Season 1, Episode 10

MPP David Smith Encourages Everyone to Participate in Black History Month

Black History Month is here! And this annual month-long commemoration is one of the coolest and easiest ways to experience the profound and enduring contributions of Black Canadians.

Black History Month is observed during the month of February each year.

This special video episode features MPP David Smith helping to inaugurate Black History Month, and encouraging everyone to enjoy the history, music, arts, businesses and overall contributions to Canada by the many generations of Black Canadians. Come and visit us in Scarborough Centre or check out the online resources near the end of these shownotes.

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Black history in Canada began with Mathieu da Costa, a multilingual interpreter of African descent who worked with Samuel de Champlain and Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Monts, in Acadia, whose job it was to assist French explorers.

Early, large-scale settlements occurred later with Black Loyalists (1780s) and Underground Railroad refugees (1800s). Following the American Revolutionary War, over 3,000 Black Loyalists seeking freedom and land settled in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Many formerly enslaved people escaped to Canada for freedom after the War of 1812, forming communities in Ontario and the Maritimes.

Learn more:

Visit us in Scarborough Centre, home to Canada’s most culturally diverse community – including the many businesses and enterprises owned and operated by Black Canadians.

Or check out the following online resources:

Heritage Canada: https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/campaigns/black-history-month.html

Ontario Black History Society: https://blackhistorysociety.ca/

Black History Month Act, 2016 – Read the Statute: https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/16b01

For more information or to contact us visit ⁠https://davidsmithmpp.ca/⁠

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