On Monday, speakers at a virtual panel discussion talked about reparations and the ongoing legacy of slavery from Nova Scotian and Canadian perspectives. The event was hosted by Dalhousie University, University of King’s College, and the Black Cultural Centre for Nova Scotia and was advertised as a pre-conference event for the 2023 Universities Studying Slavery […]
Black News File
Stories from the Black community in the Maritimes, August 31 to September 6, 2021.
1. It’s all white, so it’s all right! (Part 1) The new provincial PC majority government was sworn in last Tuesday, including the new Minister of African Nova Scotian Affairs, the Office of Equity and Anti-Racism Initiatives, as well as Communities, Culture, Tourism and Heritage — Pat Dunn. Premier Tim Houston faced questions and criticism […]
Taking a stroll down The Avenue’s history
Morning File, Tuesday, July 7, 2020
News 1. Onslow fire hall shoot-up This item is written by Jennifer Henderson. Nova Scotia’s Serious Incident Response Team (SIRT) is currently conducting an investigation to determine if criminal charges should be laid against two police officers who pulled up in front of the Onslow-Belmont fire hall at about 10:30 am on Sunday April 19. […]
COVID-19 and vulnerable populations: now is the time for “meaningful social justice change”
The Halifax Examiner is providing all COVID-19 coverage for free. How does COVID-19 impact vulnerable populations differently and why is a human rights response to the pandemic necessary? Those were questions explored during a Dalhousie University ‘Open Dialogue Live’ panel discussion on Thursday afternoon. The panelists included Alex Neve, Amnesty International Canada’s secretary general, and […]
Letter from Black community to Premier and Chief Medical Officer has been vandalized with racist comments
The Halifax Examiner is providing all COVID-19 coverage for free. Organizers of an open letter from the Black community to Premier McNeil and Chief Medical Officer Robert Strang say that the letter has been vandalized with racist comments. The letter, which collected over 250 signatures in two days, calls for an apology for the […]
With pride and purpose: COVID-19 Preston Response Team galvanizes Canada’s largest Black community
“People are showing up with an even greater purpose" in response to Premier Stephen McNeil's hurtful comments.
The Halifax Examiner is providing all COVID-19 coverage for free. “A Canadian is a Canadian is a Canadian.” It’s a rhetorical flourish that has gained wide purchase since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau uttered the phrase in his 2015 election victory speech. I’d wager that First Nations still lacking potable water in the face of a […]
Where do you go when you gotta go?
Morning File, Tuesday, February 25, 2020
News 1. Supported living This item is written by Tim Bousquet. In 2013, the Nova Scotia government accepted a report titled “Choice, Equality and Good Lives in Inclusive Communities: A Roadmap for Transforming the Nova Scotia Services to Persons with Disabilities Program.” That 56-page report clearly identified the reliance on large institutions to house people […]
Child care workers go round and round with bus complaints
Morning File, Friday, September 20, 2019
News 1. Blackface Writes El Jones: When the furor over Trudeau’s Blackface photos dies down, to be referred to as an “embarrassing incident” or “controversial,” Black people like Abdilahi Elmi will still be facing deportation. Muslim Canadians will still be on the no-fly list. White nationalist editorials will still be commissioned by major newspapers under […]
“Do right by me”: by not addressing the systematic racism of street checks, the white power structure is doubling down on Nova Scotia’s well-earned reputation for ignorance, stigma, and stench
“Until you do right by me, everything you think about is gonna crumble.” Voiced by Whoopi Goldberg in her role as Celie in the film adaptation of The Color Purple, the line has recently wafted, repeatedly, through my mind. To be sure, the thought has been prompted by the magnificent production of The Color Purple […]
Reparations raises the racism disconnect
"I wasn’t around when slavery existed and I’m not responsible for it, so why should I have to pay reparations? The past is past, things are better now, so let’s just move on…" It’s a comforting argument, but it pre-supposes we, as whites, haven’t benefited from centuries of slavery and racism, or that our black fellow citizens aren’t still suffering its after-effects. It also assumes the economic, educational, judicial, and social scales are now in perfect colour-blind balance. Neither notion is correct.
On Sept. 25, the United Nations Human Rights Council discussed a report on Canada by its Working Group of Experts on Peoples of African Descent. The report, which shone its white-hot light on our country’s sordid history of slavery and racism in virtually every sphere of life — from education to justice to the environment...