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Browsing by Author "Nyaga, Dionisio"

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    Addressing the ground of anti-Black racism social work in Canada: Afrocentric education and the United Nations International Decades for People of African Descent
    (2025) Ouedraogo, Valerie; Massaquoi, Notisha; King, Regine Uwibereyeho; Nyaga, Dionisio; Duhaney, Patrina; Ikeorj, Chika; Urindwanayo, Desire; Moallim, Nafisa; Osadjere, Precious
    Dominant epistemologies, methodologies, and ontologies within education and Social Work remain deeply Eurocentric and often fail to account for the lived realities of Black communities. These gaps contribute to negligence, discriminatory practice, and harmful outcomes. This study draws on African/Black Studies and Social Work to investigate the presence, engagement, and utilization of Afrocentric perspectives across Canada during the first United Nations Decade for People of African Descent. We explore how Afrocentricity informs Social Work pedagogy and practice, particularly in relation to equity and anti-Black racism. Using interviews with Black scholars and practitioners in three provinces, the analysis highlights how Afrocentric frameworks shape teaching, identity formation, community engagement, and advocacy. Findings show that Afrocentric curriculum and pedagogy offer essential pathways for advancing equity, strengthening anti-Black racism initiatives, and expanding more justice-oriented approaches in education and the social sciences. This study underscores the need for institutional commitment to Afrocentric knowledge, community-led initiatives, and systemic transformation in the upcoming Second Decade.
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    Afro-Caribbean Canadian youth mental health: paving the way forward from the margin to the centre.
    (2024) Edwards, Fiona; Torres, Rose Ann; Nyaga, Dionisio
    Black youth are disadvantaged in Canadian society due to racial inequality. Within dominant institutions, Black youth are often oppressed, marginalized, excluded, controlled, and poorly understood. Research on race and mental health is largely focused on the adult population. Youth mental health, in general, is an understudied area, and critical investigations of Black youth’s mental health are even more limited. In addition, the mental health experiences of Afro-Caribbean Canadian youth (ACCY) are not well established within the Canadian context. The existing data that accounts for their lived experiences is very limited. Moreover, their personal narratives and experiences are too often marginalized in the limited research that does exist. Without data that accurately represents their experiences, it will be challenging, if not impossible, to institute any necessary changes at the structural level. In an effort to address this gap, my doctoral research explores the lived mental health experiences of ACCY between the ages of 16–18 who were born in Canada and reside in the urban areas of Southern Ontario. Using the data from this study, this chapter provides recommendations for practices and policies in the mental health system that are designed to prioritize and address the mental health and well-being of the Afro-Caribbean Canadian and Black youth in general.