SankofaFest transforms into three-day celebration at Sankofa Square in August
Anchored around August 23, the festival will feature fashion, music, film, art, and community programming across three days in downtown Toronto.
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Sankofa Square will host its first-ever three-day SankofaFest next month, expanding from a one-day cultural gathering held in 2025. The festival runs Friday, August 21 through Sunday, August 23, anchored around August 23—UNESCO's International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition.
Marnie Grona, interim general manager of Sankofa Square, said last year's response was overwhelming. "The response was extraordinary," she said. "Expanding into a three-day festival allows us to build on that momentum and create even more opportunities for cultural connection, creative expression, and collective reflection."
Friday, August 21 will feature fashion, culture, and commerce with a vibrant marketplace, curated vendors, food experiences, live DJs, interactive activations, and a major runway presentation as part of African Fashion Week Toronto (3 p.m. to 11 p.m.). Saturday, August 22 shifts to concert and nightlife, featuring artists across Afrobeat, dancehall, and global Black music culture (1 p.m. to 11 p.m.). Sunday, August 23 centres on community access, youth, and creative expression with storytelling, film, and art programming (1 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.).
The festival continues its mission under the theme "Looking Back, Building Forward," honouring ancestral memory while creating pathways for future generations. Sankofa Square is located at 1 Dundas Street East.
