BARBERSHOP TALK SERIES
LOCATING OUR BLACK BOYS
DATE: May 18th, 2025
TIME: 1:00 pm – 3:00pm Toronto time.
LOCATION: Noir Barbershop (Scarborough, Ontario)
108 Corporate Dr 8 & 9, Scarborough
GET FREE TICKETS
On May 18th, between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. at Noir Barbershop – Scarborough, Ontario, the Barbershop Talk Series: Black Men and Boys Misconceptions will be hosting its next community group discussion, entitled Locating Our Black Boys.
Despite Canada’s attempts to visibilize and appreciate the multi-faceted lived experiences of young people, Black young men and boys’ lives remain at the crossroads of unimportance and unworthy of attention by broader Canadian societies. Although Canadian Black men and boys endure anti-Blackness, often coupled with gender biases and classism, their lived experiences are seldom discussed meaningfully.
In late 2024, several young Black men were deemed to be “missing,” and news reports mentioned they were from two-parent homes who resided in suburban areas. Reports also mentioned these young men were not in fact missing but travelled to out-of-Toronto cities, such as Thunder Bay and Sarnia, to commit drug trafficking for “fast money.” Even though the young men were found, this reality for Black young men is not a new phenomenon. Instead, this type of “missing” incident has occurred for years in Toronto and surrounding suburban areas.
A 2021 study conducted in Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa focusing on marginalized young Black men found that these youth face tensions within the home, compounded by tension in schools and in the communities they reside in. Many young marginalized Black men in the study mentioned that to be “a man” is to be financially stable, and their only option to meet this standard is to make “fast money,” even if it means selling drugs. As a result, many young Black men go out of town (OT) to prove to themselves, their family, and their peers that they are men who can be financially stable by their own means through drug dealing.
What can be done to support young Black men and boys, their parents and their communities?
Our social understanding of Black young men and boys’ lived experiences is profoundly lacking. As community members, parents and activists, we must see positive value in working in solidarity to establish settings where Black men and boys feel valued and supported and a sense of belonging in spaces where they can positively thrive economically, academically, and politically.
For many Black men and boys, the barbershop operates as a safe social space that allows them to share their experiences, all while being groomed. Since 2018, the Barbershop Talk Series: Black Men & Misconceptions has utilized this safe space to hold community-wide conversations that tangibly address the societal, political, educational, employment and even mental health concerns of Black men and boys. On May 18th, 2025, from 1p to 3p at Noir Barbershop (Scarborough, Ontario), the Barbershop Series will hold space for Black men and boys, and the broader community, to openly discuss the tensions which compel them to extend their labour to make fast money. The community conversation encourages all to work through the different dynamics of the educational barriers faced by Black men. We welcome community members of different races, ethnicities, sexualities, genders, and ages with the chance to discuss this critical topic meaningfully.