POCAM National Indigenous History Month 2024 Profile: Amanda Charles
Written By: Deyra Jaye Fontaine, Steering Committee Member of POCAM - People of Colour in Advertising & Marketing
Amanda Charles (she/her) is the Director of Marketing & Communications at The Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund, a non-profit dedicated to building cultural awareness and creating a path towards reconciliation. In her role, Amanda focuses on improving dialogue around Indigenous issues.
“As we’ve seen awareness grow, people have no idea how to talk about their role in reconciliation,” she says. “In this industry, and in this job specifically, I get to dig into how we talk about these issues, teach others how to do it respectfully, and amplify Indigenous voices to help educate people in Canada. It’s very rewarding to be a bridge between communities in this way.”
When I ask Amanda what the most memorable moment in her career is so far, she recalls hearing the news that 215 children were buried in unmarked graves at Kamloops Indian Residential School in B.C. It was her first week on the job and her team was asked to raise awareness. The result was the first-ever A DAY TO LISTEN where 18 First Nations, Inuit and Métis speakers shared their truths on radio stations across the country.
“It was unbelievably inspiring to see how my team and our partners pulled together to find a way to engage Canadians,” Amanda says. “We wore orange instead of red for Canada Day that year and I felt so proud to be part of the collaboration.”
Amanda grew up in Coburg, Ontario in a family with mixed Anishinaabe, European, and some Jamaican ancestry. She envisions a bright future for Indigenous marketers, but calls on allies to do more. “It’s not always easy to find Indigenous talent in this industry, but we exist. It might take some additional research, but if you really want to find someone, you can find them,” Amanda says, reflecting on how representation is increasing.
“As the industry evolves, we need more allies doing the work of learning about colonization and its ongoing impacts so that Indigenous staff aren’t bearing the burden of teaching their colleagues.”
So, what does reconciliation in marketing look like? “It might be a hard conversation about why we shouldn't lean into describing the trauma of Indigenous peoples in a marketing campaign,” Amanda explains. “Or making sure that if I’m sending a residential school Survivor into a media interview that I’m properly preparing the interviewer and reviewing questions in advance. It might even look like saying no to a non-Indigenous agency when they’ve done an ‘Indigenous’ design and asking them to hire an Indigenous graphic designer or artist instead.”
A big thank you to Amanda Charles for sharing her story.
Make sure to follow Amanda to continue learning about #TruthAndReconciliation and the wonderful work of The Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund.
