ANSJI to Host Second Annual Justice Symposium on June 13th

DeRico Symonds, ANSJI's Director of Community Engagement & Justice Initiatives, hosts ANSJI's inaugural Justice Symposium - June 2024

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

African Nova Scotian Justice Institute to Host Second Annual Justice Symposium on June 13, Focused on Violence in the Black Community

Presentation of the 2025 Wakai Glasgow Social Justice Award Recipient Also Set to Take Place

Halifax, NS – June 10, 2025 — The African Nova Scotian Justice Institute (ANSJI) is proud to announce its Second Annual Justice Symposium, taking place on Friday, June 13, 2025, in Halifax. This year’s theme, “Violence in the Black Community,” with a dual focus on gender-based violence and gun violence, brings a critical focus to the complex and intersecting forms of violence disproportionately affecting Black Nova Scotian communities.

The full-day event will bring together justice sector professionals, community leaders, researchers, advocates, and individuals with lived experience to engage in in-depth dialogue and solutions-oriented discussions. Through keynote addresses, panel conversations, and a documentary screening, the symposium will explore the roots and realities of violence in Black communities, with a particular emphasis on gender-based violence, its systemic drivers, and the pathways to healing and justice.

“The Justice Symposium is about more than just conversation—it’s about collective action rooted in community, accountability, and healing. This gathering creates a space for truth-telling, where lived experiences and systemic challenges are brought to the forefront. It is critical that these conversations happen publicly, not only for transparency but also to ensure that all of us—community members, government institutions, and service providers—are held accountable for the roles we play in both the harm and the healing.”

–      DeRico Symonds, ANSJI Director of Community Engagement and Justice Initiatives

A highlight of the day will be the presentation of the 2025 recipient of the Wakai Glasgow Social Justice Award – an annual recognition honouring outstanding leadership, advocacy, and commitment to social justice within the Black Nova Scotian community. The award commemorates the legacy of the late Wakai Glasgow, a longtime lawyer with Nova Scotia Legal Aid and a staff lawyer with ANSJI at the time of his passing in 2024.

The symposium will be held in the Paul O’Regan Hall at the Halifax Central Library. Registration for the general public is now closed. Space is still available for members of the media; however, we kindly request that you notify us in advance if you intend to attend the symposium.

The African Nova Scotian Justice Institute’s mandate is to address issues of systemic racism in the justice system that negatively impact Black people while ensuring fair, legal and constitutional treatment of all Black community members.

Event Details:

Date: Friday, June 13, 2025

Time: 9:00 AM – 4:30 PM

Location: Paul O’Regan Hall (Halifax Central Library, 5440 Spring Garden Rd, Halifax)

Theme: Violence in the Black Community, with a dual focus on gender-based violence and gun violence

For media inquiries or to RSVP, please contact:

Matthew Byard

Communications Officer, African Nova Scotian Justice Institute

matthew.byard@ansji.ca

ansji.ca | linktr.ee/ANSJI

Photos from ANSJI's innaugural Justice Symposium in June, 2024

EVENT SCHEDULE

• 9:30 am – Opening Remarks

o   DeRico Symonds, Director of Community Engagement & Justice Initiatives

o   Angela Bowden, Symposium MC

o   Indigenous Welcome: Jerid Watton

o   Libation: Ayo Aladejebi

o   Additional Remarks:

§  Sylvia Parris-Drummond (ANSJI Board Member)

§  Judge Perry Borden

§  Halifax Mayor, Andy Fillmore

§  Kate Macdonald, African Nova Scotian Activist

• 10:00 am – HRM Community Safety Office 

o   Gun violence statistics and Community Mobilization teams

• 11:00 am – ANSJI Interim Executive Director, Robert Wright 

  • The connection between Gender based violence and Gun Violence

    
    

• 11:45 am – Networking Lunch

  
  

• 12:30 pm – ANSJI Know Your Rights Videos

  • Demario Chambers, Louise Delisle

    
    

• 12:40 pm – 2025 Wakai Glasgow Social Justice Award presentation

  
  

• 1:00 pm – Panel Discussion: Violence in the Black Community 

  • Panelists: Dr. Rachel Zellars, Jude Clyke, Corey Wright, & Nneka MacGregor

  • Moderators: Dr. Tiffany Gordon (ANSJI), & DeRico Symonds (ANSJI)

    
    

• 2:30 pm – Documentary Film Screening & Discussion w/ director, Sylvia Hamilton

  • Part 1: The Talking Circle

  • Part 2: Understanding Violence Against Women

    
    

• 4:00 pm – Nneka MacGregor, Executive Director of Women at the Centre

  • Remarks

    
    

4:30 pm – DeRico Symonds (ANSJI) - Closing remarks