KITCHENER -- The 2021 Waterloo Region District School Board's Black history month celebration went virtual Friday night.

Black brilliance and embracing Black history were the themes of the online event that featured staff, students, and members of the African, Caribbean, and Black community.

Natasha Henry from the Ontario Black History Society was the keynote speaker. She is leading a campaign called Blacked Out History that highlights the lack of Black history in the curriculum.

"We felt it was important to reignite to amplify the conversation around Black Canadian history in classrooms in the curriculum and to amplify the call for the long standing call for mandated learning expectations," she said.

This marks the third year the school board has held the event.