Writer, teacher, and race relations expert, Cyril Dabydeen, a native of Guyana, worked his way through Lakehead University, Thunder Bay, Ontario, by planting trees in Quetico Provincial Park and Trapper Lake, northwestern Ontario, before graduating, B.A., 1973, and earning, M.A., 1974, and M.P.A.,1977, the same year he published his first poems. His poetry and fiction now comprise several volumes with many works also appearing in anthologies published in Canada, the U.S.A, and the U.K. He taught at both Ottawa’s Algonquin College and University of Ottawa before serving as coordinator, Mayor’s Race Relations Committee, Ottawa, 1984-89, and as Race Relations Manager for the Federal Government and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities between 1989 and 1999. The recipient of numerous literary prizes, Cyril has been actively involved in several literary societies, particularly those dealing with writers from the Caribbean, observing in a University of Oklahoma Press article, 1999, that “as West Indian-born writers inhabiting Canada, we will continue to fashion our own dreams in unique ways as we react to a complex Canadian social and cultural landscape.” Poet Laureate of Ottawa, 1984-87, Cyril is also a member of PEN International. [Photo, courtesy Cyril Dabydeen] |