Freedom Summer

At Black Lives Matter Toronto’s Freedom School, 13-year-old Moon learns to be a leader while Rihanna, who is seven, discovers that being Black is indeed beautiful.

Modeled after the Black Panther Party for Self Defence’s Oakland Community School, Toront’s Freedom School is a three-week summer program that intervenes in anti-Black racism in the Canadian educational system and creates an alternative education environment for Black children in the GTA. Lu Asfaha’s film is a powerful tale of empowerment, community resilience, and creativity in building autonomous spaces that celebrate both Black history and futures.