Textured Treasures launches a summer camp for Black kids

Tiffany Mongu · CBC News

· Posted: May 03, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 12 minutes ago

What started arsenic a play hairsbreadth store during Black History Month is present being offered arsenic a summertime campy for the archetypal time.

Textured Treasures gives Black children aged 5 to 15 a accidental to prosecute successful acquisition activities reflecting their African oregon Caribbean heritage, arts, crafts and much successful downtown London, Ont., this summer.

According to Lauri Morrison, committee seat of the London Artisan Connection and co-founder of Textured Treasures, the camp's intent is to assistance kids up portion teaching them astir their Black history.

"We wanted to physique connected that for the summertime to not conscionable bash hair, but besides conscionable an empowerment happening for the kids," said Morrison. "To have fun, learn crafts, larn worldly that they whitethorn not needfully larn going to a regular camp, but things that are much culturally related to america and our heritage."

Campers volition larn astir the value of enactment and entrepreneurship done mentorship and workshops hosted by antithetic assemblage members. Morrison said educating young kids astir these subjects creates an knowing of what they'll request down the line, and that the campy is needed successful London due to the fact that immoderate Black children request further affirmative enactment systems.

"We aren't taught this, cipher teaches america this. Our kids, they person to enactment twice, three, 4 times arsenic hard arsenic the different kids to get it adjacent started," she said. 

"Sometimes it's adjacent conscionable a lawsuit of them not having anybody to judge successful them. They person cipher to thatch them oregon amusement them what to do, and we privation to beryllium disposable to them." 

Teaching the value of earthy hairsbreadth self-love 

As a nonrecreational hairsbreadth braider and co-founder of Textured Treasures, Nancy Komi said she's anxious to thatch immoderate kid with precise textured hair, specified arsenic kinky and coily, how to decently instrumentality attraction of their hairsbreadth on with the value of protective hairstyles similar azygous braids oregon cornrows. 

"It's important for children to cognize however to attraction for their hair, emotion their hair, [and] physique that assurance successful them," said Komi.  

She emphasizes the value of young Black children knowing the enactment of self-love and assurance erstwhile it comes to their hairsbreadth since galore of them proceed to acquisition hairsbreadth discrimination, she said. 

According to an American survey examining hairsbreadth experiences among Black girls, a bulk of the girls experienced oregon witnessed hair-related bullying oregon teasing, which tin pb to debased self-esteem and intelligence distress. 

"As a hairsbreadth braider myself, arsenic a parent and besides arsenic an educator, I spot it each and each time successful the school," said Komi. 

"It is precise important to thatch these basics present due to the fact that they are young. So by providing this campy and this store for them, it would give them that flexibility and physique that assurance successful them."

The founders are some looking guardant to seeing the kids turn and having fun.

Textured Treasures is offering 5 weeks of campy from June 30 to August 1.