Some of the notable descendants of these Black settlers include Violet King (the first Black woman to graduate in law in 1954) and her brother Ted King who was a trailblazer for human rights advocacy in Calgary in the 1950’s. Communities like Campsie, Amber Valley, Junkins (Breton) were largely by Black settlers from the US who were specifically placed in these communities by the municipal urban planning policies of that time. The CBC documentary “Black on the Prairie” provides insights on how these Black pioneers grappled with racism and segregation and contributed to the Canadian mosaic of diverse races and cultures. Despite the 1911 immigration ban on Black people, several early Black settlers in Alberta give testimony of the hospitality and assistance they received from Indigenous Peoples and European settlers. We do not know what the boy’s African name was, his real-life experiences, or his contributions to society.īlack history is important because it is interconnected in many ways to the lives and histories of Indigenous Peoples and other Canadians across generations. The boy was baptized Olivier le Jeune in 1633. He was brought there by British traders (Kirk brothers) in 1629 and sold to a Frenchman Olivier le Bailiff who gifted the boy to Guillaume Couillard. The earliest record of a Black person in Canada is that of an enslaved six-year-old boy from Madagascar or Guinea who lived on New France. This Black History Month, join in the observances, attend events in your community, read books by Black authors and enjoy music and movies that feature Black artists and actors.īlack people have lived in Canada since the 1600's, and yet very little is known about their lives, challenges, and contributions to Canadian society. The question remains, when will we move past the condolences and shared grief to doing differently, because actions increase accountability around inclusion, racism, and the systemic barriers that influence us all. Black people continue to advocate for a dignified life in a racially-just society. Black people have resisted racial oppression through movements such as the Underground Railroad in Nova Scotia, the Toronto against racism vigils, the Selma to Montgomery March, the Black Lives Matter movement and the most recent protest of the police beating of unarmed Tyre Nichols in Memphis. The 2023 Black History Month theme is “Black Resistance.” The theme explores how Black people have resisted historical and ongoing systemic oppression, especially the racial terrorism of lynching and increased gun violence, since their forced arrival in foreign lands.
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