March 8 is International Women’s Day (IWD). This is a day to celebrate all women and highlight the positive impact they have had on the world. But it is also a day to remember that gender equality has yet to be achieved.
This year’s IWD theme is Action. The world needs gender equality. And there are effective strategies to achieve it.
Eden-Belle O’Neill is a 17-year-old from Vancouver, British Columbia. She proves that you don’t need to be an adult to make a positive change in the world.
O’Neill is the founder of the Black Queen Collective (BQC). It is a for Black teen girls. The collective attends events like workshops and panel discussions.
This past February, O’Neill was even invited to speak at the National Black Canadians . The event highlights the ways Black people are helping to shape Canada’s future. It was held in Montreal, Quebec. O’Neill discussed the BQC’s work. It all started in 2023 when she formed an online group chat.
O’Neill created the group chat after attending a in Vancouver. The conference was called Empowered Black Girls. She wanted to use the group chat to keep in touch with the girls she met there. But she also wanted to bring the group together again.
Soon after, O’Neill started the Black Queen Collective. She organizes and hosts bimonthly meetings for the group. And they don't just talk, they learn about themselves, too.
The BQC’s launch event brought in four Black therapists. They discussed their experiences as Black women in Canada. They also gave the BQC advice. The advice was about figuring out their own identities.
Other focuses of the BQC meetings are positive affirmations and learning how to set .
Alex Anokwuru and Raniya Reebye are volunteers with the BQC. Reebye said the BQC has helped her feel confident in talking about her feelings. And Anokwuru said the BQC made her “feel seen.”
O’Neill has made a significant impact on the lives of other Black teen girls through the BQC. She wants to keep it going, even after she graduates high school.
“I will take Black Queen Collective with me. It is a sisterhood and support system that can be transported anywhere,” she told CBC. And she hopes that other young women and girls will start their own groups and .
By Maria Couto
Updated March 7, 2025, 5:00 P.M. (ET)
