Emancipation Month – August 2022

Events

The Afro Caribbean Farmers’ Market

Canada’s first culturally-specific farmers’ market, runs every Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m, ending in September.

Dis/Mantle

• Dis/Mantle, an art exhibit inspired by the efforts of Black abolitionists reimagines Spadina Museum using an Afrofuturism narrative: Mrs. Pipkin, the formerly enslaved freedom seeker who worked as a laundress in the house is now the homeowner and the house is a safe haven for those seeking freedom through the Underground Railroad.
• On view from August 5 to December 31, the group show includes soundscapes, ceramics and visual art by Canadian artists from the Afro Caribbean diaspora, including Lead Artist Gordon Shadrach (Portraits) who’s work will feature local and notable figures in the Black community who have shown leadership and contributed to art, sports, commerce and culture including Toronto Raptors players, Tanisha Scott, Julien Christian Lutz pka Director X, Naki Osutei and more, Odario Williams (Live Music), Roger Mooking (Culinary Installation) Sharon Norwood (Ceramics), Jabari “Elicser” Elliott (Graffiti Sculptures), Christine Nnawuchi (Ceramics), Lillian Allen (Soundscape), Alessandra De Oliveira (Apothecary) and Moraa Stump (Quilted Freedom Banner).
• Dis/Mantle Evening took place on August 5 and 6. It was a two-night-only interactive experience of visual, textile, audio, decorative, performing and culinary arts. This free event featured art installations and experiences by more than 15 local Black artists, including Poet Laureate Randell Adjei, to give rise to the under-represented history of the Black community in Toronto.

Think Like a Champion

A new Awakenings program with renowned artist and performer Jully Black, Think Like a Champion, aims to empower the mind, body and soul. A free two-hour session includes a Word to Rite writing workshop on one’s personal experience, followed by an exercise session led by Jully Black’s “The Power of Step” program. Registration is free.

Fort York Historic Site

In partnership with The Ontario Black History Society, the City hosted the annual Emancipation Day celebration at Fort York on August 1 at noon. The event commemorated the 188th anniversary of the Slavery Abolition Act.

Flag Raising Ceremony

On Tuesday, August 2, the City’s Confronting Anti-Black Racism (CABR) Unit hosted an in-person Flag Raising Ceremony and Community Gathering to commemorate the beginning of Emancipation Month 2022. This event took take place at North York Civic Centre, in Mel Lastman Square outside the building.

Mayor's Message on Emancipation Month 2022

August 2022 Proclamation

 

WHEREAS during Emancipation Month, we acknowledge and affirm the ongoing quest for equity, freedom and human rights for all Canadians of African Descent.

 

This month, as we reflect upon the ongoing global efforts to abolish slavery’s legacies, it is critical that we all acknowledge the persistent impact of colonial legacies, and the unwavering spirit of resistance and targeted universalism that continues to fuel the complete liberation of African-Canadians. For over 400 years, people of African descent endured and survived the transatlantic slave trade which included the French and British colonies. This experience of enslavement took place on lands that would eventually be called Canada and this month we acknowledge our commitment to shifting the impact of this legacy.

 

In 1833, the British Parliament passed the Slavery Abolition Act, which came into effect on August 1, 1834, formally marking the elimination of slavery within British colonies. As we observe this anniversary, the call to action is to recommit ourselves to learning and acknowledging our history, eliminating discrimination, and eradicating anti-Black racism in all of its forms. In March 2021, the City of Toronto proclaimed the International Decade for People of African Descent with the theme of “Ending Slavery’s Legacy of Racism: A Global Imperative for Justice.”

 

The City of Toronto is proud to have developed and enacted the Toronto Action Plan to Confront Anti-Black Racism with the goal of eliminating anti-Black racism in City services, planning, policies and spaces. Toronto City Council continues to work hard to establish an inclusive and compassionate city in which all of its members – regardless of race or ethnic origin – can live in conditions of good health, safety, dignity, respect and peace.

 

NOW THEREFORE, I, Mayor John Tory, on behalf of Toronto City Council, do hereby proclaim August 2022 as “Emancipation Month” in the City of Toronto.

 

John Tory
Mayor of Toronto

Milestones

The month of August marks many significant milestones in the struggles and successes faced by people of African descent on a journey that led to the abolition of slavery.

• 1608 – First Black person in Canada
  The first Black person thought to have set foot on land now referred to as Canada, was Mathieu Da Costa, a free man who was hired as an interpreter for Samuel de Champlain’s 1605 excursion.

 

• 1628 – First known enslaved person recorded in historical records
  Olivier LeJeune, who was 6 years old, was the first recorded enslaved person, from the country now known as Madagascar.

 

• 1689 – Louis XIV authorizes slavery in New France
  King Louis XIV formally authorized slavery in New France.

 

• Spring 1734 – Marie-Joseph Angelique is tortured and hanged
  Enslaved Black woman Marie- Josephe Angélique was accused of setting fire to the house of her “owner” in Montréal. Although it remains unclear whether Angélique actually set the fire, she was tortured and hanged for her “crime.”

 

• 1776 – Black Loyalists reach Nova Scotia
  The British promised freedom, land and rights to slaves and free Black people who settle in Nova Scotia, in exchange for service during the American Revolution, 1775–1783.

 

• July 26-27, 1784 – Canada’s first race riot rocks Nova Scotia
  The Black Loyalists were among the first settlers in Shelburne, Nova Scotia. They established their own community, Birchtown. Hundreds of White, disbanded soldiers started a riot when they found themselves competing for jobs with Black neighbours who were paid less for the same work.

 

• 1790 – Imperial Statute
  The Imperial Statute of 1790 effectively allowed settlers to bring enslaved persons to Upper Canada. Under the statute, those enslaved only needed to be fed and clothed.

 

• January 15, 1792 – The Black Loyalist exodus
  In the face of widespread discrimination and due to difficulty in supporting themselves, almost 1,200 Black Loyalists left Halifax and relocated to Africa (Sierra Leone).

 

• June 19, 1793 – Upper Canada’s Lieutenant-Governor John Graves Simcoe’s Anti-Slave Trade Bill
  Attorney General White introduced Lieutenant-Governor John Graves Simcoe’s anti-slavery measure and it passed. While the bill did not ban slavery completely, it marked its gradual prohibition.

 

• 1794 – The Petition of Free Negroes
  Richard Pierpoint and other Black veterans petitioned the government of Upper Canada to grant them land adjacent to each other rather than disperse it amongst White settlers. The Petition of Free Negroes, as it was known, aimed to create a Black community where members would help and support each other. The petition was rejected for unknown reasons.

 

• July 22, 1796 – The Maroons land at Halifax
  A group of almost 600 freedom fighters called Maroons landed in Halifax. They came from the Jamaican community of escaped enslaved people, who guarded their freedom for more than a century and fought off countless attempts to re-enslave them. Once in Nova Scotia, they helped build Citadel Hill, were part of a militia unit, cleared woods for roads, and were employed as general labourers.

 

• 1800 – Canada’s second Back to Africa Movement
  After several years of neglect, poor conditions and intolerance, several hundred Jamaican Maroons abandoned Nova Scotia and set sail for Freetown, Sierra Leone.

 

• 1812-1815 – The “Coloured Troops’ and the War of 1812
  Thousands of Black volunteers fought for the British during the War of 1812.

 

• 1825 – Prince Edward Island abolishes slavery

 

• 1815-1860 – The Underground Railroad
  Canada’s reputation as a safe haven for Black people grew during and after the War of 1812. Between 1815 and 1860, tens of thousands of African- Americans bravely sought refuge in Canada via the legendary Underground Railroad.

 

• August 28, 1833 – British Parliament abolishes slavery
  Slavery was abolished throughout the British colonies by an Imperial Act that took effect on August 1, 1834. Many Canadians continue to celebrate August 1 as Emancipation Day.

 

• 1850 – Fugitive Slave Act
  The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was enacted by the United States Congress on September 18, 1850. It greatly influenced the migration of African- Americans into Canada. It was repealed on June 28, 1864.

 

• February 26, 1851 – Formation of the Anti-Slavery Society of Canada
  The number of abolitionist sympathizers grew in Canada in the 1850s–1860s. The Anti- Slavery Society of Canada was formed “to aid in the extinction of Slavery all over the world.”

 

• 1861 – The Victoria Pioneer Rifles
  In 1851, James Douglas became the first appointed Black politician in Canada and then took over as governor of the colony of British Columbia. He invited African-Americans to emigrate from California to Victoria to establish Canada’s first and only all-Black police force.

 

• 1911 – Anti-Black Campaign
  By 1909, hundreds of Black people from Oklahoma moved to the Canadian Prairies, where they were met with severe discrimination. In 1911, a few newspapers in Winnipeg even predicted that the Dominion government would move to exclude “Negro immigrants.”

 

• 1914-1918 – Black Canadian involvement in the First World War
  In 1916, military officials authorized the creation of the No. 2 Construction Battalion. This battalion made up exclusively Black soldiers was not permitted to fight. Instead, they served in France with the Canadian Forestry Corps.

 

• 1939-1945 – Black Canadian involvement in the Second World War
  The Canadian military initially rejected Black volunteers, but many were later accepted into the Regular Army and officer corps. On the home front, the all-Black Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, was one of the greatest success stories of the war years.

 

• March 14, 1944 – Ontario passes Racial Discrimination Act
  Ontario was the first province to respond to the battle against oppression when it passed the Racial Discrimination Act of 1944. It was landmark legislation prohibiting the publication and display of any symbol, sign, or notice that expressed ethnic, racial, or religious discrimination. On April 1 1947, The Saskatchewan Bill of Rights Act passed under Tommy Douglas, marking Canada’s first general law prohibiting discrimination.

 

• April 6, 1954 – Ontario Government passes Fair Accommodation Practices Act
  The Act declared, “no one can deny to any person or class of persons the accommodation, services or facilities usually available to members of the public.” The Act also precluded anyone from posting discriminatory signs.

 

• January 19, 1962 – Fairclough Dismantles Discriminatory Policy
  Ellen Fairclough served as Minister of Citizenship and Immigration and radically reformed the country’s “White Canada” immigration policy, helping to reduce racial discrimination in Canada’s policies.

 

• September 25, 1963 – First Black Person Elected to a Canadian Parliament
  Leonard Braithwaite became the first Black person in a provincial legislature when he was elected the Liberal member for Etobicoke, Ontario, in 1963. In 1964, Braithwaite introduced legislation to remove the law that allowed segregated schools to exist.

 

• October 1971 – Prime Minister Trudeau introduces Canada’s Multicultural Policy
  Canada’s multiculturalism policy grew partly in reaction to the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism.

 

• 1993 – The first Black Woman is elected to Parliament
  Jean Augustine was the first Black woman to be elected to the House of Commons in a federal Cabinet.

 

• 1995 – Canadian Sprinter becomes the “World’s fastest Human”
  Donovan Bailey assumed the title of “World’s Fastest Human” by winning the 100-metre sprint at the World Track Championships in Göteborg, Sweden.

 

• February 24, 2010 – Reparations paid following demolition of Africville
  In 1962, the City of Halifax decided to demolish Africville, the historic Black neighbourhood of Halifax. Anti-Black racism combined with a drive for “urban renewal” led the city to threaten eviction of the neighbourhood’s property-owning Black residents if they did not voluntarily sell their properties and relocate. In 2010, the mayor of Halifax apologized for the destruction of Africville and provided compensation, on behalf of the City of Halifax.

 

• 2014 – Lincoln Alexander Day celebrated annually throughout Canada on January 21
  Lincoln Alexander was elected Canada’s first Black MP representing Hamilton West, Ontario, from 1968 to 1980. In 1979, he was appointed Minister of Labour, becoming the country’s first Black federal Cabinet minister. Lincoln Alexander made history again by becoming the province’s first Black Lieutenant-Governor, serving from 1985 to 1991.

 

• April 2016 – Launch of the City of Toronto’s Confronting Anti-Black Racism initiatives The City of Toronto’s Confronting Anti-Black Racism initiatives is launched, following protests of Black Lives Matter Toronto and responding to decades of organizing, advocacy and government reports on anti-Black racism’s impacts on the well-being of Black Torontonians.

 

• December 5, 2017 – Toronto City Council votes unanimously to adopt the Toronto Action Plan to Confront Anti-Black Racism

 

• May 2018 – The Confronting Anti-Black Racism Unit’s first staff members begin working for the City to support the City of Toronto in implementing the Toronto Action Plan to Confront Anti-Black Racism.

 

• September 2018 – The City of Toronto launches the Black Staff Network which seeks to promote an inclusive workplace that provides professional development and mentorship for Black City staff, forums for members to meet and share knowledge, and provide coaching and networking opportunities.

 

• March 25, 2019 – The City of Toronto declares official recognition of the United Nations’ International Decade for People of African Descent.

 

• March 2020 – The City of Toronto declares the first Monday in March Black Mental Health Day. This serves as an annual day to confront the effects and legacies of trauma from anti-Black racism on the mental health of Black communities.

 

• June 2020 – The Toronto Board of Health recognizes anti-Black racism as a public health crisis.
  The TBH affirms its commitment to continuing to address the social determinants of health by supporting policies and programs that address the inequities that marginalized groups continue to face, with a focus on Black communities and residents, including in the following areas: employment, education, housing, child care, policing and law enforcement, the criminal justice system, and access to health and mental health services.

 

• September 30, 2020 – Toronto City Council establishes the first Confronting Anti-Black Racism Advisory Committee (CABRAC).
  The CABRC will provide expert advice to City Council on strategic and emerging issues to ensure City policies, programs and initiatives adequately serve people of African descent in Toronto.

Source: Historica Canada