Sandy Hudson

Sandy Hudson is a Jamaican-Canadian political activist, writer from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She is the co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement presence in Canada.^[1]

Sandy Hudson
Born	Sandra Hudson Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Nationality	Canadian
Education	University of Toronto, University of California, Los Angeles
Organization(s)	Black Lives Matter, Black Legal Action Centre
Known for	Black Lives Matter, Sandy and Nora Talk Politics

Early life and education

Sandy Hudson grew up in North York and attended high school in Brampton.^[2] She attended the University of Toronto, where she earned a bachelor's degree in political science and sociology.^[3][2] She also holds a Master of Arts in Social Justice Education from the University of Toronto.^[4][5] She currently resides in Los Angeles, where she is attending UCLA School of Law.^[6]

Student Union lawsuit

In the year of 2015, the University of Toronto Students' Union filed a lawsuit against Hudson and the outgoing President, Yolen Bollo-Kamara and Vice-President Cameron Wathey. The lawsuit demanded Hudson return $277,508.62 in severance pay and overtime, paid on dismissal from her position as student union executive director and approved by Bollo-Kamara and Wathey, alleging that the dismissal prior to the end of her period of tenure was without legal basis and that she was not eligible for overtime payments.^[7][8] The lawsuit had alleged that Bollo-Kamara and Wathey “breached their fiduciary duty” by signing off on 2,589.5 hours of overtime for Hudson, which was included in the severance package upon the termination of her contract. 1,974.5 hours of those 2,589.5 overtime hours were logged in a single entry on April 1, 2015.^[9] The severance pay and overtime was paid in the weeks after her slate's loss in the student elections and equated 10% of the union's budget. The lawsuit sought a further $200,000 in punitive damages from the three for breach of fiduciary trust.^[10][11] Hudson countersued the student union for $300,000 for breach of a confidentiality clause in her severance agreement and alleging "inappropriate conduct and unwelcome comments from UTSU directors [...] in relation to [her] perceived sexual orientation, gender and race".^{[8][12][13][14]} The lawsuit was settled out-of-court in 2017 with Hudson agreeing to repay some of the overtime payment.^[8][15]

Activism

Hudson started the Toronto chapter of Black Lives Matter after being encouraged by her brother to do something following the police killings of Mike Brown and Jermaine Carby.^[16] Thousands attended a solidarity rally that she organized with Janaya Khan. After the rally, they contacted Patrisse Cullors to establish the group as the first official chapter of Black Lives Matter outside of the United States.^[2] The group has challenged different forms of anti-Black racism in Canada, and has made issues like carding and defunding the police national conversations.^{[3][17][18][19]}

In 2017, she started the Black Legal Action Centre with Zanana Akande and Rinaldo Walcott.^[20][21] The centre is a legal clinic that provides legal aid services to Black Ontarians and engages in test case litigation.^[20]

Works

Writing

Hudson is a freelance writer and author. She has published academic writings in Race and Racialization: Essential Readings, Second Edition and New Framings on Anti-Racism and Resistance, Volume 2: Resistance and the New Futurity^[22][23]. She has written for NOW Magazine, The Washington Post, Huffington Post, FLARE Magazine and Maclean's Magazine^{[24][25][6][26][27]}. Her first book, Until We Are Free: Reflections on Black Lives Matter in Canada,^[28] was released in 2020.

Lectures

Hudson is a speaker with the National Speakers Bureau of Canada.^[4] She has spoken at universities, labour unions, and institutions across Canada, including the University of Toronto, the Canadian Labour Congress, and the Canadian Institute for the Administration of Justice.^[29][4][30]

Podcast

In 2017, she started the Sandy and Nora Talk Politics podcast with her friend and co-host Nora Loreto.^{[31][non-primary source needed]} The podcast analyzes Canadian news and encourages listeners to become activists in their communities.^[32][33]

Awards and recognition

In 2016, Hudson was named one of Toronto Life's most influential Torontonians, and in 2017 was named one of Toronto's most inspiring women by Post City Magazine^[34][35]. She was awarded the Lincoln Alexander Award by Osgoode Hall Law School in 2018 and the Emerging Leader award by the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education in 2019.^[5][16] She regularly provides comment in Canadian mainstream media on issues of race. She was featured in Charles Officer's CBC Television documentary The Skin We're In, and in the 2016 and 2020 CBC News' features Being Black in Canada.^[36] Her activism has been featured in The New York Times, Newsweek, and Complex^[37][38][39].

References

1. Bridges, Alicia (June 16, 2020). "Q&A: Founder of Black Lives Matter in Canada explains the call to defund police". CBC News. from the original on July 25, 2020. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
2. "How Black Lives Matter turned street protests into political influence". thestar.com. 2016-04-24. from the original on 2020-06-03. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
3. Aranha, Justin (2017-02-27). "Black Lives Matter is shining a harsh light on racism in Toronto—and pissing off some powerful people". Toronto Life. from the original on 2020-07-15. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
4. "Sandy Hudson | Grassroots Organizer & Founder, Black Lives Matter Toronto". National Speakers Bureau. from the original on 2019-07-06. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
5. "Panel: Defunding the Police". Progress Toronto. from the original on 2020-07-07. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
6. "Sandy Hudson". HuffPost Canada. from the original on 2020-08-02. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
7. Loriggio, Paola (2015-09-26). "U of T students' union sues former director, ex-officials over severance pay". CTV News - Toronto. from the original on 2017-08-18. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
8. "UTSU settles lawsuit with Sandra Hudson". The Varsity. 2017-10-12. from the original on 2020-08-17. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
9. "UTSU settles lawsuit with Sandra Hudson". The Varsity. 2017-10-12. from the original on 2020-08-17. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
10. "Black Lives Matter member sued for severance deal". Toronto Sun. from the original on 2016-11-10. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
11. "Robyn Urback: How did a champion for lower tuition fees at U of T end up with a $247,000 payout?". National Post. from the original on 2020-09-14. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
12. "Former UTSU Executive Director Sandra Hudson sought additional $100,000 in damages during lawsuit". The Varsity. 2018-02-26. from the original on 2020-07-06. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
13. Loriggio, Paola (2015-12-23). "Former U of T student union official files countersuit against ex-employer". CP24. from the original on 2020-09-14. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
14. "Former University of Toronto student union official countersues ex-employer". Global News. from the original on 2018-09-09. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
15. "U of T Student Union Files Lawsuit Against Former Executive Director". Torontoist. 2015-09-25. from the original on 2016-09-08. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
16. "Keynote Speaker: Sandy Hudson". West Coast LEAF. from the original on 2020-09-14. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
17. "Defunding The Police Will Save Black And Indigenous Lives In Canada". HuffPost Canada. 2020-06-02. from the original on 2020-07-29. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
18. Newman-Bremang, Kathleen. "Why Defunding The Police Is The Best Way To Protect Black Lives". www.refinery29.com. Vice Media Group. from the original on 2020-07-29. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
19. "Defund the police? Canadians split along generational lines, Ipsos poll suggests". Global News. from the original on 2020-07-29. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
20. "New clinic serving Black Ontarians gets backing of Legal Aid". thestar.com. 2018-01-31. from the original on 2020-06-06. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
21. "A new legal aid clinic for Black Ontarians". Legal Aid Ontario. from the original on 2020-06-26. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
22. Race and racialization : essential readings. Das Gupta, Tania, 1957- (Second ed.). Toronto. February 2018. ISBN 978-1-77338-015-5. OCLC 1029230388.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) CS1 maint: others (link)
23. New framings on anti-racism and resistance. Volume 2, Resistance and the new futurity. Newton, Joanna,, Soltani, Arezou. Rotterdam, The Netherlands. 28 January 2019. ISBN 978-94-6351-131-5. OCLC 1004225452.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) CS1 maint: others (link)
24. "Sandy Hudson Archives". NOW Magazine. 24 May 2017. from the original on 2020-08-20. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
25. Hudson, Sandy. "Opinion | The nefarious political agenda behind Ontario's war on university fees". Washington Post. from the original on 2019-03-22. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
26. "MRA at Universities: Women of Colour Have Been Warning Us For Years". www.flare.com. from the original on 2018-07-05. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
27. "We must defund the police. It is the only option. - Macleans.ca". www.macleans.ca. from the original on 2020-07-27. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
28. Until we are free : reflections on Black Lives Matter in Canada. Diverlus, Rodney, 1990-, Hudson, Sandy, 1985-, Ware, Syrus Marcus. Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. 2020. ISBN 978-0-88977-698-2. OCLC 1127291968.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) CS1 maint: others (link)
29. "'A sense of belonging': Third annual Black Graduation event to be held at U of T Mississauga". University of Toronto News. from the original on 2020-07-05. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
30. "WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2017 - The Intersection of Policing, The Criminal Justice System and Cultural Diversity: Racial Profiling (1:34:42)". Canadian Institute for the Administration of Justice. from the original on 2020-09-14. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
31. "Sandy and Nora talk politics on Apple Podcasts". Apple Podcasts. from the original on 2020-03-19. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
32. "Five brilliant Canadian podcasts to engage, inform, and entertain you". The Peak. 15 September 2020. Retrieved 2020-10-21.
33. "Show Hosts". Sandy & Nora Talk Politics. from the original on 2020-06-24. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
34. "Toronto's 50 Most Influential: #31, Sandy Hudson and Janaya Khan". Toronto Life. 2016-11-28. from the original on 2020-06-05. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
35. Cole, Desmond (2017-12-05). "T.O.'s most inspiring women of 2017: Sandy Hudson". trnto.com. from the original on 2020-09-14. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
36. "Documentaries". Sandy Hudson. from the original on 2020-09-14. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
37. Levin, Dan (2016-06-15). "Not Just a U.S. Problem: Black Lives Matter Here, Too, Canadians Say". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. from the original on 2020-03-11. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
38. Da Silva, Chantal (June 26, 2020). "BLM Global Leaders: 'It Feels Like There Is Actually Change Happening Now'". Newsweek. from the original on July 28, 2020. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
39. "Black Lives Matter Toronto's Sandy Hudson on Canada's Very Real Systemic Racism". Complex. from the original on 2020-07-06. Retrieved 2020-07-30.

External links

• Sandy & Nora, podcast