BC Community Alliance

The BC Community Alliance (BCCA) is a local Black-led, community-based organization, formed in 2019, and registered as a non-profit in 2020. We are dedicated to addressing the structural inequities created by racism, especially anti-Black racism, within education settings in British Columbia. BCCA was born out of a crisis in our community, following a racist bomb threat at a Vancouver high school, Lord Byng Secondary, and recognizing the broad harm that occurred not only to Black students in the school, but also felt within the broader community, especially other Black community members. Although the 'Lord Byng incident' was a foundational moment in the formation of the BC Alliance, and we are more accurately understood as a response to the racism that is felt by many racialized students throughout the province. The founding members of the BC Community Alliance include Marie Tate of Speak Up Youth Forums; Tasha Clarke of the Unity Centre Association for Black Cultures; Adam Rudder, formerly of Hogan’s Alley Society; and Brian Seremba of the Ugandan Cultural Association of B.C. Markiel Simpson, an executive of the BC Young New Democrats (BC YND) and member of the Global Shapers Community, later joined and has become an additional member of our Steering Committee - which is the driving force behind BCCA’s initiatives to date. There have also been several like-minded community organizations and individual members, activists, working professionals, and talented volunteers who have supported and contributed to the early development of BCCA and continue to play a role in ongoing efforts. From its inception, BCCA has embraced the core principles of persistence, passion for meaningful change, and dedication to justice in establishing the foundation of our advocacy work.