An anthology of African-Canadian writing, BLACK WRITERS MATTER offers a cross-section of established writers and newcomers to the literary world who tackle contemporary and pressing issues with beautiful, sometimes raw, prose. As editor Whitney French says in her introduction, Black Writers Matter "injects new meaning into the word diversity [and] harbours a sacredness and an everydayness that offers Black people dignity". An "invitation to read, share, and tell stories of Black narratives that are close to the bone", this collection feels particular to the Black Canadian experience.

A collection of new writing on the Black Canadian experience An anthology of African-Canadian writing, Black Writers Matter offers a cross-section of established writers and newcomers to the literary world who tackle contemporary and pressing issues with beautiful, sometimes raw, prose. As editor Whitney French says in her introduction, Black Writers Matter "injects new meaning into the word diversity [and] harbours a sacredness and an everydayness that offers Black people dignity." An "invitation to read, share, and tell stories of Black narratives that are close to the bone," this collection feels particular to the Black Canadian experience.

During the night of April 10, 1734, Montreal burned. Marie-Joseph Angelique, a twenty-nine-year-old slave, was arrested, tried, and found guilty of starting the blaze that consumed forty-six buildings. Suspecting that she had not acted alone and angered that she had maintained her innocence, Angelique's condemners tortured her after the trial. She confessed but named no accomplices. Before Angelique was hanged, she was paraded through the city. Afterward, her corpse was burned. Angelique, who had been born in Portugal, faded into the shadows of Canadian history, vaguely remembered as the alleged arsonist behind an early catastrophic fire. The result of fifteen years of research, ""The Hanging of Angelique"" vividly tells the story of this strong-willed woman. Afua Cooper draws on extensive trial records that offer, in Angelique's own words, a detailed portrait of her life and a sense of what slavery was like in Canada at the time. Predating other first-person accounts by more than forty years, these records constitute what is arguably the oldest slave narrative in the New World. Cooper sheds new light on the largely misunderstood or ignored history of slavery in Canada. She refutes the myth that Canada was a haven at the end of the Underground Railroad. Cooper also provides a context for Canada in the larger picture of transatlantic slavery while re-creating the tragic life of one woman who refused to accept bondage.

This groundbreaking collection addresses both new and familiar topics with fresh perspectives to produce original and thought-provoking scholarship on the diasporic histories of black peoples. Through a variety of methodologies and theoretical constructs, the contributors plumb a wide range of localities to engage many important subjects, including slavery and emancipation, transnational and diasporic experiences, social and political activism, and political and cultural identity. In doing so, they offer insightful and thought provoking studies, highlight new areas of inquiry in the African diaspora, and in many cases transcend geographical and national boundaries. The probing and meticulously woven narratives of this collection combine to show the vibrant histories of peoples of African descent.