As an Albertan, how much do you know about anti-black racism and its beginnings in our community? In 2017, Alberta became the fourth province in Canada to recognize February as Black History Month, and yet still, the majority of Albertans—admittedly, myself included—know very little about the complex history of African-Canadians in our province. So what is that history and why has it been so largely undiscovered? And, more importantly, why should we pay attention to it? In this post, I not only want to discuss and celebrate the rich history of Black peoples in Alberta but delve into the institutionalized racism of the past that has set the stage for the many struggles the Black community still face today.
A Glimpse into African-Albertan History
Growing up in Edmonton, the only curricular mention of African-Canadian history started and ended with the story of the Underground Railroad: the secret network of abolitionists working to help enslaved African-Americans escape in favour of the free British North America (now known as Canada). Despite this, the history of mass Black migration to Alberta doesn’t even begin with the Underground Railroad. The portrayal of Canada as an anti-racist haven (which is what the Underground Railroad seems to describe) is a massive misrepresentation that undermines the struggle that early Black migrants faced and allows for the Canadian exceptionalism myth to cloud our current understanding of discrimination in our own country.
Following Oklahoma’s passing of its first Jim Crow law in 1907, over a thousand African-Americans migrated from the Southern United States to small Albertan farming towns near Edmonton. Surprisingly, despite settling in a small prairie town after the Civil War, interviews with their descendants show that early Black settlers in Alberta built strong ties and thriving communities with other European farming families (Simons). However, after the Great Depression hit in the 1930s, most farming families were forced to move to Edmonton and were now under employment of white employers. Consequently, the discrimination that they faced was present in every major social institution. This was propagated by politicians and media outlets, who voiced speeches titled “We Want No Dark Spots in Alberta”, and called the migration of a few decades earlier a “Negro invasion” (RETROactive). In fact, in an attempt to restrict immigration into the prairie provinces in the early 1900s, the Canadian government covertly offered medical examiners bonuses for rejecting any Black immigrant at the border by fabricating any medical condition that would justify their rejection. In Edmonton, Mayor Dan Knott (1931-34) was in association with the Albertan chapter of the white-supremacist hate group Ku Klux Klan (KKK), and while serving as mayor, authorized the groups’ cross burnings on public grounds. Meanwhile, his name continues to title a junior high school in southeast Edmonton.
Amid rampant discrimination, there arose many remarkable individuals who fought and advocated for their fellow Black Albertans. Charles Daniels, a Calgarian inspector for the Canadian Pacific Railroad, bought a ticket to the theatre, and while he paid for a front-row seat, he was directed to the “coloured” designated balcony. He protested, and after being offered a refund, he refused and left—an action that garnered media attention all over Alberta. Violet King was the first Black person to acquire a law degree in Alberta and the first female Black lawyer in Canada. She advocated for the challenges that women of colour face in the workplace. Her brother, Ted King, was the president of the Alberta Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (AAACP), through which he directed a lawsuit against a Calgarian motel’s discriminatory policy that reached the Canadian Supreme Court.
Current Issues: BLM & Black Youth
Hundreds of Edmontonians marched from the Alberta legislature to City Hall on June 2, 2020, in protest of the killing of George Floyd and racism. (Taken from CTV Edmonton)
Black Lives Matter (BLM), while beginning as an American movement in 2013, rapidly transformed into a global phenomenon that has taken shape in the form of protests, rallies, and various campaigns in hundreds of cities around the globe. In Edmonton, several BLM protests took place in June 2020, all in response to decades of racism that present itself in the actions of municipal institutions, such as the Edmonton Police Service (EPS) and Transit System (ETS). For example, a major campaign against EPS involves carding, which examines the immensely disproportionate rates of street checks and racial profiling among Black and Indigenous populations (more information about carding can be found on Edmonton-based writer Bashir Mohamed’s blog linked below). Hate-motivated attacks based on anti-Black racism are also sickeningly prevalent in our city, seen by two recent incidents of physical assault upon Black Muslim women near the Southgate mall and LRT station (Antoneshyn).
What we need to understand is that these events do not happen in isolation, but rather are only a few examples of the discrimination faced by the Black community at all levels of society. And, more importantly, the systemic, long term effects to these communities and their youth cannot be overlooked. A study done at Toronto’s York University in 2015 indicates that Black youth experience higher drop-out rates, higher expulsion/suspension rates, and poorer educational outcomes as compared to their white counterparts (Kelly). As mentioned before, African-American history (without the “white saviour” narrative) is rarely highlighted in school curriculum. Furthermore, due to a variety of factors such as intergenerational trauma and cultural expectations, Black youth face multiple barriers while seeking mental health support (Pasiuk).
What can Albertans do?
2021 may be a new year, but it will be a far cry from a fresh start unless we continue to become aware of and advocate for the issues that affect us, our peers, and our communities. Historically, our province has never been an exception to anti-Black racism and we have a long way to go before it is. Below, I am linking a variety of organizations that actively combat racism in Edmonton, as well as resources that you can use to learn more. I encourage you to continue to educate yourself on anti-racism and get involved in your community in any way possible.
More Information On:
The Underground Railroad: https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/underground-railroad
Jim Crow Laws: https://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=SE017
Dan Knott and the Albertan KKK:
Charles Daniels, Violet King, and Ted King:
https://www.sprawlcalgary.com/calgarys-unknown-civil-rights-hero
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/violet-king
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/ted-king
Anti-Racism Resources & Organizations to Support
Bashir Mohamed’s Anti-Black Racism Tool-Kit: https://www.bashirmohamed.com/blog/2020/6/2/edmontontoolkit
Black Lives Matter YEG:
Black Women United YEG:
Experiences Canada Anti-Racism Resources:
https://experiencescanada.ca/resources/anti-racism-resources/
Works Cited
Antoneshyn, Alex. “’Could Have Been Me’: Somali Community Reacts to Hate-Motivated Attack Outside Edmonton Mall.” Edmonton, CTV News, 11 Dec. 2020, edmonton.ctvnews.ca/could-have-been-me-somali-community-reacts-to-hate-motivated-attack-outside-edmonton-mall-1.5224222.
editor, RETROactive. “African American Immigration to Alberta.” RETROactive, 11 Oct. 2018, albertashistoricplaces.com/2015/02/12/african-american-immigration-to-alberta/.
Kelly, Jennifer R. “Opinion: It’s Time to Address Systemic Inequities in Schools for Black Youth.” Edmontonjournal, Edmonton Journal, 4 Jan. 2021, edmontonjournal.com/opinion/columnists/opinion-its-time-to-address-systemic-inequities-faced-by-black-youth-in-school.
McMaster, Geoff. “Citizen Historian Determined to Expose Edmonton’s Racist Past to Reconcile and Move Forward.” University of Alberta, University of Alberta, 14 Feb. 2020, http://www.ualberta.ca/arts/faculty-news/2019/february/citizen-historian-determined-to-expose-edmontons-racist-past-to-reconcile-and-move-forward.html.
Pasiuk, Emily. “Black Youth in Edmonton Face Barriers When Seeking Mental Health Support, Study Shows | CBC News.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, 21 Nov. 2020, http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/black-youth-mental-health-edmonton-university-of-alberta-study-1.5806363.
Simons, Paula. Edmonton Journal. “Paula Simons: Moving New Film Untangles Alberta’s Complex Black History.” Edmontonjournal, Edmonton Journal, 23 Feb. 2018, edmontonjournal.com/entertainment/movies/paula-simons-moving-new-film-untangles-albertas-complex-black-history/.
“Woman Charged after ‘Hate-Motivated’ Attack Outside Edmonton Mall: Police.” Edmonton, CTV News, 16 Dec. 2020, edmonton.ctvnews.ca/woman-charged-after-hate-motivated-attack-outside-edmonton-mall-police-1.5233321.
Written by Kritika Taparia
Edited by Amir Ali Adel
Campus UNICEF 