Guest Speaker Challenges Students to ‘Put Away the Boxes’
Actor and inspirational speaker, Anthony McLean challenged Middle and Senior School students on Monday to ‘put away the boxes’ and judge people “not by the colour of their skin, but by the content of their character.” [Martin Luther King’s dream]
Anthony’s mother is white and his father is black. Growing up in Sharon, Ontario, he and his brother were the only two people of colour for miles around. He eventually went on to graduate from Holy Trinity School (HTS) and his sister Kathryn Watson graduated from CDS in 2008.
Anthony has been haunted by the voices of his childhood his entire life, and now that he’s 30 he’s taking a hard look at his identity. He founded IEngage in 2005 as a means to deliver high-impact presentations to schools throughout the GTA, and has now spoken at more than 400 schools across Canada, the U.S. and as far as Australia.
His presentations specialize in Diversity, Bullying, and Health & Wellness, and combine powerful teaching and practical strategies that Anthony infuses with comedy, hip hop and multimedia – yielding an outcome that is very well received by students.
Monday’s presentation stressed the importance of why we should never ‘put someone in a box’ upon meeting them based on their skin colour, gender, sexuality or religion. “Just don’t go there,” he urged students. Rather, it is essential that we get to know each other as individuals, and it is incumbent on all of us to break stereotypes, respect differences, and celebrate the diversity all around us.
Anthony’s presentation was a great success with the Middle and Senior school students. His message is simple yet poignant and judging by the overwhelmingly positive response, his talk will have a lasting impact on our students.
Land Acknowledgment
The Country Day School wishes to recognize and acknowledge the land on which the school operates. Our nearest Indigenous Nations are now the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation and the Chippewas of Georgina Island. The Dish with One Spoon Wampum covenant is often cited as an example of the shared responsibility for caring for these lands among the Huron-Wendat, Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee peoples who would call these their traditional territories. CDS respects the relationship with these lands and recognizes that our connection to this land can be strengthened by our continued relationship with all First Nations, by acknowledging our shared responsibility to respect and care for the land and waters for future generations.
School Information
13415 Dufferin Street King, Ontario L7B 1K5
(905) 833-1220
communications@cds.on.ca
admissions@cds.on.ca
Founded in 1972, The Country Day School is a co-educational private school offering programs in JK-12 and located on 100 acres north of Toronto in King.
(905) 833-1220
communications@cds.on.ca
admissions@cds.on.ca
Founded in 1972, The Country Day School is a co-educational private school offering programs in JK-12 and located on 100 acres north of Toronto in King.
