The West Island Black Community Association is finding fun and creative ways to engage the youth to close out Black History Month. On Saturday, it hosted a Black trivia event for kids, in the form of Jeopardy.
Kids of all ages participated, although some were a little too young to fully understand the questions. Parents did provide some aide.
The event served to engage the youth and showcase local Black entrepreneurs.
“We want to teach them and have fun and it’s interactive at the same time and to be Black and deliberately excellent,” said WIBCA President, Joan Lee.
This is the second year WIBCA hosted a trivia event. But this year was the first time it was in person.
“When situations or discussions are more interactive, they retain a lot more comprehension,” said WIBCA Social Co-ordinator Katrina Nurse.
“It’s more like fun facts rather than drilled into them. It’s part of their history and we hope that today they take away something with them,” added Nurse.
The categories covered a range of topics, including pop culture, sports, and history.
“Caribbean history, Canadian history, African history,” said Lee.
Organizers also wanted to make sure to expand on Black history.
“We relegate Black history to slavery, to 1492. We think about Christopher Columbus, we think of Martin Luther King and Malcom X, but there is history beyond that,” said Kym Dominique-Ferguson, who hosted the trivia event.
The winning group has an opportunity to experience a day at Nemesis Video Game Lounge in the West Island, but nobody goes home empty-handed.
“There’s gift cards, there’s treats, there’s shirts, and everyone is going home with something today,” said Nurse.
But even 10-year-olds know it’s not always about the prizes.
“I don’t really care about winning. I mostly care about showing people how it’s fun learning about different cultures,” said Adriana Jackson, one of the trivia participants.
“It’s good to learn about different cultures even though you might not be a part of that culture or religion,” added 10-year-old Jackson.
In the end, organizers hope events such as this one provide something for everyone.