National Black Canadians Summit & a Historic Declaration

Over this past weekend there was a three-day National Black Canadians Summit in Halifax. Nova Scotia is a province with a lengthy Black history which includes the migration of Blacks from the United States to the area around Shelburne, a story told in Lawrence Hill's novel The Book of Negroes. 

On Sunday morning there was an interdenominational worship service and I wish I could find more about how that unfolded. I have no doubt that it was very meaningful. Christian faith has been part of both the oppression and liberation of Black people in many parts of the world

During these days a historic declaration demanding justice and equality for Black Canadians and people of African descent was crafted, a work still in progress. Here is a portion of the report from the CBC with some of the Calls to Action in the declaration: 

Lynn Jones, a Black Nova Scotian elder, started off the declaration performance by recognizing the history of African Nova Scotians.

"From strength to strength, we have persisted, created, remembered and marched forward," Jones said. "We are here."

The body of the declaration has three main pillars: recognition, justice, and development. These are the same pillars introduced by the United Nations international decade for people of African descent, started in 2015. 

"We also really wanted to make sure it was a declaration grounded in community, grounded in a full understanding of not just our local place, but connecting globally," said El Jones, an activist and one of the declaration's authors.

Calls to action

The declaration contains numerous calls to action, some of which are:

• The federal government to enact legislation recognizing people of African descent in Canada as a distinct group and recognize their contributions.
• A recognition of the realities of slavery and its impacts.
• Parliament to implement a Declaration of Cultural Rights recognizing the artistic contributions and heritage of Black Canadian creators.
• Media to create a statement of ethics on reporting on Black communities and diversity in newsrooms.
• Museums and libraries to preserve Black history.
• The federal government to adopt a framework for reparations toward Indigenous people and people of African descent.
• More accountability and recognition of harm from police and law enforcement.
• Reform of the education system to address anti-Black racism.

                                     Lynn Jones is a Black Nova Scotian elder. (Victoria Welland/CBC)