Kimberley Dooshima Jev is the CEO of Afros In Tha City, a media collective and creative platform that amplifies Black voices and experiences.
Over the past five years, Afros in tha City has moved with intentional momentum, reflecting and contributing to a growing recognition of Black artists and Black arts administrators across Calgary and Alberta. As a publisher, I have witnessed change take root across our city and province through visionaries rising, artists reshaping public spaces, and community forming through loss, heartbreak, change, and collective gathering. In these moments, a deeper openness has emerged. One committed to building more, together.
Questions have been answered. Time has evolved. Rifts have been repaired, lives restored, and hope renewed. Through collaboration and exploration, long-exhausted narratives have been intentionally laid to rest, making space for something new. What follows is a reimagining. A new era expanding what it means to be an artist and to thrive within bodies and communities once siloed or sidelined.
This is not a departure from reality, but a reckoning with it. One that transforms limitation into possibility and grounds the future in intention, creativity, and collective care. History has been examined, and deeper truths have surfaced in ways we could not have anticipated. Whether through convergence or timing, the shift is no longer gradual. It has taken form.
Calgary is emerging as a hub of true artistry, rooted not only in the celebration of Black history but in the evolution and continued succession of Black arts in Alberta. Black history has built Black futures. This month, we bring forward artists who transcend space and time — artists who define Calgary as a city of hope, a city worth staying in, and Alberta as a province worthy of honour, investment, and return.
The question of whether to stay or go is one I have explored with deep consideration. The decision to keep Afros in tha City rooted in Calgary despite the board’s extensive international reach, has prompted many to ask why we continue to do this work here. The answer remains the same: Calgary is home. Alberta is where we belong.
Slowly and with intention, we continue to build collaborations with organizations and press outlets, reaching people through time-honoured practices while learning to move thoughtfully within an ever-expanding digital world. While the surge of digitized content and history can feel overwhelming, staying connected to voices, to people, and to place has anchored the work.
By keeping a steady pulse on the evolving rhythm of our city, it has been both humbling and deeply affirming to witness the rise of artists and thought leaders long overdue for their moment. For this piece, I connected with artists, developing voices, and seasoned leaders who are paving and weaving pathways for legacy to take shape, linking those near and far to the deep, pulsing heartbeat of the city.
This Black History Month, The Scene is producing a series of profiles in collaboration with Afros in Tha City.
