Although we don’t learn about it, Canada is full of black history. With the month of Black History still going, I bring you another story but this time on Black Canadians.
Mary Ann Shadd
Mary was an American-Canadian anti-slavery activist, journalist, publisher, teacher and lawyer. She edited The Provincial Freeman established in 1853, which was published weekly in southern Ontario. Mary was the first black woman publisher in North America and the first woman publisher in Canada. Shadd founded the anti-slavery paper The Provincial Freeman, who’s slogan was “Devoted to antislavery, temperance and general literature.”
Henry “Harry” Jerome
Born in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, was a Canadian track and field sprinter and P.E teacher. In 1964 he won the bronze medal at the Olympics In Tokyo and set seven world records over the course of his career. In 1971 he was inducted into Canada’s sports Hall of Fame. If you take a stroll down to Stanley Park you’ll see a statue in his memory.
Portia May White
Born in Nova Scotia back in 1911 she grew up singing in her father’s church choir in Halifax. Portia is known for becoming the first black Canadian singer to achieve international fame, and at the time it was difficult with the barriers that faced black women. Portia was declared a person of national historic significance by the Government of Canada and she was featured in a special issue of Millennium postage stamps.
Lincoln Alexander
Born in 1922 in Toronto, Ontario, was a Canadian lawyer who became the first black Member of Parliament in the House of Commons, the first black federal cabinet minister. First black Chair of the Worker’s compensation Board and 24th Lieutenant Governor of Ontario from 1985 to 1991. Although being involved in a world of white politics he did not shy away from voting against his parties or speaking out about racism.
Rosemary Brown
Born in 1930 in Jamaica, she later moved to Canada in 1951 to study social work at McGill University in Montreal. Upon attending McGill she studied at UBC here in Vancouver and earned her Master’s in Social Work. She served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly here in B.C as part of the New Democratic Party from 1977 to 1986, making her the first black Canadian woman to be elected to a Canadian provincial legislature.
And this is just a short list of many.