Emancipation Day in Canada

 

We hear a lot about Juneteenth in the United States the celebration of Emancipation of enslaved people after the Civil War. There were slaves in Canada as well but the process of emancipation began much earlier in the British Empire, of which Canada was a colony. This grim history is sadly close to home. In March 1824, in one of the last recorded sales of a slave in Upper Canada (now Ontario), Eli Keeler of Colborne sold 15-year-old Tom to William Bell in Thurlow, which is now part of Belleville. The historic Bridge St Methodist Church which I served until retirement likely had slave owners in the congregation in the early 19th century. 

Tomorrow, August 1st,is Emancipation Day in Canada, an event celebrated for decades by the Black community, although only the second since the formal recognition by our Parliament. Here is a link to a United Church of Canada panel discussion this evening: 

Join us for "Emancipated, But Still Working for Freedom,” a panel discussion with members of the Black Clergy Network in celebration of Emancipation Day, marking the abolishment of slavery across the British Empire, including Canada.

This 90-minute event will be moderated by Adele Halliday, Anti-Racism and Equity Lead at the General Council Office, with panelists:

• Dr. Charmaine Nelson, Professor of Art History and a Tier I Canada Research Chair in Transatlantic Black Diasporic Art and Community Engagement at Nova Scotia College of Art and Design (NSCAD) University.
• Dr. Carol B. Duncan, Professor of Religion and Culture at Wilfrid Laurier University.
• Russel Burns, entrepreneur and member of the National Indigenous Council of The United Church of Canada.
• Dr. Pedro Welch, retired Deputy Principal of the University of the West Indies (UWI) and former Dean, Faculty of Humanities and Education, and Professor of Social and Medical History in the Department of History and Philosophy at the UWI.

Join for this special online discussion and bring your questions. 

Join us for a Panel Discussion with the Black Clergy Network - 7:30 p.m. EDT, Sunday, July 31.

Emancipation Day celebrates freedom for people of African descent and ended slavery for all people in the British Empire. It reaffirms that all people should be treated as human beings.

An announcement of the sale of enslaved people. It appeared in the Quebec Gazette in May 1785. One of the horrors of slavery was that enslaved people were treated as property rather than as human beings.

 Photo: Quebec Gazette