Black Scientists’ Task Force speaks on back-to-school essentials

By Lincoln DePradine

Education and health among Black children and adults are being addressed in a joint program to be launched at an open house later this month.

The program will include the distribution of backpacks to elementary and secondary school children in an initiative spearheaded by the Black Scientists’ Task Force (BSTF) on Vaccine Equity.

BSTF’s partners in the program are the Scarborough-based non-profit agency, Tropicana Community Services; Ontario Alliance of Black School Educators; and, the Toronto District School Board’s Centre of Excellence for Black Student Achievement.

The Centre of Excellence, located at Winston Churchill Collegiate Institute in Scarborough, “is dedicated to improving the experiences and outcomes for Black students and aims to be responsive to the voices of Black communities who continue to advocate for systemic change within educational institutions and for dismantling anti-Black racism at the TDSB’’. 

BSTF, on its social media platform, notes that “it’s back to school season’’ and wishes students “the best as you return to school! Don’t forget to be cautious of COVID-19 and continue to practice safety measures like wearing a mask, hand-washing and social distancing’’.

As part of “back-to-school essentials’’, BSTF advises students to “pack a mask, sanitizer and disinfectant wipe’’, and also to “stay up-to-date with vaccines’’ by checking the task force’s Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/TBCTF, and to tune in to live information sessions, including one scheduled for 8 pm on Thursday, September 8.

BSTF chair Dr Akwatu Khenti, a specialist in health and policy equity, said the backpack program – to be launched September 24 at the Centre of Excellence – will continue through to December, with donations of school supplies to students at events to be held in various Toronto communities.

However, he emphasized that a focus also will be on getting unvaccinated children and adolescents, as well as other “vulnerable’’ Black community members, immunized against COVID-19, especially taking third doses of the vaccine.

“Immunization helps,’’ Khenti told The Caribbean Camera. “We’re really focused on getting vulnerable seniors, vulnerable teenagers and vulnerable adults, their third dose. That’s the priority. Our strategic focus is on getting people their third dose,’’ he reiterated.

“The second priority is to actually talk about all of the health issues which make us vulnerable that we need to address, which include stress-related to anti-Black racism.’’

Khenti said information also would be shared about risks to health, including heart disease, posed by eating greasy food and by consuming high-sugar and high-fat diets.

“We need to cut those out,’’ he said.

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter