributions that I might not have seen how they could have turned down the potential and then seeing how other people bring it together with like these beautiful collective ideas. But for me, really, I came into this just wanting to learn.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (06:57)
Right? And I think like even like doing my PhD, I constantly remind myself there's always opportunity to learn, especially when you're in community, especially like working alongside Syrus, especially working alongside the B folks who have been doing this kind of work in the field. And I'm like, I've never had the opportunity to work on a book. So it really just came from a place of like wanting to learn curiosity and also thinking about what is the kind of book that I would have loved at the start of my academic journey. And it's funny because this book has literally become like something ⁓ so, ⁓
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (07:26)
concrete and central to the research that I'm doing, you know, this Black art and activism and just thinking about like what the next generation of Black artists, the next generation of Black academics, art historians, the kind of thing that they would appreciate seeing and the scholars that they would want to connect with. Yeah. ⁓
Alison Stratten (07:42)
That's great answer. ⁓ Syrus?
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (07:43)
Yeah. Yeah.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (07:44)
I really, you know, it it it's such an important and crucial time. And I just, you know, I'm really interested in counter archiving and and this idea of, you know, h who and how and what we remember and this the importance of of recording and and and ensuring that what happened in this moment doesn't get erased or sort of disappeared. and so I was really interested in thinking about, you know, just from an individual p perspective of of
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (08:11)
How how to make sure that we're really getting a breadth of stories, a lot of different kinds of mediums, a lot of different kinds of artists, artists who are working in different parts of the country, you know, artists who are working in different kinds of ways. activism and organizing can look lots of different ways for lots of different people in lots of different communities. the kinds of creative practice that gets made, the mediums that
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (08:30)
.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (08:31)
get included. you know, we have we intentionally we have, you know, an article about a chapter about step, you know, and the art of step, you know, on campus, you know,
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (08:39)
So we're not only looking at portraiture, you know, or or or traditional art forms, visual art forms, which we we sometimes defer to when we think about the arts. and then having, you know, contributions by some of these incredible artists. We knew that we wanted to have creative submissions, we wanted to have art in the book. I've been part of a couple of anthology projects and it does seem to happen that there's like a I I often see people do call out for art, but then in an anthology there often isn't actually that much art in it. And we knew that we wanted to have art in the book. So
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (09:08)
We, you know, have artwork from so many different artists ⁓ who have been really active in the last 10, 15 years making work about, you know, the social framework that we find ourselves in in this moment. ⁓ so, you know, Janine Carrington and Natalie Wood and you know, Ifataya Alaby, Sandra Brewster, ⁓ you know, Camille Turner, ⁓ you know, artists who are really at the forefront of helping us to think about this big moment. So, you know, that was a big ⁓ thing. And then when Ra'anna when Ra'anna and I came together and working with to be young.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (09:37)
Need Africa, shout out to Divi who worked with us on this book. you know, we knew that we had different communities that we were connected to in different places. And Rahana is, you know, it was was doing so much work in the north. And we knew that it was a really important to bring in these sort of conversations outside of just the urban core. and so that was really, you know, an important kind of crucial thing that we were able to bring. And, you know, some of the things that I had been involved with, you know, doing stuff with Black Cosmetic Canada and and and being able to bring some of the artworks that we had created.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (10:06)
For the BLM ⁓ DFund poster series into the work. And you know, Debbie had been doing this incredible research with practitioners about ⁓ their theater praxis and about ⁓ sort of Black feminist creative resistance through theater and performance, and was able to bring that in. So we wove our areas together ⁓ and made sure that this book spoke to a lot of different kinds of creative activisms in this moment.
Alison Stratten (10:32)
It makes for a really rich reading. I can say it's a very beautiful book and there's poetry and imagery and it's really beautiful. And it also links a lot of the art to experiences and community that people have had, which I think is also very, very rich. Anyone who reads it, I think, will find something to to pull on or that they react to. I I wanted to ask about some of the sections in the chapters. You mentioned the North, which is one of the sections I'd I'd made like a special note of, because I think that's quite rare in Canada that
Alison Stratten (10:59)
is is in all things, but in the especially in the arts that we focus on sort of and so I'm very curious to learn walking through sort of different sections. it's divided into four different parts, memories that you have of writing, but also anything that surprised you. I be I know that being very immersed in community and doing research, sometimes things surprise us and we learn something maybe that we didn't expect. So we can talk about some of those sections and what stands out for each of you.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (11:26)
Yeah, I mean we have ⁓ maybe I c we can take take different sections around or we can just tag team but ⁓ you
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (11:31)
Yeah.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (11:33)
know our we start by talking about more broadly about Black arts abolition and activism so really trying to situate this moment ⁓ that we find ourselves in and so there's artwork by Britt B you know ⁓ her incredible poem Black Boots ⁓ there's the Defund poster series and so you know we sort of go through we've got some
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (11:52)
Some look backs, this idea of
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (11:53)
.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (11:54)
to sort of look back at the past to understand where we're headed. So we have this incredible reflection through Charmaine Nelson's work that was looking at apparel and about imagery in and in art history and and sort of rooting her work in who is and isn't named in these stories. There's like stories, interviews with Rodney Deverlus so all of these artists who are sort of thinking through how directly these
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (12:21)
big questions about activism and organizing. and then we we move into this idea of our practice and how we make the work. So this moving into sort of method and this idea of like, you know, what what's involved in the actual creation process. and so, you know, writing looking Erica Caldwell looking at Sandra Brewster's work, you know, and how you know, she was making the the work we gather. you know we have
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (12:50)
Conversations with k Courage Bacchus talking about her you know her creative practice in the last couple of years, including her participation in 21 Black Future. So these artists sort of talking about how they made the work. and then we get to dream forward into the future, living as if we're already there. And artists who are helping us to think forward into new ways from poetry by you know Kim Nankuru to you know Yung Yemi. that conversation that that you got to have with Yung Yemi Rana.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (13:16)
you know, about Afro futurism and, you know, d you know, there's speculative fiction writing and just sort of getting a chance to dream forward. And then these artworks, you know, we knew that it was really important to have these artworks and these creative reflections by artists in the in the section. So it really takes us through this idea of like, you know, what is the you know, the current moment around creative activisms, you know, how are you making the work? And then like where are we headed? You know, where are we trying to get to? in terms of stories that really stand out, I mean I will say
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (13:44)
We you know, it takes a lot to edit a book, it takes a lot to to bring it together. And so we've been literally all over this ⁓
Alison Stratten (13:51)
Yeah.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (13:52)
all over the planet working on this book. You know, Ra'anna was traveling and we were writing and d'bi is in Costa Rica and we were writing. I'm submitting submit you know reflections from a trip in in a research trip in Japan, you know. So there was all of these ways that these stories wove together, even though they're they're really stories about Northern Turbo Island, about Canada. ⁓ and then just the the opportunity to get a chance to speak with these practitioners.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (14:14)
the the joint interview that we got to do together, Ra'anaa you know, it was just so beautiful to get to share these conversations with these artists. Winsome Winsome in the book, you know, d'bi's interview with Winsome Winsome with Raven Wings, just really, really powerful storytelling with each other.
Alison Stratten (14:31)
Yeah. Rana, do you have one you want do you wanna add anything to that incredible answer from Syrus? ⁓
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (14:36)
Yeah, know Syrus does
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (14:37)
it so well, which is again why I've been so enamored with him and his work for so long. It just,
Alison Stratten (14:41)
Yeah, brilliant.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (14:43)
yeah, I feel like the book is really a beautiful representation on like ⁓ the ⁓ diversity of Blackness or ⁓
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (14:52)
I'm pretty sure it was a talk I saw Syrus give one time that was about the biodiversity of blackness and just like the differentness of bodies and Black people and the kind of work that they do. that's kind of become like a really important piece for me in this book. you see like people from all walks of life, from all different cities, from different kinds, like you have have performance based practices, we have painting based practices, we have written based practice, just like ⁓ very different. ⁓ I mean, I
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (15:18)
I'm personally really touched by being able to include, there's an interview with myself and a filmmaker friend of mine, Isaac Ryan Cool. And like you were saying, that's the North piece. And that was huge for us because we co-founded BLM Sudbury. And one of the things we noticed in our work is like a lot of the conversations on Blackness really don't include non-urban centers. They don't include, you know, people outside of like major cities. And so being able to put this in the book and people are looking at understanding like what is it like to live not only as a Black.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (15:44)
person in so-called Canada, but what is it like to live in a community where there's so few Black people and there's so few limited resources? And I don't know, just seeing it all come together has been so beautiful. And even like the introduction where we talk about, you know,
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (15:57)
Yeah.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (15:58)
the time of Black Lives Matter and the importance of this, it just feels, it's so timely. And seeing that, like, I feel like what I love the most about the book is the fact that it doesn't just have to be essays, it doesn't just have to be
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (16:11)
you poetry, doesn't just have to be X, Y, or whatever. It's like literally whatever we dreamed up. And then this book is literally, literally our wildest dreams come together in a book. And already like I met a Black scholar or academic artist in the community recently, ⁓ and I'd never met her before. And the first thing she said was, I saw your book on Instagram and it's exactly the book that I thought we needed. And I was I was already going to start compiling research of Black art and activism. she was like, but you guys already did it. And I was like,
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (16:36)
The people need this and like we've already done it so it just, I don't know, it feels very serendipitous in that way.
Alison Stratten (16:42)
So beautiful, that's
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (16:43)
And
Alison Stratten (16:43)
a wonderful answer.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (16:44)
you know, this one thing just also to shout out, you know, we were involved in so much organizing in twenty twenty around these idea of these monuments and the statues. And, you know, I you know, I'm so thankful for this conversation about the McGill statue, you know, taking this you know, like just to be able to like p also just get a specificity of what was happening with the organizing and activism in places outside of where you're living.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (17:11)
I just am so
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (17:12)
Mm-hmm.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (17:12)
thankful for that. I'm so thankful.
Alison Stratten (17:14)
Whenever you break whenever you speak to the art, you always root it in whatever is in the context. And so as you read the book, you're not only getting sort of these these stories of artists, but also of where the art comes from and what it's rooted to. And so it's just really beautifully expressed, I think. And that comes through those stories come through in the art as well, which was very powerful to read. There's a question right at the end. I think it's in your conclusion. I wrote it down because it was so fantastic about
Alison Stratten (17:40)
what it would mean to practice the future together in ways that birth new possibilities. And I thought this was a very powerful question. And I'm wondering as you were writing the book, like how did you did you find your answer to your question in the like I'm very
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (17:55)
Hmm
Alison Stratten (17:57)
curious because when I'm reading the book and speaking to you, what I see are two people creating the future like living in the future they write we want to see. And so I'm really curious what how that sort of came
Alison Stratten (18:08)
out for you. Did you answer that question that you ask us as readers?
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (18:13)
That's a great question. think like for me it's like an ongoing question. I'm like we're still building the future. We're still working on the like even like not just the book but like the process of bringing it together but even like them like right now we're setting up the book launches and seeing the ways in which community comes together it's like
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (18:30)
I don't know, like we said, like we're already there, dreaming like we're already there, it's like we're seeing so many different potentials and it's become our everyday in many ways. Like for me, this is my first book experience, so I feel like I'm very fortunate to have worked with Syrus and d'bi and University of Regina Press and 5 Otter Literacy where they worked in a way where I was like, this feels conducive to how a human should be working. You know, it felt very flexible, very collaborative in that way, and to me, that's the future.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (19:00)
You know, we have this like, I don't want to call us a ragtag team, but I'm like, we're just some such different areas of life. And we've seen different things and just to have these artists come together and be like, no, let's create this in a book and show our own history in a way that's like pushing beyond like Eurocentric and white ideals. And like, what does it mean for us to create a book for, by the community? like, even when we've been like putting together the launch, one of the things I've been seeing is like,
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (19:24)
The book is not just a collection of artists and activists. It's about the community, the context, and the things and the places that made all of this come together. It's truly about the community that made all this work possible. And I think that's something really special that, you know, as an artist, oftentimes, especially like my backgrounds in architecture, and one of the things they always tell us about is like the one architect, the one great architect who did it by themselves and designed that building. want to emanate that.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (19:50)
But this work is really about community and collective. And it's not just about, you know, how I got to this journey. ⁓ It's really more about like, I'm getting to this own journey, Syrus is getting to his journey, Debbie's getting to their journey, and how did we all meet together? But then how do we collectively bring this together? Because this isn't just one person, it's like a bunch of beautiful minds melting. And I think that's part of the future is like, it's not just the individual, it's the collective.
Alison Stratten (20:14)
Beautiful.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (20:16)
So important
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (20:17)
to to practice the future together, you know, it it really is, you know, and I I mean Adrian Marie Brown talks about practicing the future through speculative fiction and then we're like practicing the future through our abolitionist commitments where we commit to building community and to world building together. You know, ultimately this is this is a book about of world builders who are like imagining something different and and for and helping people who are having trouble doing that imagining themselves to picture it, you know.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (20:43)
to literally picture it and to see it written large. ⁓ and, you know, it really is important to, you know, to be able to have ⁓ you know, that opportunity to kind of to to sort of dream forward into the future. ⁓ our process in this book ended up creating a network of Black artists who didn't all already know each other, you know, Black activists and and artivists who ⁓ were ⁓ on about the same thing, but in vastly different regions as Rana's just said.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (21:12)
Different contexts, different places who are now connected, you know? And that feels like the kind of world building and community building that is gonna get us to the free the freedom that we're getting to. The book is you know, cut draws its title from that Asada Shakur quote where she says, you know, if not for being a struggler, I would be free to be so
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (21:17)
You
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (21:32)
much more, you know, I would be a gardener, a sculptor, a carpenter, but I was born into a world where I had to struggle.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (21:38)
And so that's, you know, she says the only way to live in in with dignity on this planet in in this moment is to struggle. So we made this book, you know, Free to Be More, imagining a time when we would be and will be, actually it is it is assured, when we will be free to be more. You know, in this moment though, the artifists that we're talking to have found a way to be both the sculptor and the struggler, you know, and they're doing it together and they're actually transforming the conditions.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (22:06)
with every project and with every rally and and protest. Every banner, you know, every banner drop is is changing the world and making something different happen. So we're really happy to have been able to to gather these stories together into one book.
Alison Stratten (22:20)
Incredible. so and I'm I'm very curious about that. So creations have ripples, tell me a little bit about the where you hope the books the book will travel, whose eyes, whose hands, because it's so beautiful whose hands, you know, do you hope that it travels to and what kind of spheres
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (22:30)
Okay.
Alison Stratten (22:38)
and spaces, speaking of space, do you hope that free to be more will will will enter?
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (22:42)
is.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (22:45)
I mean it's so important like I I love the work of Emery Douglas
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (22:48)
because, you know, as an artist, he named himself the revolutionary artist for the Black Panther Party, or they they together named him that, which I think has got such swagger. But he you know, he he would talk about how he made the work whenever he would put work up. So
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (23:01)
Okay.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (23:03)
when he would make these woodcuts and and prints for the Black Panther newspaper and we would put them up in his name, we would put how he made it so encourage other people to want to make work too, to say, I could also do that, you know?
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (23:14)
And this book o fundamentally hopefully will reach other Black artists or other Black artivists, activists who are interested in creative responses, artists who are interested in political responses, to to know that they're not alone, to know that this is a possibility. We're coming i you know, into a moment now where ⁓ I I suppose artivism is ⁓ more supported, but I think that ⁓ you know, w ⁓ there there's still ⁓
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (23:27)
.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (23:44)
I think there's still is a lot of way that people are kind of disconnected. And so to be to be able to know that this is a possibility, that you don't just have to do a painting of peaches. You could do something that is more connected to social justice, that it is possible to change and transform the world, that it is possible to create irresistible revolutions. So hopefully that'll be useful. I hope we hope that it'll be taught in schools and universities, you know, for art history and art programs, for artists, for art students to see that this is possible, you know, we're activists, you know, rana
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (24:13)
you know, co-founded BLM Sudbury and, you know, I am involved with Black Lives Matter Canada and was involved with Black Lives Matter Toronto and we want activists to use this book. You know, there are so many art art based activists who are on the ground doing the work every day. And this is the book this book is a celebration of their work and their organizing as well. And so we hope that they pick it up and that they hold it. So you know, and then I think that there is like this other audience also potentially of people who aren't yet involved.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (24:20)
. you
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (24:42)
And I say yet because they're they're interested, you know, they're they're curious. And this book might be an invitation to say, you know, come and join us and like let's get free together.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (24:45)
⁓
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (24:56)
Sorry, I love that answer so much, Syrus. just, yes,
Alison Stratten (24:57)
No.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (24:59)
exactly that. I'm like, I feel like this book is like the blueprint for so many things. It's like not only the blueprint of how people did the work that they do, ⁓ but a blueprint for dreaming.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (25:11)
blueprint for the next steps and the next generations and also like I was saying people who want to get involved but haven't you know quite found their footing or where or how and I think this book for me like in the process of doing it was just really a reminder of like how we're not alone and I want that to get to people like I remember starting in university and like being one of like four or five Black people in the entire school ⁓ and I'm like I want the Black students to find this and see that like ⁓ you can be an academic.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (25:39)
without doing all of the ⁓ bureaucracy, without writing through this academic language, without being inaccessible. You can be an academic through so many lens. You can come to academia through community. ⁓ And the faculty and people teaching this, I'm actively going through the field of art history now in school and seeing how ⁓ people have created a space where Black people are having a fight to have their voices heard. like, this is the book. I ⁓ want to see it in the classrooms. And actually, Syrus already, I have...
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (26:08)
colleague of my mother's at Sheridan already talked about putting it into her class next term and getting it there and I was like, yes, it's begun. But yeah, I don't know. I want this book everywhere. I want everyone to see it. I think it's like such a... I've honestly been modeling my dissertation after it in a way where I'm like, you don't have to be an art historian traditionally or an artist or an activist or all of these things.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (26:31)
anyone can get this book and you can pick it up and you can learn and you can be like you know what these parts of my life are activism or art or whatever i've actually been getting a copyright to give to my grandma she doesn't have like traditional formal education and post-secondary but she's the person i want to see this book you know the elders the people who like dreamed us up and made this possible i'm hoping to bring her to the book launch in toronto so she can kind of experience that but yeah that's that's my dream for this book really
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (26:59)
say we you know, one thing that it also potentially could be is like you know, for people who are wanting to put their own book together, like you could do anything. Just do it, you know, just do it. We did our our conclusion is creative. Like our conclusion you know, involves poetry and writing, our conclude you know, our introduct like everything that we did, we we just went with what
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (27:23)
made the most sense for the movement, for the artist, for the artivist, for the activist, for for this moment, for the issues in this moment, rather than saying, well, you know, in a in a formal book it must be like this. our commitment to plain language and our commitment to our community, you know, that came first. And so i the most important thing is that anybody could pick
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (27:31)
you
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (27:46)
up this book and and be able to understand what's inside.
Alison Stratten (27:48)
Wonderful. I I have one more question. authors and editors, you're authors as well. Much of your writing is also inside of the book. but authors often write the books they want to see in the world, right? They they and you mentioned that that it was a book that you wanted to see. So now that you've written the book and you've you've stepped through that process, what kind of things are you imagining? What is what is the book you have maybe or books you have maybe playing around? What would you like to read now?
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (28:18)
Like read next to me
Alison Stratten (28:19)
Yeah, like what books are like do you are you imagining? What's the book that's not in the world yet that you're like, I need maybe I'll write that, you know? What are you imagining?
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (28:26)
⁓
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (28:28)
I've been toying with this idea of like an intergenerational something about movement politics. I feel like I've met so many ⁓ cool activists from different realms, like engaging with Syrus and then ⁓ Concordia recently had a panel with Fred Anderson who did like organizing with the Panthers and things like that. ⁓ And just like this conversation of like what it is like to
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (28:50)
be in the movement and just like different generationally and how we talk about solidarity work and intersectionality and just like different aspects of how the movement shifts and like it all feels so timely that you know the title of book Free to Be More and like I literally just read the autobiography of Asashika or finally and then her passing and she talked a lot about what it was like to be a woman in the Panther Party.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (29:11)
And finding that moment where she was like, can I do more work here or there? just the different avenues that this work can transpire and the need for the work to transpire, grassroots and politics and the institution and all across the realms. And I'm like, that is the book I want to read. I want to talk about the ins and outs of the movement and how the movement appears on different levels and through different generations, I guess. It's a work in progress.
Alison Stratten (29:38)
I
Alison Stratten (29:38)
actually think like 'cause the time in your book is really interesting because it's happening all at once. So the past is active with the present in the making and the future. And so it doesn't surprise
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (29:46)
Exactly.
Alison Stratten (29:47)
me that generations would be on your mind. What about you, Syrus?
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (29:52)
Yeah, I ⁓ my goodness. I I would love to see a book about Black trans futures. ⁓ you
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (29:59)
Mmm.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (30:00)
know, something that kind of really roots into ⁓
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (30:03)
That is a c ⁓ into the idea that it is in fact possible for there to be Black trans creatures and that all trans people could live long enough to become elders and that there is this possibility that we have, you know, this way of imagining us in twenty seventy, you know, and and if Compahie River collective statement from the nineteen seventies is true that if we make the world safe for for those who are most marginalized, then if Black trans women ⁓ you know, are safe in twenty seventy, we will have all survived. So I think a book about that seems really
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (30:32)
important but I'm also really fascinated by how many activist and or trans twins there are. I'm a twin. Raven Wings who's in the book is a twin.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (30:45)
my gosh, Isaac's a twin!
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (30:46)
Isaac's a twin Isaac's
Alison Stratten (30:47)
Why?
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (30:47)
a twin Isaac's a twin. that's incredible.
Alison Stratten (30:50)
I think something new was just discovered.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (30:50)
and his sibling just joined BLM
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (30:53)
Janaya Khan who is in Until We Are Free is a twin.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (30:57)
Monica Forrester, who's a longtime Black activist in Toronto, is a twin. Like it's it's just and and and and Theo Theodore Walker Robinson, who's an artist and activist, is a twin. So there's just i it's a statistically significant phenomenon. So I'm also
Alison Stratten (31:09)
Yeah, it's been
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (31:11)
thinking, gosh, I'd love to do something about like ⁓ what is it that's drawn us all to to to organizing, you know, and anyways creativity.
Alison Stratten (31:18)
Yeah.
Alison Stratten (31:19)
I I would buy that book. ⁓
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (31:21)
Okay.
Alison Stratten (31:23)
I love those. And it's it's wonderful to get a chance to talk to both of you. ⁓ Free To Be More is an incredible book. I have had the privilege of reading it a little bit early, and I really suggest everyone pick it up and check it out. You can learn more about the book, and I'll provide all the links to everything that we talked about today on the website. Visit academicbookclub.com. ⁓
Alison Stratten (31:46)
And thank you. Thank you both for being here with me today.
Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (he/him) (31:49)
Thank you so much for this great combo.
Ra'anaa Ekundayo (they/them) (31:49)
Thank you.
Alison Stratten (31:51)
Thank you so much for listening to this episode of Academic Book Club. Like, subscribe, and all that good stuff and visit academicbookclub.com to learn more about new and upcoming titles. Have feedback or suggestions from this episode, ideas about who we have to speak to next? Reach out anytime and say hi on Instagram or by email to info at academicbookclub.com. Keep reading, take care, and talk soon.