Tag: The Race Card

The Adventures of Diva Rachel: Compilation: 2014’s Most Racist Incidents in Canada


As the year winds down, news readers are treated with a feast of annual compilations. From fashion to finances, from movies to m…. it is a time to look back at the hits and misses.
In quintessential Canadian style, the subject of race relations is missing from the roster. Every year. Until now.
Here is a compilation of low-lights in racial discrimination the country that coined multiculturalism.

1. Subban’s Sochi Snub.
When the top defenseman of the NHLgets just a few minutes of play at the Winter Olympics, you’ve got to wonder… but when a Canadian fan flies half way across the world to “support ” the sole Afro-Canadian player on Team Canada in blackface, it boggles the mind. With 400 years of African presence, 200 years of slavery and another hundred years of legalized racial discrimination under our collective Canadian belts, you would think these PK Subban “fans” would know enough not to resort to a disgraceful practice to cheer him on. Finally, the Habs let their star player twist in the wind for far too long before ceding to public pressure and singing him for a long-term commitment. Since then, French-speaking TV commentators have scorched the lad repeatedly, despite his performance. Let’s hope the obsession with Subban’s salary subsides in 2015.
2. Brampton Bêtise.
The organization Immigration Watch Canada distributed a flyer entitled “The Changing Face of Brampton,” featuring two images — the top photo shows a group of “mainstream Canadians” (commonly known as white people), while the bottom photo shows the diversity that the Greater Toronto Area has incarnated. In such a rich part of Ontario, it seems the hate-filled group spent time and money denigrating their “non-mainstream” neighbours in Brampton and at York University. 
3. Odious Offences Towards Olivia Chow.
She soldiered on stoically in the wake of her husband Jack Layton’s passing. She aimed for the mayoral seat in Toronto, Canada’s “most multicultural city”. Despite the Hog Town’s slogan, Olivia Chow faced xenophobic remarks, racist cartoons, and an aide deriding her for “not speaking English at home”. Torontonians are waking up to the fact that multiculturalism alone is no antidote to racism.

4. Shame After Ottawa Shooting

In the hysteria and confusion of the “Ottawa shooting” that paralyzed Parliament Hill, the nearby University of Ottawa went on lock down. The campus coffee shop gave refuge to scared students – except the one who was tall and Black. In a blog, the ostracized student recounted his experience “Maybe to [the Second Cup café staff], my life doesn’t matter as much as that of the others, or worse, he thought I was the shooter.” When push comes to shove, one’s true character is revealed. 
5. Saguenay Saga
Following vandalism at a mosque in Chicoutimi, rural Quebec’s overt xenophobia did not settle in 2014. The Fédération des Québécois de souche‘s anti-Semitic and homophobic stickerslittered mailboxes and public signage in the Saguenay. No word on when the “investigation” will yield tangible results for fearful residents of colour and Jewish citizens. 
6. Wrongful Writing from Winnipeg
Winnipeg mayoral candidate Robert-Falcon Ouellette exposed the racism he faced during his campaign. The 18-year veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces was reduced to his racial heritage via abusive comments were posted online. He also received hateful emails about his aboriginal heritage.
“Go back to drinking. That’s where Indians belong,” said one.
It is amazing how citizens of a nation which borrowed an Aboriginal word to name itself, founded on Aboriginal land, send so much vitriol to an upstanding Canadian because of his Aboriginal heritage.

7. Blackface Blunders
Québec school plans a xmas play where kids appear in blackface. Not to be outdone, Montreal’s Rideau Verttheatre’s year end revue show includes a sketch in which a white comedian appears in blackface. Worse, the franco-Quebec pundits and TV producers defend it vehemently. Is there nothing more insulting than members of the dominant culture instructing minorities how to feel about their own depiction?

8. Kids Can be Cruel
An 11-year-old boy in Westport, Newfoundland had to transfer schools because of the extreme and racist bullying he has endured in his community. Torrence Collier is the only black child in the community. The bullying at his school was so bad that he was under constant supervision and had to use a separate washroom to avoid harassment from his classmates. One parent claimed that the real bully was Torrence: “He’s not the victim. He is instigating a lot of this to other children.” Is being black now a form of provocation in Newfoundland? Unfortunately, the same attitude prevailed in Georgina, Ontario, where students hurled racial slurs as they beat a black school mate. In both cases, there seemed to be no repercussions for this bad behaviour. 
10. Prejudice Made Public by Montreal Police Union Head
Montreal’s diversity is an asset, not a threat, says Mayor Denis Coderre. But the head of Montreal’s police brotherhood union doesn’t agree. Yves Francoeur was quoted as saying that Montreal police officers’ safety might be at risk because of the city’s “multi-ethnic character.” Asked why he thought Montreal police could be targeted in an attack like the Brooklyn shooting, Francoeur replied: “We worry in Montreal on account of its multi-ethnic character, on account of the (attacks) in Ottawa and St-Jean-sur-Richelieu.”
Both the cited tragedies were perpetrated by heritage Canadians, born and raised in Canada. So were the RCMP killings in Moncton. But that didn’t stop the perception that “multi-ethnics” are threatening. In an era of racial profiling, these statements smack of xenophobia.

9. Multiculturalism Minister’s Misadventure
Canada’s Minister of State for Multiculturalism,Tim Uppal, had a difficult experience at an Edmonton tennis club. The Minister and his family overheard a woman express disgust that the Sikh-Canadian family was allowed membership, using a racial slur. She went on to suggest that Uppal was probably unemployed. for Craig and Marc Kielburger, it was an ugly reminder that Canada may be the land of multiculturalism, but we are not immune to racism.
As we turn the page on 2014, one hopes Canadians can look forward to less chatter about racist incidents and more action to curb the assailants’ uncanadian behaviour.
 
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The Adventures of Diva Rachel: What is Wrong with Whoopi? The View co-host delusional, downplays racial profiling

“Momma! There’s a black lady on TV and she ain’t no maid!”

That’s what a young Caryn Johnson said when she first saw Nyota Uhura, a character in the original Star Trek series. Uhura was one of the first TV characters of African descent to be featured in a non-menial role. Although it was fiction, the character lifted the psychological ceiling for little black girls in America by simply defying racial norms.

At that time, women’s roles were still defined by “tradition”. But for Black women, the bar was even lower: a career in house-cleaning and child-rearing in a nice white family was the best some could hope for. Teaching and nursing were viable careers for the privileged, educated class.

When I saw “The Help,” […] I thought that is my story. My grandmother was a maid. Her mother was a maid. The mother before her was a slave. My mother was a maid. My grandmother’s greatest dream for me was that I would grow up [to be a maid to] some good white folks. And the only picture I have of my grandmother is of her holding a white child in her maid’s uniform. […] Nobody ever even imagined it possible that you could be anything other than a maid who had some good white folks. –Oprah Winfrey

Like many African-American girls, little Caryn Johnson was conditioned to the hierarchical norms of the epoch, which were delineated by gender and race. Caryn grew up, took on the stage name Whoopi Goldberg, and eventually, perhaps symbolically, secured an acting role on Star Trek, among other achievements.

With fame and fortune, Goldberg kissed her welfare life goodbye, and moved on up to a successful career. Perhaps the Oscar alum has been living the Hollywood life so long that she’s lost touch with reality.

There was a bizarre 1990s episode when Goldberg penned a raunchy, n-word filled routine for boyfriend Ted Danson to perform before an audience… in blackface. New York Mayor David Dinkins, in attendance, was among many offended African-Americans.

Goldberg recently defended Canadian pop star Justin Bieber’s use of the n-word, erroneously arguing that the hateful racial epithet does not have the same connotation in Canada. The high school dropout’s statement gave cover to racists in Canada and beyond, while angering equality activists who are still fighting for racial imbalance in a country still mired with subtle and effective racism. Goldberg never bothered to apologize on the air.

@ShutUpLucille That “Canada as Utopia” image that many non-Cdns have is destructive. Hard to fight for rights people assume you already have

— Septembre Anderson (@SeptembreA) June 4, 2014

In her latest tirade, Ms. Goldberg screamed at The View co-hosts after they described their disparaging encounters with racial profiling. Iconic Latina Rosie Perez shared a personal story of being mistaken for “the Help” when she and her family member patronized a posh hotel. Rosie O’Donnell, whose godson is of colour, chimed in and was swiftly shut down.

Goldberg’s most surreal statement is that there is “real” racism – presumably the overt kind seen in Hollywood period films– and then there’s a form of “ridiculousness” that encompasses racial profiling.

Is that like being “half pregnant”?

The First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama, discussed racial profiling in a sobering interview this week. Mrs. Obama revealed that the first Black President has been mistaken for a waiter and a valet. She was recently asked to assist a customer during a visit to a low-cost department store.

” Barack Obama was [once] a black man that lived on the South Side of Chicago, who had his share of troubles catching cabs,” Mrs. Obama said in the Dec. 10 interview appearing in the new issue of PEOPLE.

After “60 years of being Black,” Whoopi Goldberg dismissed her colleague’s and her President’s lived experiences as less consequential than “real racism”.

Caryn Johnson may have recognized racial bias as a child, but Whoopi Goldberg no longer does. Perhaps a new stage name would be in order: Uncle Tom.

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The Adventures of Diva Rachel: Olivia Chow Lost Because She Doesn’t Speak English At Home — or — Why Only Whites Can Win

It wasn’t so long ago that an Alberta politician inadvertently loosened his tongue long enough for the ugly truth to seep out. He basically admitted that his whiteness was an unearned advantage over equally qualified non-white, non-Christian competitors. As a Caucasian, I have an advantage. When different community leaders such

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The Adventures of Diva Rachel: Olivia Chow Lost Because She Doesn’t Speak English At Home — or — Why Only Whites Can Win

It wasn’t so long ago that an Alberta politician inadvertently loosened his tongue long enough for the ugly truth to seep out. He basically admitted that his whiteness was an unearned advantage over equally qualified non-white, non-Christian competitors.

As a Caucasian, I have an advantage. When different community leaders such as a Sikh leader or a Muslim leader speaks they really speak to their own people in many ways. As a Caucasian, I believe that I can speak to all the community.

~Wildrose candidate Ron Leech, 2012

Had he employed more sophisticated wording, avoided naming specific ethnic communities and religions, that fiasco might have been avoided. The monochromatic mainstream media tends to notice and capitalize on overt racism, yet are blind to the subtle, yet equally noxious ways members of the dominant culture degrade the rest of us. The slick, educated, highbrow types tend to use coded language to insult minorities. Delivery makes a difference.

Post-election, strategist Warren Kinsella took to his blog to bash Toronto Mayoral hopeful Olivia Chow. He managed to slyly infer her foreign accent, her ethnic background and her gender to discredit her candidacy.

The Liberal party stalwart’s scathing review includes passages like this:

“Our last memory of her, before she ran, was the stoic, dignified, quiet widow, standing beside Jack Layton’s casket.. She was the frontrunner, at the start, because voters thought she was still the woman they remembered from Jack’s funeral. But she wasn’t. She’d changed.”

This is a perfect example of how the observer’s biases and clichés shape how they view minorities. Chow didn’t surrender to stereotypes of the silent, obedient Chinese woman. Nor should she.

In mainstream media, Asian Americans are also portrayed as poor communicators who are quiet, shy, humble, passive, non-confrontational, and speak poor English with an accent. [source]

Of all of Chow’s accomplishments — Teacher, City councillor, Member of Parliament, Cancer survivor — Kinsella assumes the only “position” that voters remember is as a quiet, dutiful widow. An accessory to her husband’s final act. Did Olivia Chow change or did she step outside the pigeonhole in which she’d been confined in the observer’s mind? For hundreds of thousands of Chow supporters, she is much more than Kinsella’s cunning reduction.

Kinsella continues:

[Olivia Chow] was hard to understand…. She didn’t speak English at home, and that is what hurt her the most, in the end: in debates, in scrums, she always sounded like she was translating something from Chinese into English.

Olivia Chow is a Torontonian who happens to be born abroad, as almost 7 million other Canadians were. Chow’s articulation belies her non-British bloodlines. So what? She counts amongst 1.8 million Torontonians who speak what Stats Can calls “an immigrant language” at home. There’s a bizarre notion that mild bilingualism is a feature for white Anglo establishment types, but it mysteriously morphs into a flaw when people of colour acquire that skill.

Canadians endowed with imported intonations are the spice which enlivens Toronto’s festivals, infuses its restaurants, and nourishes the very soul of the T-dot. It’s also a fact of life in the “world’s most multicultural city“. For all those Canadians who aren’t endowed with pure British bloodlines, Kinsella’s thinly-veiled prejudice speaks volumes.

[Olivia Chow] was dominated, easily, but the slick former radio host and the talking points machine.
She looked like what she was: an unremarkable person who struggled to communicate. Who was consistently dominated by her two main opponents. […]

Perhaps Chow couldn’t keep up with the bar brawl atmosphere which reigned at some debates. Even as racist taunts were thrown at her, Chow’s three white male opponents remained conspicuously tongue-tied. It is well documented that women face particular challenges when swimming in the political shark pool. One of the many obstacles for women is the constant bully dialogue which poisons political arena. If the men who ran alongside Olivia Chow towered over her, it is not due to her aversion to interrupt or shout back. It’s attributable to her opponents’ failure to rise to Chow’s civilized level of respectable conversation.

Kinsella’s diatribe continues:

Olivia Chow, however, never looked or sounded like a mayor.

Since all 65 of Toronto’s elected mayors have looked euro-centric and white, an observer might conclude that Chow doesn’t look the part. To many doubters, Senator Obama didn’t “look like a President,” either. Having grown so accustomed to seeing a “neutrally ethnic” prototype (one that looks like themselves), some elites set artificial restrictions on the seat of power. It isn’t hard to fathom what visuals would match Kinsella’s “ideal mayoral look.” Olivia Chow never stood a chance.

For many Canadians, reports of overt defamations and discriminatory vandalism during the Toronto municipal race were a revelation. Incredulous retorts such as “We can’t be racist. We’re multicultural” come to mind. Toronto’s thin veneer of tolerance is fleeting — punctured by high stakes.

Warren Kinsella’s is right to critique Chow’s policy ideas and/or inability to find an issue which resonates with the majority of voters. However, his post-election editorial is fraught with dog-whistle innuendo which still handicap women and minorities. It’s time we recognize that people like Olivia Chow aren’t the problem. We must rid ourselves of debilitating stereotypes that cloud our judgement.

All emphases are mine.
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The Adventures of Diva Rachel: Olivia Chow Lost Because She Doesn’t Speak English At Home — or — Why Only Whites Can Win

It wasn’t so long ago that an Alberta politician inadvertently loosened his tongue long enough for the ugly truth to seep out. He basically admitted that his whiteness was an unearned advantage over equally qualified non-white, non-Christian competitors. As a Caucasian, I have an advantage. When different community leaders such

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The Adventures of Diva Rachel: What, to the Visible Minority, is Labour Day? #CanLab #LabourDay

You wouldn’t know it from the tone of discourse today, but immigrants and foreign workers have been part of the Canadian labour force since Confederation. Then, much as now, they were necessary to ensure Canada’s economic survival. Nevertheless, 19th century immigrant workers were viewed with suspicion and contempt, assigned the most dangerous tasks and forced to work longer hours for significantly less pay than their white co-workers, whether Canadian-born or not. Chinese-Canadians are particularly sensitive to this historical blemish.

A Chinese work gang for the Great Northern Railway, circa 1909
Source: Beyond the golden mountain : Chinese cultural traditions in Canada
Ban Seng Hoe © Public Domain

STANLEY’s STATEMENT
The construction of the Intercolonial Railway was so central that it was written into the Constitution Act of 1867. As historian George Stanley wrote in The Canadians: “Bonds of steel as well as of sentiment were needed to hold the new Confederation together. Without railways there would be and could be no Canada.” And without imported Chinese labourers, there would be no railway.

In the days of yore, race rather than ability was the determining factor in wages. Thus, Chinese workers were paid half of the white man’s wages. There was no union to protect workers’ rights or to advocate for fair wages.

The burgeoning Canadian labour movement of the early 20th century held much promise for Canada’s racial minority workers. Sadly, their participation was less than welcome, their concerns discounted, and their representation within the movement limited.

THE TWO BROTHERHOODS
By the 1920s, unions had formed in the rail business, thus improving the lives of workers. Even so, the low-waged sleeping car porter jobs, exclusively reserved for black men, fell outside the union’s umbrella.

A porter was subject to humiliation by being called “Boy” or “o’George” in reference to George Pullman, who invented the sleeping car. Although many porters were educated immigrants, they cleaned toilets, changed bed linens, served food and drink to the travelling Canadian public. They worked up to 72 hour shifts, allowed to sleep as little as three hours a night — without a proper bed.

Sleeping Car Porters. source

The porters’ efforts to join the existing rail workers union (Canadian Brotherhood of Railway Transport and General Workers) were thwarted — the white man’s union wasn’t interested in growing their numbers and widening its reach if it meant including people of colour. When the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters‘ Canadian branch was finally formed in 1945, working conditions improved. So much so that, by the 1960s, white Canadians took on these once-undesirable jobs.

“Many passengers were shocked to see white porters coming on at Winnipeg to take the transcontinental trains through to Vancouver. Things began to change for the better as Canada did not have enough black men to pigeonhole anymore.”

WORKERS’ CURRENT CHALLENGES
These days, Canadian immigrants and racial minorities continue to face labour market challenges. Particularly troubling is the inexplicably high incidence of un- and under-employment among minorities. Whether they face discrimination in their job search or career progression, one would imagine these to be issues of great concern for the Canadian Labour movement. Sadly, that doesn’t appear to be the case.

The Canadian Labour Congress (CLC), an umbrella organization of unions, claims to advocate on behalf of all working people. They also aspire to develop partnerships with the community. “Our goals are simple — what we wish for ourselves we desire for all.”

That includes equality rights and a respect for basic human rights. “We believe that unions are a positive force for democratic social change — and that by working together we can improve Canada for everyone.”

PRETTY PICTURES
In the run-up to Labour Day, the CLC rolled out its “Union Advantage 2014” campaign. The campaign singled out two target demographics: young workers under 25 and women. Curiously, the release ignores the two groups most likely to encounter challenges finding employment and progressing in their careers — immigrants and visible minorities.

In its defense, the Labour movement has made strides: The federal Public Service made an effort, though unsuccessful. Canada’s largest private sector union, Unifor, as well as the CLC itself recently elected visible minorities to their top positions. CLC even plasters its website with pictures of racial minorities.



Despite mentioning neither immigrants nor racial minorities in its “Union Advantage” report, half the banner photos promoting it are of racial minority young men.


Alas, pretty pictures of diversity are almost as effective as ghost “Action Plans.”

One of the few research papers that examined immigrant and racial minority representation among Canadian unions singled out the labour organisations themselves as a possible cause for the poor outcome.

“The precise fraction of visible ethnic minorities was unknown in all the unions. Two unions estimated it in the range of 15 to 25 percent…Unions that have yet to implement policies and programs to increase minority participation and to improve the status of visible minorities within their unions have all generated action plans to achieve this goal.”
source: Immigration, Race, and Labor: Unionization and Wages in the Canadian Labor Market (2004)

Despite assurances made to the researchers, none of the major Canadian labour unions today publicly disclose stats on visible minority representation within their ranks. CLC makes no mention of labour market challenges facing immigrants and racial minorities in its annual report, let alone its effort at addressing diversity deficits both internally and among its affiliated organizations.

While stats from the unions themselves aren’t available, a look at the think tanks they’re affiliated with illustrates the demographic disconnect. The Broadbent Institute boasts zero racial minorities on either its Boards of Directors or among its staff. Ditto for the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives‘ national office staff. Even their national conferences are glaringly monochromatic.

Every Labour Day, Canadians are called upon to “thank a union” for their good fortune. Regrettably, with perennial under-representation of minorities and their legitimate grievances, the Labour Movement gives Canada’s racial minorities little to be thankful for.

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The Adventures of Diva Rachel: The Habs and the Have-Nots: Why Subban Should Leave Canada

Published in the HuffPo here.

There was a time when Montrealers could overlook superficial and linguistic differences to rally around a groundbreaking sporting prodigy. Despite being Black, Anglophone and a foreigner, Jackie Robinson was, by all accounts, welcomed in Canada’s then-largest city in 1946. Robinson played a single season with the Brooklyn Dodgers‘ farm team in La Métropole. He led The Montreal Royals to the Little World Series. More importantly, Robinson proved that there could be a willing white audience for a racially integrated baseball team. It was a stepping stone towards the MLB, where Robinson would break the colour line. The first African-American MLB player faced angry, intolerant crowds and colleagues alike.

 But not in Canada.

 In fact, it was quite the opposite. “I experienced no racism here. […] The French-Canadian people welcomed us with open arms,” said Robinson.

It’s been documented that the Montreal fans would pay close attention to any ear-to-the-ground or press reports of racism or mistreatment Robinson and the Royals received when playing on the road. Fans of the Royals would voice their displeasure when that city’s team visited Delorimier Stadium. [source: CBC]


 That was then. This is now.

There’s another Black, Anglophone sports prodigy in Montreal these days. P.K. Subban has electrified audiences, opened up a new stream of hockey fans, and brought the Montreal Canadians to contention in the playoffs.
But the Habs aren’t bending over backwards to sign a Norris-trophy alum. In a familiar refrain, the Subbanator has the talent on which a winning team can be built for years to come, but, as Quebec sport writer Jeremy Filosa put it in 2013, there’s a physical trait that can’t be overlooked:

“Voilà que le Tricolore se retrouve aujourd’hui avec, dans ses rangs, peut-être le meilleur défenseur de la planète et il est noir. Pas un peu noir, il est très noir…”


 Liberal translation:

“Now the Habs find themselves with, in their ranks, perhaps the best defenceman in the planet and he is black. Not just a little bit black, he is very dark-skinned black…”


 And PK’s pigmentation has drawn the ire of many, though most, like Don Cherry, are apt at masking their racial anxiety behind Tea Party-like euphemisms and innuendo.

PK Subban has been chided and disrespected throughout his professional career: from the blackface-donning fans, to bigot dismissive coaches, and even teammates have called him out in public. The graceful player has suffered in silence, thus co-opting the NHL’s steadfast refusal to take any meaningful action on the league’s interminable racial inquietude.



Broadcaster and Hockey Night In Canada co-host Kevin Weekes took to twitter to express his frustration on Subban’s dragging contract negotiations.

The mere fact that a player/person of his calibre has to be in this contract with the @CanadiensMTL when he’s proven so much is despicable.
— Kevin Weekes (@KevinWeekes) July 30, 2014


Weekes, who was a professional hockey player and shares Subban’s Caribbean extraction, believes there is trickery behind the scenes.

@BostonBruins28 Point being.In spite of the accomplishments,they keep moving the goal line.Not to mention icetime,PP,benchings,etc.
— Kevin Weekes (@KevinWeekes) July 30, 2014

FACING THE FACTS
Montreal is not the place where an ebony player like Subban can thrive. In a town where blackface is still considered acceptable – even on the public broadcaster’s airwaves, a dark-skinned prodigy in the “white man’s game” just can’t get the respect nor the remuneration he’s earned.


Subban has the pedigree, the poise, and the personality to be a transcending figure à la Michael Jordan. He speaks proper English. He comes from a picture-perfect traditional family. He’s never been in trouble with the law. A marketing dream… in the U.S.A. If the NHL played its cards right, Subban’s forthcoming success could cement hockey’s popularity among its least-represented groups, thus springboard towards a new generation of diverse players and fans.

FLYING THE COOP
The social experiment of a hockey prodigy with dark chocolate skin in Canada has lasted long enough. Montreal is no longer the bastion on racial progress it once was. PK Subban should thank the Habs for the stepping stone years and move on to more culturally mature and inclusive locales.

Los Angeles was the first city to welcome a black NFL player in 1946. California’s franchises have taken pride in seeking out talent from non-traditional sources, shoring up support from both the Asians and Latino communities. New York hosted the first black NBA player in the 50s and the city continues to set the trend for the rest of the nation. 


Both U.S. coasts would serve as ideal launch pads for the second phase of Subban’s career. They can promise something Montreal can‘t —  unencumbered race-transcending support.
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The Adventures of Diva Rachel: The Home of the Habs: For Whites Only?

This blogpost was published in the HuffPost under the title:

This Canadian Stood Up to Racism Before Rosa Parks

The Hobby Lobby case rules that Corporations can impose their restrictive values on others. What if the corporation is racist?

As a Verdun resident, Fred Christie follows the Habs, as do a legion of other Quebeckers. The Montrealer is even a proud season-ticket holder.

Accompanied by two friends, Mr. Christie enters the tavern at the Canadiens‘ hockey area, plunks down some cash and orders a few beers. The bartender refuses to serve him. The assistant manager then explains to his would-be customers that the establishment extends no courtesy to Negroes.

It is 1936. July 11th 1936.

The protagonist had resided in the Métropole for over 20 years. Mr. Christie converted to the cult of ice hockey even if the NHL then bars all coloured players. Although Mr. Christie, a Jamaican immigrant, integrated himself into Canadian culture and acclimatized himself to his adopted country, he was not treated like other customers.

2014-07-11-We_serve_whites_only

Long before Canada’s “multiculturalism mantra,” this was an everyday scenario played out in Toronto, Calgary, Nova Scotia… just about everywhere in the Great “White” North. Aboriginals, Asians and Africans-descendants suffered overt discrimination at will.

During the hostility at le Forum de Montréal‘s tavern, Mr. Christie tried to explain to the Manager that this race-based rule was unfair. His pleas fell on deaf ears. Mr. Christie then called the police. They only served to add insult to injury. Humiliated, Fred and his friends left the tavern thirst unquenched and empty-handed. Like most Afro-Canadians in Montreal, Mr. Christie knew which shops and theatres avoid, which jobs were denied to him, and which neighbourhoods were forbidden to “Negroes”. After all, the city was then a sanctum of segregation. But, for the man who felt at home in the Temple du Hockey, the tavern’s racist rule was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Fred Christie filed a discrimination case against the York corporation to court. Despite registering multiple setbacks, Christie’s case went all the way to the Supreme Court.

On December 9 1939, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) rendered its final decision.

It ruled that the general principle of the law in Québec is complete freedom of business. As long as a merchant did not break the law, he or she was free to refuse any member of the public on any grounds.

2014-07-11-WhiteTradeOnlyLancasterOhio.jpg

The Court proceeded to blame Christie for his own misfortune:

«The respondent was merely protecting its business interests.

It appears from the evidence that, in refusing to sell beer to the appellant [Mr. Christie], the respondent’s employees did so quietly, politely and without causing any scene or commotion whatever. If any notice was attracted to the appellant on the occasion in question, it arose out of the fact that the appellant persisted in demanding beer after he had been so refused and went to the length of calling the police, which was entirely unwarranted by the circumstances.» ~Justice Rinfret

Decidedly, the SCC ratified the “no service for coloureds” doctrine as being in line with the moral standards of the day.

In the social context of Canada before the Quiet Revolution (1950’s), before Viola Desmond’s act of defiance (1946), before Rosa Parks triggered the United States’ Civil Rights Movement (1955), Fred Christie stood up to institutional discrimination.

A decade before the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1947), Fred Christie exhibited unimaginable courage and perseverance in asserting his civil rights. Though the judicial process did not deliver the desired result, Fred Christie remains a key instigator in Canada’s journey towards the establishment of universal rights. As Aboriginals, Francophones and elderly people of colour know, the Canadian justice has not always been kind to minorities. Fred Christie paved the way for us all.

Four years after the SCC’s shameful ruling, Ontario heralded a new anti-discrimination era with its 1944 “Racial Discrimination Act”. And sometimes anti-racism laws were even enforced! The jurisprudence would spread from coast to coast.

Fred Christie died enclosed in obscurity. He received no honours befitting of his buoyant bravery — in life or in death.

It’s about time, is not it?

This blog originally appeared in French on the Huffington Post Québec.
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