New head of Black Cultural Society of P.E.I. aims to build bridges

Growing up in Nigeria involved some struggles for Ujunwa Aja-Onu and she hopes to use that experience to help ease the lives of Black people in Prince Edward Island.

Aja-Onu took over as executive director of the Black Cultural Society of P.E.I. in June.

“As a little kid, I never had an opportunity to have a bedtime story at night,” Aja-Onu told The Guardian in an interview on Oct. 8.

She did not want to go into much detail about her upbringing, saying only that her both of parents died long ago and her family is scattered.

“But I was very fortunate coming out of that space to have people who supported me in my education, (who helped me) build bridges along the way. That drove me to work and help people.”

Aja-Onu arrived in P.E.I. in December 2021 to pursue a masters in Island studies at UPEI. After that, she started working with different committees on community development in a variety of sectors.

When former executive director Tamara Steele departed the Black Cultural Society of P.E.I., Aja Onu jumped at the chance to lead the team.

“It is about one person helping another, that’s how community is built. That has been something that has defined me; that is what this work is all about, having the opportunity to work with our P.E.I. community.”

She said her calling is to build bridges for others.

“And that’s because when I look at my own history and background there was a lot of struggle growing up.”

Jasonique Moss, 25, who sits on the society’s board of directors, said she answered the same calling.

Moss was pregnant with her daughter, Bell, when she moved to P.E.I. from the Bahamas in 2022. Moss said she did not know anyone in her new home and was attempting to get out of an abusive relationship.

Moss wanted to help others in similar circumstances, creating the Thriving in Colour program which helps Black and Indigenous women who are survivors of gender-based violence.

“Not only did I recognize the situation I was in, but I began to explore what healing could look like for myself but also be able to do it for other women in the community,” said Moss, who also works with a restorative justice program at the Provincial Correctional Centre in Milton Station and Women’s Network P.E.I.

“I go in and talk to women about what being on the inside is like and help them reconnect with their families,” Moss said.

Aja-Onu said she was not expecting what became the biggest adjustment to arriving in P.E.I.

“I didn’t know I was Black until I got to P.E.I. and that is because that is the reality,” Aja-Onu said.

“You are coming from a Black community (in Nigeria) where they was no difference. It wasn’t highlighted. When you come to P.E.I., you realize that you are different. All of that became magnified.”

With that in mind, she is working on building a community with the society that gives Black people an identity.

“This is a diverse community and what it means to be Black is really different for everybody.”

Aja-Onu and Moss said they are both in a position to help Black folks and people of colour in P.E.I.

“There are a lot of Blacks in P.E.I. (and) we are immigrants,” Aja-Onu said.

“Someone can make a life-altering decision in the wrong direction just because they didn’t have the right information and just one piece of information (from the society) can change their trajectory. We tell the stories of the Black people, so people are inspired to move forward.”

Moss said she takes the responsibility seriously.

“If not me, then who?” Moss asks. “I hope everybody has that mentality. You have to step up and do the work. We have to carry that mentality to help build what we’re doing.”

The Black Cultural Society of P.E.I. is working on creating a legacy at The Bog, which is the original home of the Black population in Charlottetown.

The Bog was located where the P.E.I. government offices and Rochford Square now stand.

At this point, the provincial government committed to supporting the project, but no timelines have been set yet. A monument will be located in Rochford Square.

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Dave Stewart is a reporter for The Guardian in Prince Edward Island. He can be reached at dstewart@postmedia.com and followed on X at @DveStewart.