ORIGINS
Born of the frustration and despair which reached boiling point after the high profile police killings of Freddie Gray, Eric Garner, Alton Sterling, Tamir Rice, Philando Castille, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and countless lesser known murders in the United States, marches and demonstrations ensued worldwide. In Canada, there was similar outcry due to the killings of Black Canadians D’Andre Campbell, Nicholas Gibbs, Orlando Brown, Jermaine Carby, Andrew Loku and Abdirahman Abdi who also died at the hands of police.
The combination of covid isolation, police killings and the wave of global protests prompted many to take a deeper look at systemic racism in Canada, and the stark racial divide in this country. Companies, industry by industry started to take a stand against systemic racism. The music, entertainment and creative industries have long monetized Black culture and creativity, and have been called upon address the absence of Black representation in positions of power.
On 2 June 2020, to show solidarity with protesters, many companies posted a black square on Instagram with the #BlackoutTuesday, created by two Black women who work for Atlantic Records and Platoon.
BREAKING DOWN RACIAL BARRIERS IS A CHILD OF THIS MOVEMENT.
The progeny of a conversation between entertainment industry entrepreneurs Ian Andre Espinet and David "Click" Cox, a Black led, music, entertainment and creative industries roundtable discussion series was born.
From discrimination to unequal pay, the challenges Black people face in the music, entertainment and creative industries are no different from those faced in others. However, the power which companies in these sectors wield over shaping perceptions and influencing society cannot be ignored. Further, the unique position which Black people hold in music and creative industries as a result of intellectual property and cultural contribution, are perhaps greater than any other sector. BDRB set upon a path to disrupt: to prompt hard conversations on racism, systemically exclusionary systems and barriers placed in the way of Black artists, creatives and professionals, and to make lasting, measurable change in the industry.
THE BDRB NATIONAL ROUNDTABLES
Breaking Down Racial Barriers was initiated as a 10-part roundtable series on anti-Black racism in the Canadian music, entertainment and creative industries, born of the 2020 racial unrest and the industry’s reckoning with the long-standing issue.
The BDRB roundtables were initiated, curated and coordinated by entertainment community mainstays Ian Andre Espinet and David “Click” Cox, facilitated by CIMA (The Canadian Independent Music Association) and supported by ADVANCE, Canada's Black Music Business Collective.
CENTRED in the voices and lived experiences of working Black music professionals from the vast segments of the Canadian music & entertainment industry, the findings have been compiled into the CIMA commissioned “BDRB Report on Anti-Black Racism in the Canadian Music Industry: Volume 1” supported by Radio StarMaker Fund, FACTOR & Canada Heritage.