By Natasha Henry. Read more at http://teachingafricancanadianhistory.weebly.com/blog
August 1st, 2014 is a significant date in African history for two reasons. It marks the 180th anniversary of the legislation that abolished the enslavement of Africans throughout British colonies.
This year also marks the 100th anniversary of the formation of the Universal Negro Improvement Association by the Honourable Marcus Mosiah Garvey.
Emancipation Day Celebrations
After receiving Royal Assent in August 28, 1833 the Slavery Abolition Act took effect on August 1, 1834, ending the brutal practice of African enslavement throughout the British Empire. However, it took until August 1, 1838 for former slaves in some Caribbean islands to be fully freed. The passage of this monumental piece of legislation was truly an occasion for celebration – almost 1 million Africans were freed in the Caribbean, South Africa, and a small number here in Canada.
Montreal was one of the first sites of Emancipation Day commemorations held on the very day the Act took effect. Since then the recognition of Emancipation Day has become a remarkable display of African-Canadian tradition and spiritual restoration nation-wide. The day was celebrated across Canada in many villages, towns and city centres. Black men and women of diverse backgrounds along with White and Aboriginal supporters commemorated Emancipation Day through participation in street parades, church services, lectures, dinners, dances and other activities.
Celebrating Emancipation Day continues today in places like Owen Sound, Windsor, Dresden and in Toronto where for the second year, Itah Sadu from A Different Booklist bookstore will host the Freedom Train on the TTC subway on the night of July 31st to symbolically ring in freedom at midnight.
Join the Underground Freedom Train and Welcome Emancipation Day
Thursday night, July 31, 2014, 11:15 p.m.
TTC subway ticket booth, Union Station, Toronto
Ride on the TTC subway from Union Station to Downsview Station for poetry, singing and stories about the struggle to end slavery, the “Underground Railroad” to Canada and the fight for civil rights.
August 1 is Emancipation Day, and 2014 is the 180th anniversary of the Slavery Abolition Act, and the 100th anniversary of the formation of the Universal Negro Improvement Association by the Honourable Marcus Mosiah Garvey.
Organized by:
A Different Booklist
info@adifferentbooklist.com
t. 416 538 0889
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Natasha Henry is an educator, historian, and curriculum consultant, specializing in the development of learning materials that focus on the African Diasporic experience. She is currently an occasional elementary teacher and an online course instructor with the Faculty of Education at York University.
Contact her today for further information or presentations: fundi_edu@hotmail.com