“Washington Black” Isn’t Just A Period Drama: It’s A Reminder That Black Dreams Matter

Onto something you’ve both mentioned: keeping the right people around you. This series speaks a lot about protecting community. Helping your kin, lifting them up, and protecting them as much as you can, up to where you can without sacrificing yourself. In today’s landscape, we speak a lot about community being lost, but was there anything you learnt while making this series on how to enrich a community?

Sterling: Goodness gracious, that’s a good one. I would say that my sense of community expanded while doing the project, working with people from the UK whose parents are either from the island (Barbados) or from Africa, and me being from the US. There was something beautiful about just being with Black folks and not feeling like I had to be like “well they like this and they like this” We were all sort of like “well we’re like this” [interlocks his fingers].  You know what I’m saying? It was a really beautiful experience for me.

Ernest: I think there was something about filming in Canada and in Halifax, and getting to know the Afro-Nova Scotian community. It felt like it took a really short span of time to feel at home there. It made me think, and I can’t speak for everyone, but sometimes, when communities are being formed, there’s a stage of sussing a person out, like, are they okay, and are they like you?  Whereas we came to Canada, and I felt like we were welcomed with open arms. Even when I was walking by myself, exploring, and no one knew who I was, and I was meeting new people, I was instantly welcomed with open arms and love. I feel like I learnt that there doesn’t need to be this [guardedness] and you can afford to be more vulnerable when approaching opening up a community.

So the rumours are true, Canadians are really friendly.

Ernest: I used to think it was like a silly stereotype, but I think the large majority of people I met in Canada, like no one is perfect, but the large majority of people I met were very cool.