The Anti-Racism Coalition of Vancouver (“ARC”) is petitioning for Black Shirt Day on January 15th to be introduced in BC, in recognition of the struggle for civil rights fought by Black and racialized Canadians.
Black Shirt Day in BC
Through an online campaign and Change.org petition, ARC proposes that Black Shirt Day be established on the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., the great civil rights leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner.
“We believe this will be an important step in raising greater awareness of the ongoing struggle for civil and human rights faced by Black and racialized Canadians, and help to foster solidarity against all forms of racism and hate.”
At L.A. Matheson Secondary, teacher Annie Ohana said ”most, if not all teachers” will take part in Black Shirt Day on Friday, adding she hopes at least 600 to 700 students take part.
“I do think days like this give teachers – students – a chance to kind of have an easier way to have that dialogue where maybe we take a breather to focus on specifically that one issue,” she explained.
“Our students, our staff need to realize that we need to celebrate Blackness, we need to celebrate students and everybody having a safe and peaceful existence.” [Surrey Now Leader]
The petition calls for the British Columbia Ministry of Education to designate Friday, January 15th, 2021, as Black Shirt Day.
“Having curriculum on, you know, my history, people who look like me, definitely would have helped to make me feel like I belonged in Canada, like I belonged in Victoria,” ARC’s Kamika Williams told the CBC. “The goal behind [the petition] is to have, at the very least, one day of mandatory curriculum on Black history and civil rights.”
Several school districts are currently participating, with the tag #BlackShirtDay trending on Twitter on January 15th, with support from students, teachers, unions, politicians, and more.
January is typically slow when it comes to events and with extended COVID restrictions and everyone working hard to plan and produce 2021’s entertainment, it’s understandable that this weekend’s list of Things to do in Vancouver is pretty short. As such, I have included online events that were submitted, along with some of my roundups and lists for safe activities around home.
From insects to eagles, kids can learn about Stanley Park’s creatures by joining the Critter Club! Stanley Park Ecology Society (“SPES”) educators are offering an interactive online club for children who are passionate about animals, want to learn more about them, and want to help protect them.
SPES campers birdwatch at Beaver Lake. Photo by Anthony Ho.
SPES Critter Club
When: January 21 – February 25, 2021 on Thursdays
Choose from a morning or after school session
Participants can join for the full six weeks, or individual days.
Who: Ages 9-13 (youth outside the suggested age range – younger participants – should be accompanied by an adult to help with tech support but programming will be designed for 9–13-year-olds)
Platform: Zoom
The SPES Critter Club will explore wildlife in Stanley Park and around us through art, activities, short presentations, Q&A, and more. It offers young minds a place to grow their curiosity, meet other like-minded children, and have fun.
Critter Club members will be offered an optional exciting activity to do on their own over the next week. Activities will be based around sustainable living and learning how to protect our precious wildlife. Participants can bond with each other over what they did in the break-out session the following week.
Individual or Full Six Week Program
January 21, Week 1: Radical Raptors (Register for this week only here) Explore high flying Stanley Park raptors including Bald Eagles, Barred Owls, and Sharp Shinned Hawks in our introductory week! We’ll look at real taxidermy specimens from the SPES collection to discover how strong these birds’ talons are, why they’re at the top of the food chain, and learn their haunting calls!
January 28, Week 2: Furry Wetland Friends (Register for this week only here) Do you find the quest for beaver knowledge gnawing at you? Do you know how to tell the difference between river and sea otters? Look no further! We’ll learn about the busy and playful wetland mammals that reside here in Stanley Park, and find out what life is like inside the beaver lodges on Beaver Lake and Lost Lagoon
February 4, Week 3: Scaley Snakes and Slimy Salamanders (Register for this week only here) From skinks to salamanders, discover which scaley and slimy creatures are lurking under logs. Is it garter or gardener snake? Can bullfrogs really eat whole chickens? Are newts poisonous? We’ll metamorphosize our knowledge of these cryptic reptiles and amphibians and learn how invasive species are taking over Beaver Lake!
February 11, Week 4: Flying Wonders (Register for this week only here) Learn the difference between the only true flying mammal and the squirrel who thinks it can fly! Watch our nighttime video from the critter cams that confirmed flying squirrels do live in Stanley Park! Stretch out your wings (or patagium) for this batty program and explore the Park’s nocturnal skies with us!
February 18, Week 5: Cool Creepy Crawlers (Register for this week only here) From ants to spiders, we get up close with our 6 or more-legged friends. Why are insects important? Do we have any harmful spiders in Stanley Park? Who makes those funnel webs? Which beetle smells like a Jolly Rancher candy? Crawl on over and find out who’s hiding in Stanley Park and around your home!
February 25, Week 6: Marvellous Marine Mammals (Register for this week only here) Join us for a deep-sea dive where we’ll explore the marvellous marine mammals off our coast. Find out which of these intelligent animals live around BC, and along Stanley Park’s beaches, and how they survive in the deep blue ocean.
Coastal Jazz and Blues Society announces Winter Jazz, the annual free celebration at Performance Works on Granville Island, presented with the support of CMHC Granville Island. This year’s edition will be live-streamed, with online performances.
Granville Island Winter Jazz
When: February 19-21, 2021 Where: Streaming live online from Performance Works Tickets: Free! Click on the event links below to register
Tune in and tune out the blues! The schedule of performances includes two evening concerts and four daytime presentations.
These concerts include performances by a number of artists commissioned as part of the Creative Music Commissions, presented by TD, a program that supported 20 Canadian artists to create new work during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Coastal Jazz and Blues Society ranks as BC’s largest not-for-profit music presenter producing the annual TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival, Bright Moments series, and year-round concerts, as well as presenting local, national, and international artists five nights a week at Frankie’s Jazz Club.
The Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival is back for 2021, rebranded as Hot Chocolate Vancouver featuring 39 venues offering up 87 flavours!
Hot Chocolate Vancouver
When: January 16 to February 14, 2021
From the organizers: “When it launched in 2011, Hot Chocolate Vancouver was the first city-wide initiative in the world to use hot chocolate beverage as a way to support small, local business. This January it returns for its 11th year, bigger and better than ever, with Vancouver’s best chocolatiers, pastry shops, bakeries, cafes, gelato and ice cream makers coming together to make the humble hot chocolate hotter than it has ever been before.”
Artigiano‘s Main Street and North Vancouver Edgemont locations will be participating, offering up the following chocolate creations:
Incendiary Orange Explosion Creamy milk chocolate and bright orange, infused with smoke Hand-torched, artisanal marshmallow topper
Mellow Berry Bomb Ruby chocolate and juicy strawberry Ruby chocolate marshmallow “bomb” melts to release silky marshmallows
Artigiano’s Mellow Berry Bomb for Hot Chocolate Vancouver
Beta 5 Chocolates will serve up the Superhalva, collaboration with Superbaba.
A hot milk chocolate flavoured with brown sugar and sesame, topped with milk chocolate cornflake. Served with a halva macaron.
A nostalgic cup of hot chocolate reminiscent of that special treat … After Eights. Topped with Butter’s After Eight Sandwich cookie (chocolate shortbread filled with an After Eight chocolate and dipped in chocolate).
Find these and more delectable drinks at the following locations:
Participating Cafes, Bakeries and More
49th Parallel Coffee + Lucky’s Doughnuts Baker And Table Beaucoup Bakery Bel Cafe Bellaggio Hornby Bellaggio Canada Place Bench Bakehouse Beta 5 Chocolates Bjorn Bar Bakery Butter Baked Goods Cadeaux Bakery Caffe Artigiano Chez Christophe Doughgirls East Van Roasters Everbean Café Fife Bakery Fufú Café Gem Chocolates Giovane Cafe
Glenburn Soda Fountain Honolulu Coffee Kafka’s Coffee Koko Monk Chocolates Koko Monk Hot Chocolate Lounge La Glace Ladurée Mink Chocolates Mon Paris Pâtisserie Nelson The Seagull Pacific Institute Of Culinary Arts Passione Gelato Peaked Pies Sciué Italian Bakery Café Soirette Pastry Boutique Thierry Chocolates Thomas Haas Chocolates Uno Gelato Zimt Chocolates
View the vendor map here, along with a legend to see which are take-out only, limited service, full service, open late, vegan, and more.
Hot Chocolate Contest
You can enter to win a gift certificate from participating chocolate makers and cafes through Instagram. When you visit, snap and share a photo tagging #HCVphotocontest in your caption or tag @hotchocolatefest within the photo. Winners will be drawn on Valentine’s Day.
