Daniel Ohaegbu: We can go far, together

CBC is highlighting Black people in Atlantic Canada who are giving back, inspiring others and helping to shape our future. Last fall, members of the public submitted over 350 nominations for 161 Black leaders, teachers, entrepreneurs and artists from across the East Coast. A panel of Black community members in Atlantic Canada selected 20 people to highlight for CBC Black Changemakers. This is Daniel Ohaegbu's story.

Daniel Ohaegbu grew up in a village in Nigeria surrounded by his many uncles and aunties, cousins, nephews and nieces. That sense of community shaped who he is, and what matters most to him. 

While he now lives on P.E.I., that sense of being a part of something bigger than himself has continued to grow. 

"Everything that I do, I think the core value is always centred around service — so service to my people, service to my community," he said. 

"There's a common proverb; it's an African proverb. If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. I think that's an important principle that people should try to adopt." 

Ohaegbu is living those words. 

He leads workshops in equity, diversity, inclusion, and anti-racism. He also started the Atlantic Student Development Alliance, a group that advocates for international students. 

Ohaegbu was nominated as a Black Changemaker by Danté Bazard, the first anti-racism policy advisor in Executive Council of the P.E.I. Government, and the province's first Black Human Rights Commissioner.

Bazard says Ohaegbu has been a huge support, as well as a passionate advocate and volunteer. 

"He is a very warm and open person, every time you see him he has a smile on his face. And he's very easy to talk to, but he's also a leader. And I think what that does ... it gives a lot of warm direction for anti-racism work and working with diverse groups," he said. 

"I think you need that especially in the realm of advocacy and being a changemaker. And he does that very well and very easily, as it comes second nature to him." 

Ohaegbu has a difficult time accepting compliments. It makes him anxious, and he admits being recognized for your work can be complicated. 

"When we do something or when something is done there's that hyper-visibility of being that only Black person in those spaces or being one of the few Black people in those spaces. There's a kind of, 'Oh wow,' moment. And I question that a lot. It's like, why are we wowing about this?" he said. 

"Once you are maybe the only person or one of the few Black people in those spaces, you almost start slowly whitening yourself just so you can fit into those spaces. You don't want to say the wrong things, you don't want to do the wrong things, you don't want to be seen in the wrong light. So I think I had somewhat of like an identity crisis, you would call it, just trying to navigate white spaces in general."