Black activists from 30 years ago and the present say not much has changed in Toronto By Asha Tomlinson, CBC News Posted: Feb 06, 2016 5:00 AM ET Last Updated: Feb 06, 2016 1:34 PM ET “Injustice Must End.” Those were the words written on a sign held by a Torontonian during a protest back in the 1980s. It was a response to a growing list of young black men shot dead by police

Not everyone agrees with maintaining the month-long February tradition By Haydn Watters, CBC News February is Black History Month, a time to reflect, share and learn about the stories, experiences and accomplishments of Canada’s black community. That means many educators will include the topic in their lesson plans. Is Black History Month limiting the teaching of black history? Black History Month: Remembering Canadian civil rights icon Viola Desmond ​A cross-country guide to Black History Month

One of the earliest known commemorative plaques honouring black Canadians is that of a tablet erected at the Ontario Legislative Building in Toronto, Ontario, in memory of those who served with the No. 2 Construction Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force, during the Great War. However there had been several black military formations even before that. Captain Runchey’s Company of Coloured Men was one of the first black regiments consisting of both

“Where are you from?” might seem like a harmless question but for black Canadians living in Vancouver, it can bring a wide variety of responses and feelings. Art gallery owner Anthonia Ogundele wanted to explore that question, and the way black Canadians feel about it in a new art project titled, appropriately, “Where Are You From?” at her gallery, The Cheeky Proletariat. The project compiles photos of black Vancouverites and

Former Salt Spring resident Evelyn C. White explores the island’s black history in a photography book By On The Coast, CBC News It may be caricatured as a top destination for hippies and retirees in B.C., but author Evelyn C. White says Salt Spring Island was home to one of B.C.’s most important black communities in the late 1800s and early 1900s. White explores Salt Spring’s black roots in her book

Archivist Christine Meutzner found at least 70 black settlers were living in the old mining town in 1890s By On The Island, CBC News Jimmy Claxton, the first black man to play organized baseball in the 20th century, is one of the most well-known black Canadians in history. But Nanaimo Community Archives manager Christine Meutzner has always believed Claxton’s couldn’t have been the only black family living in Wellington, B.C., where

Educators questioning how to broaden black history teaching year-round By Joseph Quigley, CBC News Natasha Henry, an educator and historian in Mississauga, Ont., has worked for years developing programs and workshops aimed at getting more teachers to add black history to their curriculum. As February is Black History Month in Canada and the U.S., teachers across the country will be injecting more of the subject into their classrooms. But Henry wants people to

‘Blackface is the caricature of a black person,’ says head of advocacy group CBC News A group of Quebec artists calling themselves “Les Moustiques” (the mosquitoes) launched an online petition calling for the end of blackface in Quebec. “Blackface is the caricature of a black person,” said Emilie Nicolas, president of advocacy group Québec inclusif, and one of the petition’s authors. “It’s rooted in slavery here in Quebec…Using a white

Viola Desmond challenged segregation in the eastern province of Nova Scotia in the 1940s. And while she did not win her case, her story became a catalyst for change. And the story will now be brought to the Canadian public in a one-minute video prepared especially for Black History Month which is in February. Desmond was an entrepreneur who went to the movies and sat in the downstairs section reserved