Video game pioneer Gerald Lawson — now known as the “father of modern gaming” thanks to his groundbreaking cartridge technology in the 1980s — only began to receive global recognition for his innovative work just two months before his death in 2011.

Lawson’s story — as one of few Black computer engineers of his day — serves as a reminder not to take histories for granted, said Akil Fletcher, an anthropologist and Postdoctoral Fellow who researches race and video games at Princeton University. He shared his perspectives with the Brock community on Monday, Feb. 24 during a public lecture held as part of the course IASC 2P08: Competencies in Interactive Arts and Science.

“Unfortunately, the stories of figures and communities that disrupt simple narratives often go untold, and among these, Black individuals are often neglected when telling the history of games,” he said.

While the history of arcades, consoles, computers and video games has long been portrayed as the success story of the “Global North,” Fletcher said video games have always been a multifaceted technology with a complex, varied past that includes diverse peoples and cultures.

“Gaming is for everyone, and Black individuals who embraced the industry and created games deserve to be recognized for their impact,” he said.

Sarah Stang, Assistant Professor in Brock’s Department of Digital Humanities, said it’s vital to shed light on the untold — or erased — histories of the video game industry for students wanting to go into game development or to study games academically.

“It’s key to highlight how marginalized and minoritized voices have always shaped the game industry, and to also showcase the important contemporary work being done by Black game scholars,” said Stang, who organized and moderated Fletcher’s talk in partnership with the Faculty of Humanities and Black History Month/African Heritage Month celebrations at Brock.

The talk was one of many course-integrated guest-speaker events on campus in recognition of Black History Month/African Heritage Month.

In the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences, Sport Management (SPMA) graduate Shauna Bookal (BSM ‘05) shared her insight on leadership and inclusivity with fourth-year students in SPMA 4P09 Leadership in Sport Management.

Mathew Black, Director of Performance and Player Relations for Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, also shared his perspectives moving towards more equitable practices in sport with SPMA students.

The Goodman School of Business welcomed data science and analytics leader Nathan Rankin (BSM ’16, MBA ’19) to share how he leverages unstructured text data to from marketing emails to enhance campaign effectiveness using machine learning models during a talk for students in ITIS 4P23: Advanced Business Analytics.

Rankin also connected his experiences in Brock’s MBA program to his career journey and highlighted how the analytical skills and strategic thinking developed during his studies have been instrumental in advancing his role in data science and business decision-making.