NEW BRUNSWICK Social Studies Methods

Introduction:

Elsa Gidlow, originally from Montreal, was an influential poet and writer, also known as a woman “poet-warrior” (Istar Lev 2015). She created the first LGBT publication in Canadian history, Les Mouches Fantastiques that was launched in 1918. With the help of the journalist Roswell George Mills, the publication had been described as an underground magazine, highlighting poetry written by Gildow, politics and gender identity, “…a large component of both the poetry and the politics was an argument for the acceptance of homosexuals” (Hamish 2009). Gidlow, a member of the LGBT community, grew up in a conservative household where sex was taboo, and explained that Mills had opened her eyes to a new outlook on sexuality and poetry. Les Mouches Fantastiques also known as The Fantastic Files, was not widely available outside of Montreal, as Gidlow and Mills moved to New York City in 1920. One copy of the magazine is kept within the Quebec Gay Archives, that will forever mark the first LGBT-based publication introduced in Canada. Overall, the accounts from the LGBT community have been absent within education curriculum, eliminating their stories and voices from historical narrative. Specifically, in the context of Canada, it is important to share queer history in schools, by focusing on both resistance and successes. In the writings of Tom Warner on queer activism in Canada, he states:

Fed up, they decided to take control of their own destinies despite many obstacles. They dared to confront attitudes and deeds that had led to marginalization and social oppression. Individually and as organized communities, they fought back, coming out of the closet, noisily and defiantly, demanding to be both seen and heard, and revelling in their new visibility.” (2002, p.7)

Biography:

Katie Nowell is a student enrolled in the Bachelor of Education program at the University of New Brunswick, originally from Truro, Nova Scotia. She has completed a Bachelor of Arts undergraduate degree from UNB in Fredericton, majoring in Sociology with a minor in French. Inspired by Dusty Green’s presentation in her Social Studies class, she has set off to discover more information about LGBT history in both New Brunswick and Canada overall.

Further Reading:

1. Gidlow, E. (1986). I Come With My Songs: The Autobiography of Elsa Gidlow. San Francisco: Druid Heights Press. 

2. Warner, T. (2002). Never Going Back: A History of Queer Activism in Canada. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division.

3. Wolf, S. (2009). Sexuality and Socialism: History, Politics, and Theory of LGBT Liberation. Chicago, IL: Haymarket.

Notes: 1) Image of Elsa Gidlow was retrieved from Marin Nostalgia (http://www.marinnostalgia.org/portfolio/druid-heights/)

References

Hamish (2009, November 30). Elsa Gidlow. The Drummer’s Revenge: LGBT history and politics

in Canada. Retrieved from: https://thedrummersrevenge.wordpress.com/2009/11/30/elsa-gidlow/

Istar Lev, A. (2015). Gidlow, Elsa (1898-1986). glbtq, Inc. Retrieved from: http://www.glbtqarchive.com/literature/gidlow_e_L.pdf

Lyons, M. (2015, February 22). Canada’s first gay publication. Retrieved from:  https://www.dailyxtra.com/canadas-first-gay-publication-66372

Shanawdithit was the last living member of the Beothuk people of what is now known as Newfoundland. The Beothuk population was quickly dwindling due to European disease, settler violence, and restricted access to the sea, which was their food source.   Born in 1801, Shanawdithit experienced first-hand the effects that white settler colonialism had on the Beothuks.  In 1823, Shanawdithit, along with her mother and sister, was taken to St. John’s by several trappers.  It was here that her mother and sister died of tuberculosis, leaving Shanawdithit as the last of her people.  Shanawdithit worked as a servant in an English household and later lived with William Eppes Cormack, who founded the Beothuk Institution.  It was here that Shanawdithit created drawings and told stories of her nearly extinct people.  Prior to this, accounts of the Beothuk were only told through a white settler lens. Shanawdithit was a voice for a people group lost at the hand of settler colonialism and was recognized as a National Historic Person in 2000. The color red ochre was used in the painting to reference the Beothuk’s use of red ochre paint as traditional body paint. This color was used as a part of Beothuk identity and was applied to newborns to welcome them into the world or stripped from individuals as a form of punishment.

Biography: Rebekah Heppner, after completing her undergraduate degree at the University of Manitoba with a double major in history and psychology, moved to Fredericton, New Brunswick and is currently completing a Bachelor of Education degree.

Further Reading:

http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/shawnadithit-last-of-the-beothuk-feature/

http://www.heritage.nf.ca/articles/aboriginal/beothuk-disappearance.php

To see Shanawdithit’s drawings: https://www.mun.ca/rels/native/beothuk/beo2gifs/texts/shana2.html

The Komagata Maru: Canada, 1914

Introduction: In 1914, a ship named the Komagata Maru set sail from Punjab, India journeying to Canada. In total, there were 376 males passengers on board; 340 Sikhs, 24 Muslims, and 12 Hindus. All of the passengers were traveling to Canada in hopes of gaining Canadian citizenship (Schwinghamer, 2016), but to also challenge Canada’s xenophobic views. Nevertheless, prominent xenophobic mentalities and government policies within Canada lead to the refusal of the passengers to enter the boarders under 2 specific immigration policies (2016). First, Canada practiced the “Continuous Journey” regulation which forced newcomers to travel directly from their place of citizenship to Canada, or they would be denied entry. However, this was impossible for travelers departing from India because direct passage was not an option by boat (Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21, 2018). Second, Canada required passengers to pay a landing fee; however, this fee was typically $25, but Canadian border officials altered this price to $200 for each passenger of the Komagata Maru ship to pay (2016). The Komagata Maru ship’s passengers were forced to live aboard the ship for 2 months while these regulations were negotiated. In the end, only 24 passengers were given permission to remain in the country. The other 352 passengers were guided from Canadian waters, escorted by a war ship, and forced to return to Asia. When the ship arrived in India, the British killed 19 of the passengers, and the remaining men were imprisoned (The National, 2014).

This event, in addition to the similar occurrences that took place before and after in Canada (the Panama Maru), demonstrates a xenophobic mentality that governed Canada and their government policies. This history and the prominent mentalities that existed then, still impact government regulations and mentalities presently in Canada in regards to racialized immigrants.  Xenophobia is Canada’s past, but it remains as Canada’s present.

Biography: Shoba Gunaseelan is a student in the Bachelor of Education program at the University of New Brunswick. She is interested in Canada’s history in relation to race and immigration, and how this past narrative impacts present Canada.

Further Reading:

1. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21. (2018). Continuous Journey Regulations, 1908. Retrieved from https://www.pier21.ca/research/immigration-history/continuous-journey-regulation-1908

2. Schwinghamer, S. (May 19, 2016). Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21:

Komagata Maru. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7xn8EOcUtU

3. The National. (May 22, 2014). Remembering the Komagata Maru. Retrieved from

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhr1Ucr7qlc

4. Kazimi, A. (Producer). (2004). Continuous Journey [Motion Picture]. Canada: TVOntario

Introduction: Since the horrific experiences that occurred on June 11th and 20th, 1981, the effects still resonate amongst the Mi’gmaq people of Restigouche Reserve in Quebec, known as Listuguj. The fisheries officers and Quebec Provincial Police (QPP) raided Restigouche Reserve and arrested several Mi’gmaq residents as an attack to put an end to all salmon fishing in the Restigouche River. Traditionally, salmon has been a valuable source of food and income for the Mi’gmaq people, and now they were being stripped of their fishing rights by hundreds of armed officers (Listuguj Mi’gmaq Government, n.d.). The officers blocked off the bridge that connects Listuguj to the neighbouring city of Campbellton, NB, used tear gas, and seized fishing boats and fishing nets from the Mi’gmaq people (Canadian History, n.d.).

There are still residents living in Listuguj today that were present for the “Incident at Restigouche” when their community was raided by provincial police. Rene Martin and his partner Joyce Metallic recall the frightful occurrences of 1981 as they were returning from Campbellton with their two children:

“I had my second one in my arms. I remember him pointing a gun at us,” said Metallic. “He pointed the gun and he said, ‘turn around, or I’ll shoot.’”

“People were just standing around doing nothing,” Martin said. “These cops were marching back and forth. Then, once and a while they’d point a finger … and they’d go after somebody” (Staff, 2015).

The events of this Restigouche Raid left the Mi’gmaq people infuriated with the restriction of salmon fishing by the province (Listuguj Mi’gmaq Government, n.d.). Understandably so, since fishing was an innate part of their culture and heritage. In retaliation, residents of Restigouche blocked off roads leading to their reserve to keep the officers out (Canadian History, n.d.). Largely as a result of the efforts of Donald J. Marshall Jr., a Mi’gmaq from the Membertou First Nations, fishing rights were regained by the Mi’gmaq people in Listuguj, allowing them to continue their long-held tradition. He took it upon himself to defend the inherited rights of Aboriginals following being charged with fishing without a license, selling eels without a license, and fishing during the off-season (Listuguj Mi’gmaq Government, n.d.). Alanis Obomsawin has documented an impactful film called “Incident at Restigouche” that gives insight into what transpired and accurately depicts the mistreatment of the Mi’gmaq people living in Listuguj and the restraint they were forced to conform to (Canada, N. F., 1984).

Biography: Michael Methot is a student in the faculty of education at the University of New Brunswick. He is currently an aspiring elementary school teacher with an aim of inspiring today’s youth to seek justice and coexistence in the world.

Further Reading:

1. Canada, N. F. (1984). Incident at Restigouche. Retrieved from https://www.nfb.ca/film/incident_at_restigouche/.

2. Canadian History. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://canadianhistory.ca/index.php/natives/timeline/1980s/1981-the-restigouche-blockade.

3. Listuguj Mi’gmaq Government. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.listugujfisheries.com/content/history.

4. Staff. (2015). Arrested in 1981. Retrieved from http://news.listuguj.ca/2015/06/22/arrested-in-1981/.

Notes:

1) Image of Donald Marshall Jr. fishing, courtesy of Mi’gmaq News 1991, was retrieved from: https://smallscales.ca/2013/04/05/mlf/.

2) Image of troop of Quebec Provincial Police (QPP) raiding Restigouche Reserve was retrieved from: https://boxoffice.hotdocs.ca/images/user/hdff_2315/2016/Incident_at_Restigouche_1.jpg.

3) Image of Mi’gmaq man being arrested for fishing by two Quebec police officers was retrieved from: http://www.isuma.tv/sites/default/files/pictures/incident.jpg.

Introduction: On July 26, 2017 President Donald Trump tweeted stating that he was taking action to ban transgender people from the American military despite having the ban lifted by former President Barack Obama (Lubold, 2017). As a result, many individuals were quick to respond to Trump on Twitter by patriotically boasting about Canada’s acceptance for LGBTQ+ peoples. Some tweets include:

“This week president Trump banned transgender people from serving their country. Today, Canada’s Chief of the Defense Staff marched in Pride” (@FuzzyWuzzyTO, August 27, 2017)

“The week when Trump officially institutes transgender ban in military, Canada will roll out gender-neutral passports” (@vfung, August 26, 2017)

“Canada leads while USA moves backwards. Canadian forces aim to improve transgender policy as Trump reinstates ban” (@KristopherWells, July 26, 2017)

Despite the great gains that Canada has made in accepting and celebrating LGBTQ+ individuals both inside and outside of the militarily, the reality is that Canada was not always an inclusive environment, and a recognition of this history is important. In fact, before 1992, thousands of LGBTQ+ Canadian military personnel were discharged as they were considered to be a threat to national security (CBC News, 2017). Not only were these individuals stripped of their livelihoods and unrecognized for their service, but the mistreatment of these individuals had impacts “...on their short – and long – term physical, psychological, and social health” (Poulin, Gouliquer, & Moore, 2009, p. 498).  This mistreatment included forcing individuals to watch pornographic videos to test if their pupils dilated when looking at the same gender and forcing them to undergo polygraph tests. This was happening up until 1992 despite the fact that homosexuality had been decriminalized in 1969 (CBC News, 2017).

Although Canada may be working on inclusive gender policies and may have political leaders marching in pride parades, the past will not change. So, before Canadians boast on their acceptance, they must recognize their past to move forward with support, education, and reconciliation.

Biography: Hannah Fournier is a current student in the University of New Brunswick’s Bachelor of Education Program. She also completed her first degree in Leadership Studies at the University of New Brunswick where she had the opportunity to intern at Twitti Primary School in Zambia. 

Further Reading:

1. CBC News. (2017). Trudeau is apologizing to LGBT civil servants: Here’s why. CBC News. Retrieved from http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/trudeau-apology-lgbt-civil-servants-military-fired-discrimination-1.4421601

2. FuzzyWuzzyTO. (2017, August 27). This week president Trump banned transgender people from serving their country. Today, Canada’s Chief of the Defense Staff marched in Pride. [Tweet]. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/FuzzyWuzzyTO/status/901905114545491968

3. KristopherWells. (2017, July 26). Canada leads while USA moves backwards. Canadian forces aim to improve transgender policy as Trump reinstates ban [Tweet]. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/KristopherWells/status/890395832159133696

4. Lubold, G. (2017). Trump sets military transgender ban. The Wall Street Journal.  

5. Poulin, C., Gouliquer, L., & Moore, J. (2009). Discharged for Homosexuality from the Canadian Military: Health Implications for Lesbians. Feminism & Psychology, 19(4) 496-516.

6. Vfung. (2017, August 26). The week when Trump officially institutes transgender ban in military, Canada will roll out gender-neutral passports [Tweet]. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/vfung/status/901519844201332736

Note: The image of Donald Trump was retrieved from http://thehill.com/people/donald-trump

Introduction

Camp B70 is an internment camp located in Minto, NB approximately 30 miles from Fredericton New Brunswick.  711 men and boys were forced to go to this camp, because Canada was afraid. From 1940-1945 the Canadian government forced Jewish men to live at B70 because they thought there may be spies among the Jewish people who moved to Canada.  Innocent men were imprisoned for no reason other than fear. 

The internees were housed in army barracks and spent their days cutting the 2,500 cords of wood required each year to keep the 100 wood stoves in the camp burning. They wore denim pants with a red stripe on the leg, and denim jackets with a large red circle on the back. There were six machine-gun towers positioned around the perimeter of the camp (MyNB, 2014).

One man, who was only 16 years old at the time stated that “the reason they had a red circle on the back of their jackets was so they could identify you if you ran away, and that it also made it really easy for them to shoot you” (Kauffman, 2013).

This part of New Brunswick is very rarely spoken about.  In fact, very few people know that this terrible event occurred.

Biography: Colleen Daly is a student at the University of New Brunswick completing her Bachelors of Education, specifically in elementary.  She completed her undergrad in Kinesiology while also being a member of the women’s basketball team at UNB.  Born and raised in Hamilton, Ontario, Colleen expresses a strong interest in educating her students on past events that have occurred, so that history does not repeat itself.

For more information on New Brunswick’s Internment Camp:

http://www.nbinternmentcampmuseum.ca

https://atlantic.ctvnews.ca/remnants-of-second-world-war-internment-camp-remain- in-rural-n-b-1.1520496

References

http://www.nbinternmentcampmuseum.ca

About the Poster
In the months leading up to WWII, circumstances for Austrian Jews became increasingly dangerous, and 10,000 men and boys were moved to Britain in the Kindertransport effort. Former Prime Minister Winston Churchill became suspicious that there may be spies in the refugees, and sent some to Canada and Australia to be housed in internment camps.
Canada received 700 men and boys who lived at the camp for a year, spending their time chopping chords of wood to keep the 100 wood stoves burning year round. Around the camp’s 22 hectare property were six machine gun towers and 350 armed guards. Prisoners wore denim marked with a red stripe down the pants and a large red circle on the back of the jacket. 10 people died during that year, and in recent years 10 wooden carvings resembling human faces were affixed to trees along a path through the camp site.

Ripples internment camp was closed in 1941 when Sir Winston Churchill realized the detainees could help in the war, and offered a choice of returning to England to join the military or to find a sponsor to remain in Canada. It was only closed for a few weeks in preparation to become a prisoner of war camp, housing German and Italian merchant marines, as well as Canadian citizens who spoke out against the war. This is a little known part of Canadian history, and two significant stories are uncovered here: the first being that Canada basically imprisoned jews during WWII under British orders, and second that Canada imprisoned its own citizens for being against the war. This paints Canada in a very different light than the traditional conceptualized Canada that is taught in schools.

About the Artist:
Travis MacLean is currently enrolled in the elementary stream of the BEd program at the University of New Brunswick. He studied Kinesiology at Dalhousie University from 2007-12 and then worked as a Personal Fitness Trainer for 3 years before travelling to South Korea to teach English for one year and returning to the maritimes to pursue education.
 

Additional Readings:
https://mynewbrunswick.ca/internment-camp-b70/

http://www.metronews.ca/news/canada/2013/08/03/internment-camp-little-known-in-new-brunswick.html

http://www.nbinternmentcampmuseum.ca/

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/170785

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/08/03/welcome-to-internment-cam_n_3699703.html

In April, 1916, the Black community of Saint John became embroiled in the first human rights protest to occur within the province. Just a few years after the start of the first World War, the film “A Birth of a Nation” was being shown all over the United states, and was generating nationwide controversy. The plot of the film was built around two
families who found themselves on opposite sides of the American Civil War, and the reconstruction period following the conflict. The film was based on Thomas Dixon’s book and play The Clansman, and portrayed the Ku Klux Klan as heroic actors, while Black, Southern Americans were stereotyped and demeaned throughout the film (NBBHS, 2018).

The film was slated to be shown at the Saint John Opera House Theatre in early 1916, and, starting in March of that year, the Black community in Saint John began protests against the showing of the film (NBBHS). At the head of the protest movement was Reverend J. Harrison Franklin (Thelostvalley.blogspot.ca, 2018). The protests began with raising awareness of the film and it’s anti-Black portrayals at St. Paul’s
African Methodist Episcopal Church at the corner of Pitt Street and Queen Street.

Franklin also wrote letters of protest to local newspapers, afterwards raising funds by appealing to the Evangelical Alliance, using them to purchase the services of attorney J. A. Barry. Together, they met with the mayor of Saint John and “political appointees on the Board of Censors” (Thelostvalley.blogspot.ca, 2018). In his meetings, Franklin
raised several arguments, including the damage that would be caused to relations between Whites and Blacks. In response to the protest, the Censor Board agreed to view the film another time, along with Franklin, Barry, and Attorney General J. B. M Baxter. Despite these efforts, the film was shown in early to mid 1916.

Biography Hendrik Vlaar is a pre-service teacher at the University of New Brunswick.

References
New Brunswick Black History Society. (2018). Historical Sites. [online] Available at: https://www.nbblackhistorysociety.org/historical-sites.html [Accessed 16 Feb. 2018].

Thelostvalley.blogspot.ca. (2018). THE BIRTH OF A NATION - D. W. Griffith's epic was a morale booster in wartime Canada. [online] Available at: http://thelostvalley.blogspot.ca/2016/09/the-birth-of-nation-d-w-griffiths-epic.html  [Accessed 16 Feb. 2018].

Remember Resist Redraw Poster - Black Loyalists - The Story of Thomas Peters

Thomas Peters was born into a wealthy family in Nigeria but as a young man he was captured and taken to North Carolina where he was forced into slavery. In 1775, a proclamation declared that Black Loyalists who fought for the British during the American Revolutionary War and were owned by rebels would be granted freedom post-war. Thomas Peters escaped and joined the Black Loyalists. After the war, the British evacuated Thomas Peters to Nova Scotia along with many other Black Loyalists. The British did not follow through on their promises of land, provisions and freedoms to many of the Black Loyalists and Thomas Peters petitioned on their behalf for 6 years. As an advocate for the Black Loyalists, living in Saint John, Peters raised funds to go to England to meet with the King but ended up meeting with men from the Sierra Leone company that had been formed to resettle ex-slaves to West Africa. He arranged for himself and many other Black Loyalists free transportation to West Africa where they hoped for a better life and fair treatment. In 1792, almost 1200 Black Loyalists were transported from Halifax to West Africa where they founded Freetown. Although Thomas Peters passed away from the fever shortly after the arrival; he is regarded as a leader, pioneer and one of the founding fathers of Sierra Leone.

About the Author: Robin Buckley is a BEd student at the University of New Brunswick specializing in Elementary Education. She was born and raised in the Saint John area and never heard about the Black Loyalists until researching for this poster.

Resources used to write this article and make the poster for further reading:

http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/peters_thomas_4E.html

http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/thomas-peters/

http://blackloyalist.com/cdc/people/secular/peters.htm

Introduction: 1921 was the year in which The Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children opened its doors to African Nova Scotian children who no longer had a home to call their own. While there were many orphanages available in the province for white children in need of care at the time, black children were not afforded the same opportunities. For this reason, the seemingly segregated Home was created out of necessity, not regarding itself as “separate but equal”, but rather “separate or nothing” (Saunders, 1994). While the intentions in the formation of the Home were considered respectable at the time, the legacy of the orphanage that existed well into the 1980s is one of physical, psychological, and sexual abuse (The Canadian Press, 2014), a legacy which is echoed in a province recognized for its history of systemic and institutionalized racism (Bundale, 2018). In 2014, a $34 million class action lawsuit was settled between the province of Nova Scotia and the survivors of the abuse that existed in the Home, drawing an end to a legal battle that lasted for 15 years (The Canadian Press, 2014). In light of this settlement, Nova Scotia premier Stephen McNeil issued an apology to all former residents of the Home, declaring "It is one of the great tragedies in our province's history that your cries for help were greeted with silence for so long... Some of you had said that you felt invisible. Well I want to say to you today you are invisible no longer. We hear your voices and we grieve your pain and we are sorry” (Doucette, 2014).

A Restorative Inquiry has since been launched by the government in conjunction with former residents of the Home in the effort to not only understand what events transpired in the Home, but why they occurred and why this is important for every Nova Scotian and Canadian to recognize. The inquiry is restorative in nature as it promotes a community of healing through sharing circles in which every former resident’s voice is heard and valued. It looks to address the past in order to create purposeful change for the future in the province (Restorative Inquiry, 2018). As the report states, "Understanding and addressing historic and ongoing impacts of systemic racism on African Nova Scotians, while necessarily rooted in both past and present experiences, is a critical lens necessary to create meaningful change for the future” (Restorative Inquiry, 2018).

Biography: Kennedy Graham is a current Bachelor of Education candidate at the University of New Brunswick, and recognizes that she lives and studies on unceded and un-surrendered Wolastoqiyik territory. She has recently graduated with her Bachelor of Science with a major in biology and a minor in psychology from Memorial University of Newfoundland. She is very concerned with promoting positive social and environmental change in the future generations of students that will enter her classroom.

Further Reading:

1. Bundale, B. (2018, January). New report challenges Nova Scotia to confront systemic racism. CTV News Atlantic. Retrieved from: https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/new-report-challenges-nova-scotia-to-confront-systemic-racism-1 .3756604

2. The Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children. (n.d.). Retrieved February 12, 2018, from https://restorativeinquiry.ca/

3. Saunders, C. R. (1994). Share & Care: The Story of the Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Publishing.

Bibliography:

Bundale, B. (2018, January). New report challenges Nova Scotia to confront systemic racism. CTV News Atlantic. Retrieved from: https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/new-report-challenges-nova-scotia-to-confront-systemic-racism-1.3756604

The Canadian Press. (2014, July). Survivors of alleged abuse at orphanage win settlement. Macleans. Retrieved from: http://www.macleans.ca/news/need-to-know/survivors-of-alleged-abuse-at-halifax-orphanage-win-major-settlement/  

Doucette, K. (2014, October). Premier Apologizes for Abuse at Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children. CTV News Atlantic. Retrieved from: atlantic.ctvnews.ca/premier-apologizes-for-abuse-at-nova-scotia-home-for-colored-children-1.204 8496.

Gorman, M., MacIntyre, E. (2015, June). ‘A long journey’ to Colored Home inquiry. The Chronicle Herald. Retrieved from: http://thechronicleherald.ca/metro/1292776-%E2%80%98a-long-journey%E2%80%99-to-colored- home-inquiry

The Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children. (n.d.). Retrieved February 12, 2018, from https://restorativeinquiry.ca/  

Saunders, C. R. (1994). Share & Care: The Story of the Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Publishing.

The topic I chose is New Brunswick Colonialism. Specifically, I looked at Wolastoqiyik (Maliseet) Communities from the past and from the present.

There is evidence that shows human beings lived in the maritime provinces of Canada for over 10,000 years. However, European and other settlers have only been here for approximately 500 years. This means, that the Eurocentric culture has only been in, what is now Canada, for less than 5% of its existence.  Prior to this colonization, Wolastoqiyik and their allies Mi’kmaq (East) and Passamaquoddy and Penobscot (West) were the only people who inhabited the area. During this time, Wolastoqiyik were hunters and fishers. They relied heavily on nature to survive. They lived in wigwams in walled villages and only used natural products (wood, stone, etc.) to build and make tools. The main language spoken was the Wolastoqiyik language- which is also referred to as Maliseet.

However, in the 1700’s and 1800’s when Settlers moved over, everything changed. The colonial government created what are called reserves where Aboriginal individuals lived. In New Brunswick, there are only 15 reserves. European and other countries began to take over Wolastoqiyik land, leaving Wolastoqiyik with minimal left. This affected their lives majorly.

My poster outlines the areas that Wolastoqiyik (Maliseet) and Mi’kmaq people currently reside. It represents their past freedom and the current prejudice they face today. According to a 2017 statistic, there are approximately 16,123 First Nations living in New Brunswick. Out of those, 9,732 live on reserve and 6,391 live off reserve (GNB).

Biography: Mackenzie Albert is a University of New Brunswick student completing her Bachelor of Education specializing in the Elementary stream. She previously completed her Bachelor of Arts with a major in Psychology at UNB. She was born and raised in Moncton, New Brunswick, but moved to Fredericton five years ago to pursue her education.

Additional Resources: Some resources that are available for further information include:

· http://genealogyfirst.ca/first-nations

Notes:

· Information and Photo Retrieved from Government of New Brunswick: http://www2.gnb.ca/content/gnb/en/departments/aboriginal_affairs.html

· Information Retrieved From: http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/maliseet

Introduction:

Over 3000 Status Indians, including 72 women, voluntarily enlisted in World War II. This number would no doubt increase if the figures included Inuit, Métis, and other Indigenous people. 200 of the identified Indigenous soldiers had died in service and there were at least 17 decorations for bravery in action rewarded (Veteran Affairs Canada, n.d.; Francis, Jones, Smith, & Wardhaugh, 2012, pp. 356-357). Furthermore, back at home, Indigenous Peoples helped out significantly by giving monetarily. It added up by the end to a contribution of more than $23,000 coming from Native bands and an additional unknown amount given to the Red Cross, the British War Victims Fund, the Salvation Army and other charities involved in the war effort (CBC news online, 2006).

While they were serving, the overall sentiment from Indigenous soldiers were that they were treated as equals. Charles Bird exclaimed “‘no such thing as discrimination… Everybody is a brother to you that’s the way it was”’ (Lackenbauer, Moses, Sheffield & Gohier, n.d. p.154). However, as Howard Anderson said from Punnichy, Saskatchewan: “‘it was the coming back that was the hard part. That’s where the problem was. We could never be the same yet we were the same in the Army. When [we came back we] were different’” (Lackenbauer et al., n.d., p.154).

When the soldiers returned, they were not offered the same gratitude or given the same benefits as other veterans. Rather, the Status-Indian population experienced even greater oppression. There was $6,000 in Veteran Land Act Loans that Status Indian veterans were not able to obtain. Those on reserves were given grants to use towards their farms, but selling and making a living off of their farms was made very difficult by systemic factors. They also could not access the same services as other veterans such as information, benefits, and counselling because of confusing bureaucracy. There were three federal bureaucracies in overlapping jurisdictions to navigate, whereas other veterans had direct counselling from Veteran Affairs agents (Lackenbauer et al., n.d., pp. 154-155).

In addition, there were many arbitrary wartime measures that took place involving Indigenous People: seizure of reserve lands, moving of populations of reserves, and revisions of band memberships. Lastly, they continued to be wards of the state and were denied the right to vote (Francis et al, 2012, p. 357). Overall, Indigenous veterans wanted to be acknowledge for their voluntary contributions and were very proud of their volunteerism. However, the war years created more oppression and demoralized Indigenous People in a profound way.

Biography:

Sarah DeMerchant is a pre-service teacher at the University of New Brunswick. She is working towards a specialization in exceptionalities and has a strong interest in contributing to the field of inclusive education.

Further Reading:

In Depth Aboriginal Canadians: Aboriginals and the Canadian Military. (2006, June 21). Retrieved from http://www.cbc.ca/news2/background/aboriginals/aboriginals-military.html

Francis, R. D., Jones, R., Smith, D. B., & Wardhaugh, R. A. (2012). Destinies: Canadian history since confederation (7th ed.). Toronto, ON: Nelson Education Ltd.

Lackenbauer, P.W., Moses, J., Sheffield, R.S., & Gohier, M. (n.d.). A commemorative history of Aboriginal People in the Canadian military.  National Defence, Art Direction. Retrieved from http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/pub/boo-bro/abo-aut/chapter-chapitre-05-eng.asp

Veterans Affairs Canada. (n.d.). Indigenous People in the Second World War. Retrieved from http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/history/historical-sheets/aborigin

Veterans Affairs Canada. (n.d.). Indigenous Veterans. Retrieved from http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/those-who-served/indigenous-veterans

Veterans Affairs Canada. (n.d.). Illustrations. Retrieved from http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/those-who-served/indigenous-veterans/illustrations

Notes:

Image representing each of the three main Indigenous groups was created for the Calling Home Ceremony in 2005 which was a Aboriginal Spiritual Journey to honour the Indigenous war dead. This image was retrieved from http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/those-who-served/indigenous-veterans/illustrations
Image of war recruits before they left for Great Britain from the File Hills community in Saskatchewan with the elders, family members, and representative from the Department of Indian Affairs. Image retrieved from http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/history/historical-sheets/aborigin from the Library and Archives Canada PA-66815.

Introduction: Middle Island is a popular, well-known attraction in Miramichi, New Brunswick but before it was an Irish Historical Park, it was a quarantine station for Irish Immigrants who had developed Typhus and Scarlet Fever while fleeing from their homeland during the Potato Famine in 1847.

People were travelling on a ship called Looshtauk from Liverpool to Quebec, and when many people onboard began to get ill, a decision was made to stop at the closest port for medical assistance. After stopping in Miramichi and speaking to officials at the marina, they were instructed to dock at Middle Island and use the land as a quarantine station (Middle Island Miramichi, n.d.).

Dr. Vondy, a young doctor who has just started his medical practice in the former town of Chatham (now Miramichi City), decided to close his office so he could go to the island and fully commit his time to the ill individuals there. In doing so, he risked his own health and life, and eventually died shortly after his arrival (Middle Island Miramichi, n.d.).

The Looshtauk’s voyage started with 462 people, 146 people died on the ship, 316 were let off at Middle Island for medical treatment and of those 316, 96 people lost their battles with their illness on the island, 53 were able to continue with their travels on to Quebec, and the remaining 167 were eventually able to be discharged into the Town of Chatham (Middle Island Miramichi, n.d.).

Middle Island was purchased by the New Brunswick government in 1950 and a causeway was built from the mainland for easy access in 1967. Today, Middle Island is a park than many people from near and far visit. The walking trails are enriched with plaques that tell the stories of many years ago and there is an interpretive museum for people to learn more about its history. Middle Island is also used as a popular fishing spot and a place where the city hosts special events.

Biography: Kim Bourque is an Education student with a concentration in Early Childhood Education at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton. Before entering the Bachelor of Education program she obtained her Bachelor of Arts with a major in Psychology in 2017 from UNB.

Further Reading:

1) Daley, C. (n.d.). Quarantine stations - Middle Island. http://newirelandnb.ca/middle-island/

2) Daley, C., & Springer, A. (2002). Middle Island: before and after the tragedy. Miramichi, NB: Middle Island Irish Historical Park.

3) Middle Island Miramichi. (n.d.). https://www.middleislandmiramichi.com/

4) Swiggum, S. (2005). New Brunswick - Miramichi & Chatham - Middle Island. http://www.theshipslist.com/1847/Miramichi.shtml

Notes:

1) History of Middle Island obtained from: https://www.middleislandmiramichi.com/

2) Photo of Middle Island on poster obtained from: https://www.flickr.com/photos/16372470@N00/2539018391

Poster Information:

Abegweit is actually a term to describe Prince Edward Island. Although most islanders are the descendants of Europeans, the island’s first residence however were the Mi’kmaq people. They landed in the province about 2000 years ago. The originally named the Island “EPEKWITK” which translated to “cradled on the waves” which the European settlers pronounced as Abegweit. There are still a first nations M’ikmaq communities going strong within different regions of Prince Edward Island like Rocky Point and Lennox Island for example. I believe this is extremely important for us as P.E.I residence to know about this vital piece of history on how this province was discovered. As sad as it is to say I do not feel that enough of this Island’s residence are aware of this.
This was very interesting for me to research being a resident of Prince Edward Island and was quite eye opening. Even growing up, I have heard the word “Abegweit” used so many times in the province of P.E.I for everything as summer camps, entertainment groups, clothing, stores, and even boats. Admittedly I never ever understood the meaning or history behind it and it’s quite embarrassing to have only discovered the meaning behind the word now. It was a very meaningful piece of P.E.I history for me to discover and I’m quite grateful that I was given the hint to learn more about this.

Additional Information:

For more research on the history of P.E.I and the Mi’kmaq people you can visit:

Tourism PEI/History:

https://www.tourismpei.com/pei-history

About Mi’kMaq confederacy:

http://mcpei.ca/about/

UPEI Libraries Mi’kmaq History:

https://library.upei.ca/mi%27kmaq/pei

Biography:

My name is Jamie Buote and I am currently enrolled in the education program offered at UNB, Fredericton. I grew up in Prince Edward Island where I was very interested in sports and music and moved here for my undergrad in Kinesiology in 2012. Since I am from Prince Edward Island I thought it would be interesting to remember, resist and redraw a piece of history from my home province. The event or topic that I have chosen revolves around the word Abegweit and what it means to P.E.I. and its history.

My poster is called “Bringing PRIDE to Fredericton” it depicts the influential LGBTQ movements and laws along with the violence, resistance and love that made it possible for the Pride march to be celebrated in Fredericton.

For a long time being gay was punishable by death, forcing people like Lenard Keith to leave his partner and his home in rural New Brunswick in the early 20th century. It was not until May 1969 that gay sex was decriminalized, helped by the reform demanded by the new Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.

Later that same year at The Stonewall Inn in New York City, one of the few place where the LGBTQ community could be themselves, was raided by the police. On June 28th the police started arresting the patrons, but the community gathered and rioted against it. The crowd grew with members of the LGBTQ community and their Allies and the riot lasted three days. This violence was the spark that made it possible to start the tradition of the PRIDE march each year, to remind society that everyone deserves the same rights. In Toronto on February 5th 1981, Canada had its own version of Stonewall. It was the Toronto Bathhouse Riot. A popular bathhouse in Toronto was raided by the police and people were arrested for indecency, and the community rioted again it. These types of raids continued across Canada as recently as 2002.

These movements of resistance have led to legal movements in New Brunswick, sexual orientation was protected in 1992, Fredericton started hosting LGBTQ events in 1998, the first same-sex marriage happened in 2005 leading to the first PRIDE March celebration in 2010. It is an event that can now be a celebration for how far the LGBTQ community has come, a symbol of resistance against hostility, and a voice for those who have been lost or silenced for loving who they love and being who they are.

Biography:

I am Madeline Raaflaub, I am from Ontario, but recently moved to Fredericton. I am pursuing a Bachelor of Education at the University of New Brunswick and I will be teaching Grade 1 next year overseas.

Further Investigations:

Rau, Krishna. “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Rights in Canada”.  Historica Canada, 2015, http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/lesbian-gay-bisexual-and-transgender-rights-in-canada/

“Remembering Stonewall.” Stuff You Should Know. From How Stuff Works, 27 June 2017, https://www.stuffyoushouldknow.com/podcasts/remembering-stonewall.htm

The Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives, 2017, https://clga.ca/

Government of Canada. “Rights of LGBTI persons”, 2017, https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/rights-lgbti-persons.html

The background is based of the artwork of Gilbert Baker, who revealed this flag at the New York Pride in 1978.

The image of Leo and Cub is based on one of the photos collected by the New Brunswick Queer Heritage Initiative. 

The image of the Toronto Bathhouse Riots is based on a phot taken by Frank Lennon.

Aida Maud Boyer McAnn Flemming (7 March 1896 – 25 January 1994)

A search through Wikipedia’s listings of notable people from New Brunswick details the names, dates of birth and death (if applicable) and the accomplishment they are famous for. New Brunswickers such as Sean Couturier, (NHL Player), Stompin’ Tom Connors (musician), Molly Kool (First Female Sea Capitan),and Aida Flemming, identified as being famous for being a Premier's wife and under the “other” column again listed as wife of Hugh John Flemming (Wikipedia, 2017).

Aida Flemming had Bachelors of Arts from Mount Alison, a Certificate of Education from the University of Toronto, and Masters in English from Columbia University which she received by 1930 (Driver, 2008, p. 61) Her marriage to Hugh John Flemming was her third marriage, with the previous two ending in divorce.

In 1959 at the age of 63, Aida Flemming founded the Kindness Club, the principals of which, were based on the works of Dr. Albert Schweitzer which taught children to value all creatures great and small. At the peak of its existence the Kindness Club had chapters in 22 countries(Government of Canada, Governor General, Honours 2009). Aida Flemming’s works inspired Alden Nowlan’s poem “An Ode for Aida Flemming”(wikiipedia, Aida Flemming, 2017).

In 1978 Aida Flemming was invested as a Member of the Order of Canada for her founding of the Kindness Club along with her many other contributions (Government of Canada, Governor General, Honours 2009). Aida Flemming, was more than a wife.

Biography: Katie Despaties, graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1999 with her Bachelor of Arts Degree, has travelled extensively, past and present volunteer for many organizations and boards, previously employed in Regulatory Compliance and is currently registered in the University of New Brunswick’s Bachelor of Education Program. She is a happily married mother of three - also more than a wife.

References

Driver, E. (2008). Culinary landmarks: a bibliography of Canadian cookbooks, 1825-1949. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. Retrieved January 14 2018. https://books.google.ca/books?id=B40ZbsCTjx4C&pg=PA61&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=aida%20mcann&f=false

Government of Canada, Office of the Secretary to the Governor General, Information and Media Services. (2009, April 30). Honours Order of Canada. Retrieved January 14, 2018, from http://archive.gg.ca/honours/search-recherche/honours-desc.asp?lang=e&TypeID=orc&id=542

Aida McAnn Flemming. (2017, September 12). In Wikipedia, the Free Encycopedia Retrieved January 21, 2018, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aida_McAnn_Flemming#cite_note-14

List of people from New Brunswick. (2017, December 13). In Wikipedia, the Free Encycopedia Retrieved January 14, 2018, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_from_New_Brunswick

Images Courtesy of New Brunswick Archives

For further reading:

New Brunswick Archives has a large collection of Kindness Club documents, pictures, and files including

information on Aida McAnn Flemming

The Culinary Landmarks book by E Driver includes biographical information on Aida Flemming

Aida Flemming has a limited internet footprint

Maria Bochkareva

Born in 1889 in Siberia to abusive alcoholic parents, Maria Bochkareva’s early life was filled with poverty and violence. By 15, Bochkareva had left home and married her first husband, Afansi Bochkarev. He too, was physically abusive. This continued until the night Bochkareva threatened him with an ax and left town.

It was right after Bochkareva left her second abusive husband that she learned of Russia’s war with Germany. She immediately signed up to become a soldier. Though the commander refused at first, Bochkareva eventually received permission directly from the tsar. She was allowed to join and her company was soon sent to the front lines in Poland.

It was here that Bochkareva first demonstrated her courageousness as a soldier. On their first advance, her company found themselves caught between barbed wire in front of them and still-advancing Russian soldiers to their rear. Ordered to retreat, only 48 returned to the trenches. That night, Bochkareva went back over the top and retrieved solider after wounded soldier from the battlefield. Working until dawn, she recovered 50 of her comrades.

In the course of her career, Bochkareva would, time and time again, risk her own life in order to pull wounded soldiers to safety. She was injured several times, and though she was eventually quite decorated and promoted to the rank of sergeant, Bochkareva was also denied honours for which she was recommended because she was a woman.

In the wake of the February Revolution of 1917, the Russian troops were beginning to fall apart. Bochkareva, in an attempt to shame the male soldiers into continuing to fight, proposed the creation of an all-female Battalion. The Provisional Government approved, and nearly 2000 women signed up. Under Bochkareva’s iron-fisted leadership, most of these women either left or were sent home until only 300 remained. These women trained 16 hours a day for a month before joining the front lines.

In their first offensive, the soldiers were given orders to advance, but many of the male soldiers refused and instead declared their neutrality. Eventually, most of the male officers took up rifles and asked to join Bochkareva’s battalion. The women and officers went over the top together, and soon more than half of the male soldiers joined them. They suffered heavy losses and were forced to retreat, but had shown that they were battle-brave.

Unfortunately, the shifting political climate in Russia meant that soon the Battalion of Death was recognized as a type of propaganda that supported a war the Bolsheviks deemed imperialist. Russian soldiers turned against them, and after 20 of her soldiers were lynched, Bochkareva dissolved the battalion.

Though we often don’t remember them, female soldiers have played important roles in armed combat throughout history. By studying their stories, we are able to complicate and enrich our understandings and memories of war, politics, gender roles and expectations, violence, and social class.

What we do and don’t remember does not speak to what happened in the past, but it does attest to what is happening now. The current widely-accepted historical narrative asserts that it has only been recently that women participated in active combat roles. What does this preference say about our society?

Works Cited

Atwood, Kathryn J. Women Heroes of World War I: 16 Remarkable Resisters, Soldiers, Spies, and Medics. Chicago: Chicago Review Press, 2014. books.google.ca

Cook, Bernard A., ed. Women and War: A Historical Encyclopedia From Antiquity to the Present. Vol. 1. Santa Barbara: ABC CLIO, 2006. books.google.ca

Kihntopf, Michael P. “During World War I, Russian Lieutenant Maria Bochkareva Forged the

Women’s Death Battalion.” Military History 20.2 (2003): 22 - 23, 76.

Biography

Rachael Lawless is a pre-service Elementary school teacher with a background in social memory studies and a black belt in Karate. She loves dinosaurs, archaeology, latkes, good weather, and a great story.

Sarah Edmonds lived an incredible life! She was born Sarah Emma Edmondson in 1841 in rural New Brunswick in the dead of winter to parents who desperately wanted to have a healthy son.[1] She did not want to live the standard life of a farmer’s wife and fled her family’s homestead and the arranged marriage that her father had planned for her in 1857.[2] She changed her name to hide her female identity, while selling bibles door to door in Moncton and parts of Nova Scotia. Edmonds was vehemently against slavery and as a staunch Christian, she wanted to help the Union forces. Edmonds changed her name once again to Franklin Thompson and was mustered into the 2nd Michigan Infantry as a male nurse, a mail carrier, and supposedly a spy for the Unionists.[3] After contracting malaria, she was denied furlough and thusly “Franklin Thompson” was charged with desertion because Edmonds needed medical attention as a woman. Eventually she wrote and published her memoirs, married a man she loved, had five children, returned to New Brunswick, and eventually was granted a veteran’s pension on behalf of “Franklin Thompson”. She is the only woman member of the Grand Army of the Republic, buried with military honours in Texas.[4] Sarah Edmonds’ story is that of a rebellious, strong, fearless, determined rural New Brunswick woman. Her life and story are significant for her tenacity and obvious love of life and adventure in mid to late 19th century Canada.  

Heather-Ann Caldwell is a Pre-Service secondary teacher. She can be found with her nose in a history book, loves listening to obscure French songs, and is looking forward to her 8 week practicum with her Grade 8 French Immersion students in Fredericton, New Brunswick.

Further Reading

Edmonds, S. Emma. Nurse and Spy in the Union Army: Comprising the Adventures and Experiences of a Woman            in Hospitals, Camps, and Battle-Fields. 1865.

https://www.civilwar.org/learn/biographies/sarah-emma-edmonds

https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/sarah-edmonds-frank-thompson/

[1] “Sarah Edmonds (Frank Thompson),” Edward Butts, May 26th 2016. URL:http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/sarah-edmonds-frank-thompson/, Accessed January 30th 2018.

[2] Ibid.

[3] “Sarah Emma Edmonds,” Jone Johnson Lewis, April 13 201. URL: https://www.thoughtco.com/sarah-emma-edmonds-frank-thompson-3528659, Accessed January 30th 2018.

[4] Ibid.

The Insidious Bias Behind Immigration Policies

Introduction: Canada has welcomed immigrants, with restrictions, to an increasing number advantaged and disadvantaged populations through its permeable borders. Through the course of Canadian immigration history, there have been both explicit and underlying motives for this moving permeability. In highlighting the 1950s resettlement of Palestinian refugees, media coverage and federal polls regarding attitudes towards economic immigration and refugee acceptance, and the provincial history of accepting refugees, this poster attempts to show that there is frequently a larger external bias in the accepting and dispersing of immigrants throughout Canada.

Prior to the 1951 United Nations convention relating to the status of refugees, Canada’s immigration policy, particularly that of Pier 21, served largely to promote a population growth of European-born Canadians. However, after this larger agreement from the United Nations, and perhaps pressure from neighboring countries:

IN THE SUMMER of 1955, the Canadian government took the “bold step” of admitting displaced Palestinian refugees from the Arab-Israeli war of 1948. Canadian officials believed that alleviating the refugee problem in the Middle East would help in furthering regional stability. The resettlement scheme remained a politically sensitive issue as Arab governments protested against what they perceived as a Zionist plot to remove Palestinians from their ancestral land. (Jan Raska, 2015, 445)

Prior to the Immigration Act of 1952, immigration policy restricted the settlement of non-European immigrants into Canada. Racial terms were frequently used in immigration documents. Jan Raska puts forward the point that admitting these refugees constituted an affirmation of the Israeli takeover of Palestinian ancestral land. This governmental position contrasts with polls taken at the time, which indicate that Canadians remained neutral on the position, with approximately 4% being more favorable to the Arab cause. He also argues that this immigration served as a human experiment of the implications of accepting non-European settlers. While the government in Ottawa insisted on the refugee policies being an aspect of the partition of Palestine, which showed it to be a caring and peacekeeping nation, the 100 Palestinian refugees admitted came from educated backgrounds.

As much as the country’s policy towards immigrants and refugees is now opening, research of contemporary immigration policies and polls also shows a bias not always related to race, but intellectual or economic advantage. A report by the Toronto Star notes that the children of immigrants are 12% more likely to attend university than children of Canadian-born parents. Another poll by the Globe and Mail indicated (although not substantially) that Canadians are more welcoming of economic migrants than refugees.

Finally, New Brunswick in particular is keen to accept immigrants of any kind. A 2015 CBC article indicates that immigrants who move to New Brunswick from abroad are more likely to leave than if they move to another city center like Toronto or Vancouver.  With low rates of fertility and high outmigration, New Brunswick has made significant effort in the last few years to retain immigrants and provide ease of both education and opportunity for professional growth. This has included both refugees and economic migrants.

Biography:

Andrea Maria Dias is a B.Ed teacher candidate at the University of New Brunswick. She is a Canadian immigrant of Indian origin from the Middle East, and moved to Ontario in 2009. She loves Canada.

Further Reading:

1)    http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/new-brunswick-clings-to-immigrants-as-hope-for-growth-1.3031839 “New Brunswick Clings to Immigrants as Hope for Growth”

2)    https://www.thestar.com/news/immigration/2018/02/01/immigrants-are-largely-behind-canadas-status-as-one-of-the-best-educated-countries.html “Immigrants are largely behind Canada’s status as one of the Best Educated Countries”

3)    https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/canadians-have-different-attitudes-on-immigrants-versus-refugees-poll/article34179821/ “Canadians have different attitudes on Immigrants Versus Refugees: Poll”

4)    https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadians/celebrate-being-canadian/teachers-corner/refugee-history.html “Canada: A History of Refuge”

5)    https://www.pier21.ca/research/immigration-history/forgotten-experiment-canadas-resettlement-of-palestinian-refugees-1955-1956 Forgotten Experiment: Canada’s Resettlement of Palestinian Refugees, 1955-56 – Jan Raska

Introduction: Miramichi is a small city located in the north-east of the province of New Brunswick along the Miramichi River. For many years, their main industry revolved around mining, lumber, fishing, and product distribution (Curtis, 1988). On August 20, 1937 approximately “1500 millworkers and longshoremen along the Miramichi River in northern New Brunswick struck 14 lumber firms” (Burden, 2006, p.1). This led to a halt in the “loading of pulpwood and lumber aboard five freighters at Nelson, Chatham Head, Douglastown” (Royal Canadian Mounted Police Headquarters, 1937, p. 352). Organized by the New Brunswick Farmer-Labour Union, a trade union that had been recently formed by Gregory McEachreon, the strike aimed to bring forth addressing issues surrounding increasing wages, shortening working hours, and union recognition. Workers were putting in ten-hour days and working for 17.5 cents an hour, which was deemed unacceptable by many (Frank & Canadian Committee on Labour History, 2013). During this time, the provincial government had recently enacted fair wage legislation. This was being highlighted during the strike and the workers were petitioning the government to take action on the issues they were bringing forward. The government refused to address what was being brought forth related to workers rights until the workers, primarily men, returned to work. “The strike ended on August 31 when a compromise settlement [was] worked out by mediators” (Burden, 2006, p.1). In 1938 the government took into consideration what was brought up in the Miramichi Lumber Strike as well as the Minto Coalfields Strike, October 1937, and re-evaluated their labour relations policy. Upon reflection, new labour legislation was introduced by the Government of New Brunswick in 1938 (Burden, 2006).

Biography: Kristen Ingraham is a University of New Brunswick, UNB, Bachelor of Education student and pre-service teacher. She previously completed a Bachelor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Leadership at UNB.

Further Reading:

1. Burden, P. (2006). Miramichi lumber strike. Histroica Canada. Retrieved from             https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/miramichi-lumber-strike/ 

2. Curtis, W. (1988). Currents in the stream: Miramichi people and places. Fredericton, N.B: Gooselane Editions.

3. Frank, D., & Canadian Committee on Labour History. (2013). Provincial solidarities: A history of the New Brunswick Federation of Labour. Edmonton: AU Press.

4. Royal Canadian Mounted Police Headquarters. (1937). Report on Revolutionary  Organizations and Agitation in Canada, 868. Retrieved from goo.gl/yJsKZJ

Photo Sources:

- http://www.nbgsmiramichi.org/Album2/images/Miramichi%20Lumber-yard%20Horses%201890%27s.jpg

-  https://tce-live2.s3.amazonaws.com/media/media/80691fa6-9b5a-4c82-a51d-0aaadaf68f77.jpg

- https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/timber-trade-history/

- http://tce-live2.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com/media/cache/media/80691fa6-9b5a-4c82-a51d-0aaadaf68f77_fit_202_x.jpg

- http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_W06OeewCRS4/RjoaDOzplWI/AAAAAAAAABA/eUJsBePLsVg/s320/oldlumbercamp.jpg

Women’s Political Rights and History in New Brunswick

Introduction: The women’s rights in New Brunswick is something that is not often talked about in the school history curriculum. In New Brunswick, in the year 1834, the word male was entered into the election law to really show that women were explicitly excluded from the election process. Women who were independent were considered a threat to religious and cultural communities. In Saint John, New Brunswick the “Women’s Enfranchisement Association of New Brunswick” was formed in 1894 and it would be another 25 years before the women of New Brunswick would have the right to vote in a provincial election, thought it was still only if you were not a homemaker because you had to pay taxes and own property to vote in an election.  It was not before 1934 that women were allowed to run for office and the first woman to be elected to the legislative assembly was Brenda Robertson in 1967. In 1948 Edna Steel was the first woman to be elected in office in New Brunswick; she was elected to the Saint John City council. In Port Elgin in 1959 the first female mayor, Dorothy McLean was elected. In 1966 the criteria for voting changed to only age (18+) and residence; therefore, all women were given the opportunity to vote.

Biography: Rachel Prosser is a Pre-Service teacher at the University of New Brunswick, living and studying in both Fredericton and Saint John, New Brunswick. After she graduates in June, she will start working as an elementary school French Immersion teacher in Anglophone School District South in September 2018.

Further Reading:

1. The elections NB website shows has a lot of good reading on not only women in politics in NB, but also many other interesting facts such as First Nations People, and religious beliefs (i.e Catholics could not vote until 1830, and after they still had pledge allegiance to the Protestant King and his heirs): http://www.electionsnb.ca/content/enb/en/about-us/history.html

2. The following website shows the statistics for women in politics in New Brunswick throughout the years: https://www.cpsa-acsp.ca/papers-2011/Everitt.pdf

3. On the Canadian encyclopedia, you can find information about Women’s suffrage in Canada; therefore, all of the provinces: http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/suffrage/

4. This document published by the New Brunswick Advisory Council on the Status of Women has many interesting facts on many different people. http://www.wbnb-fanb.ca/docs/hints/Celebrating%20Achievers%20Quiz-En.pdf

5. If you would like to read more on some of the prominent women in New Brunswick Politics: Frances Fish (First Female to run for office in 1935): https://journals.lib.unb.ca/index.php/JNBS/article/view/18735/20494 and http://nsbs.org/frances-lilian-fish Brenda Robertson: http://www.gnb.ca/cnb/news/iga/2004e0833ig.htm

 Discrimination against Chinese Immigrants

Introduction:

Chinese immigrants were exploited and strongly discriminated against throughout Canadian history. They began to immigrate from China within the late 1700s due to floods, which made it hard to grow crops, and wars, which created poor and unsafe living conditions.

The Chinese immigrants moved here in search for a better life, but they faced a great amount of prejudicial treatment. They were considered inferior and unable to assimilate into Canada up until the mid-late 1900s. They were alienated from society, restricted of the right to vote, and exploited for cheap labour in poor working conditions. (Chan, 2016)

One of the most brutal exploitations of Chinese immigrant workers was for the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway. The Canadian Pacific Railway was built between 1880-1885 in order to connect the West Coast (starting in Port Moody, B.C.) to the East Coast (ending in Montreal, Quebec). (Building the Canadian Pacific Railway, n.d.) This was at the expense of over 15,000 Chinese immigrants who were made to work on the most dangerous parts of the railway, for very little pay. They made $1.00 per day, in comparison to the white Canadian workers, who made $2.50 per day. (Building the Canadian Pacific Railway, n.d.) In addition, the Chinese also had to pay for their food, clothing, transportation, and cooking and camping gear. They also received very little medical aid, and depended widely on herbal medicines. Many died due to the poor working conditions which included dynamite accidents, landslides, cave-ins, mal-nourishment, fatigue and lack of medicine. There is an estimated death count of 600 to 2,200 workers. (History of Canada's early Chinese immigrants, 2017) The deaths were poorly tracked due to lack of care and responsibility, and most families weren’t even notified of the deaths.

In 1885, after the railway was complete, Canada implemented a discriminatory $50 "head" tax on Chinese immigrants entering the country (this fee only applied to this ethnic group), which then went up to $100 in 1900, and further increased to $500 in 1903. (Chan, 2016) On July 1st, 1923, a legislation passed that banned most Chinese immigrants from entering Canada, this date is now known as “Humiliation Day”. (Chan, 2016) Only four classes of Chinese immigrants were allowed in Canada after this legislation: diplomats and government representatives; children born in Canada who had left for educational or other purposes; merchants; and students. (Dyk, Gagnon, MacDonald, Raska & Schwinghamer, n.d.) Legislation was finally repealed in 1947 (Chan, 2016), and since then the Chinese population, and diversity, has greatly grown within Canada.

Biography:

Marissa Simard is a currently enrolled in the Bachelor of Education program at the University of New Brunswick, living and working on unceded and un-surrendered Wolastoqiyik territory. She is a Pre-Service teacher at Liverpool Street Elementary School, and will be graduating in October 2018.

Further Reading:

1.     Building the Canadian Pacific Railway. (n.d.). Retrieved February 16, 2018, from https://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/settlement/kids/021013-2031.3-e.html

2.     Dyk, L. V., Gagnon, E., MacDonald, M., Raska, J. & Schwinghamer, S. (n.d.). Chinese Immigration Act, 1923. Retrieved February 16, 2018, from https://www.pier21.ca/research/immigration-history/chinese-immigration-act-1923

3.     Chan, A. (2016). Chinese Head Tax in Canada. Retrieved February 16, 2018, from http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/chinese-head-tax-in-canada/

4.     History of Canada's early Chinese immigrants. (2017). Retrieved February 16, 2018, from https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/history-ethnic-cultural/early-chinese-canadians/Pages/history.aspx

5.     Lavallé, O. (2018). Canadian Pacific Railway. Retrieved February 16, 2018, from http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/canadian-pacific-railway/

6.     The Chinese Experience in British Columbia: In 1850 - 1950. (n.d.). Retrieved February 16, 2018, from https://www.library.ubc.ca/chineseinbc/railways.html

Notes:

1.     Image of Chinese Immigrants working on the CPR was retrieved from http://www.kamloopsnews.ca/opinion/letters/how-many-chinese-died-building-the-cpr-1.1232831

2.     Image of the Canadian Pacific train was retrieved from http://www.cpr.ca/en/cp-shops

3.     Image of Chinese Immigrants at their campsite was retrieved from http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/railway-history/

Women in Politics in NB

Women deserve to have their voices be heard in an equal manner to men in the provience of New Brunswick.  For the purpose for this inspiring poster assignment I have chosen to tackle the topic of women in politics in New Brunswick (NB) and  particularily Elsie Wayne and the Women for 50% project.

Elsie was elected mayor of Saint John NB in 1983 and served as member of the House of Commons from 1993 until 2004 (CBC News, 2016). Elsie passed away in August 2016 but was an inspiration to anyone she made contact with and was never afraid to speak up for what was right (CBC News, 2016). In Elsies time women in politics were even more unknown then they are today.

The other area that peaked my interest for this assignment is the Women for 50% movement where women are pushing the New Brunswick government for equal gender representation within the government (Global Politcs, 2017). Currently, only 8 of the 49 MLA members in the province are women (Global Politcs, 2017). The mother of the founder of the Women for 50% project was a former president of the New Brunswick Liberal Association and gave 7 female candadits for the election in 1987 $100 each to buy the proper shoes to go door to door prior to the election (Global Politcs, 2017). Each of these women won that year. I thought this was neat because it shows the confidence and womens leadership was a trend within their family which is important for us to have in our province.

Biography Alyson VanSnick: I am an early childhood educator and a future elementary school teacher who hopes to instil confidence and leadership skills into every student she teaches. I hope to encourage my female students to fight for their own rights and to be advocates for themselves and their communties. By bringing attention to women in politics in New Brunswick I am able to give a voice to the idea that women deserve to be represented equally in politics.

References and Further Readings

Cave, Rachel. (January 2017). “Work begins now to elect more women to legislature in 2018”. CBC News New Brunswick. Retrieved from: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/gender-parity-new-brunswick-legislature-2018-1.3931137

Cromwell, Andrew. (January, 2017). “NB group Women for 50% pushes for gender equality in government”. Global News New Brunswick. Retrieved from: https://globalnews.ca/news/3175212/nb-group-women-for-50-pushes-for-gender-equality-in-government/

McHardie, Daniel. (August, 2016). “Elsie Wayne, Former PC MP and Saint John mayor, dead at 84”. CBC News New Brunswick. Retrieved from: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/elsie-wayne-obit-1.3732050

New Brunswick Advisory Council on the Status of Women. (2010). Women in the house: A reader on New Brunswick women in the Legislative Assembly. Fredericton, N.B: Advisory Council on the Status of Women.

It is incredible how a place undergoes tremendous changes over time.  Today, in New Brunswick, Rexton is a quiet village built around the Richibucto river where you can see fishing boats leaving the wharf to go lobster fishing, or small recreational crafts sailing in the summer.  However, in the 1800’s, it was home to an extensive and reputed tall ship building industry.  The scenery would have been very different than today with those majestic vessels sailing graciously in the harbour.

It was in 1816 that John Jardine, along with his brother Robert, came from Scotland to settle by the beautiful Richibucto River. By 1825, they had established an impressive ship building and lumber industry.  The shipyard was at a very unique location, on the turn of the river, permitting a monitoring of the to-and-fro of sail boats.  While Robert Jardine moved in Upper Canada a decade after, John Jardine, also called Old Jock, kept the flourishing industry running.  His nephews, John and Thomas, followed Old Jock’s example by also becoming shipbuilders and developing their own successful company. Over a few generations, the Jardines built over 100 majestic tall ships.  They were well known and reputed ship builders.

A community grew around John Jardine industries.  It began as The Yard and grew into a village named Kingston in 1841.  It was in 1901 that it became renamed as Rexton.  Today, the land where John Jardine’s shipyard was established is still warmly called The Yard by the community. A tall ship monument called “Shipwreck” has been erected near the site to commemorate the ship building history of the region.

Chantal Vautour is a pre-service teacher living in the community of Saint-Ignace, just 20 km from Rexton.  She has always been fascinated by tall ships and the rich history of the region.

For more information, visit:

http://www.historicplaces.ca/en/rep-reg/place-lieu.aspx?id=4668&pid=0

http://www.historicplaces.ca/en/rep-reg/place-lieu.aspx?id=4493

http://www.villageofrexton.com/history/ship-building/

http://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/jardine/9/

http://www.bonarlawcommon.com/RRHS.html

Visit the Richibucto River Historical Society Museum located at the Bonnar Law Commons in Rexton

I grew up alongside Metepenagiag Mi'kmaq Nation almost my entire life but never learned anything about the reserve and the people that lived there. The Miramichi river is an incredible resource and has been for thousands of years. It is mostly my fault that I have never taken the time to look into finding history books about Mi’kmaq culture and the history of the people on the river. I am lucky enough to have grown up on the river and the more I do readings the more I find a whole new appreciation for the world that I was privileged to live in.

When I started to research for this project I knew that my focus was going to be on the Red Bank area. It didn’t take me to long to find out about the Oxbow and I knew I had to investigate more about it. The Oxbow for my entire childhood was a water hole, it was an awesome place to go swimming because it was an inlet from the river and shallow enough that the waters would get warm on a hot day but deep enough that you can have fun. So when I realized that the Oxbow is a site for one of the oldest communities in Canada! I was shocked. Are you telling me that the place I would go to on weekends holds one of the richest histories in Canada? That it was one of the largest First Nation archaeological finds in history? It is frustrating. I wish that I was taught this in school. My school is only five minutes away and it would have been an incredible opportunity for us to understand the local history around us and could have created a respect among the students. But I should have found this out on my own; it’s ridiculous that I let this history sit under my nose for so long. It was a wake up call for me that I need to be more vigilant in my research work and that I need to take it upon myself to look out for information and ask important questions.

Biography: My name is Sam Wakefield. I am a person who is trying to be critical of my current knowledge of the local history around me with a focus on the Indigenous peoples. I grew up as a racist and regret the things that I have said and the lies that I thought. I am a better person now but realize that I have a long way to go to become an effective educator. I am going back to Miramichi to teach and I pray that I can make an impact on the lives of students and break a vicious cycle that continues there.

Further Readings:

Maliseet & Micmac First Nations of the Maritimes

By: Robert M. Leavitt (The entire book is interesting but pages 157 – 165 include information about the Oxbow and have photos of the archeologically findings)

Miramichi Papers

By: W.D. Hamilton  (Chapter 7, pg. 77)

http://www2.gnb.ca/content/dam/gnb/Departments/thc-tpc/pdf/Arch/MIA39english.pdf  - This PDF includes information about the findings at the Oxbow.

http://www.gnb.ca/0007/heritage/oxbow/oxbow.html - This website is an easy reading resource, limited information but gives you a good understanding of the importance of the Oxbow.

Introduction: When we think about slavery in Canada it is often that we think of our country as a place where African-American slaves were able to escape to freedom. This learning commonly leads us to believe that Canada never engaged in slavery but this idea is not completely correct. There is evidence of slavery existing in both the Maritimes, and more specifically in New Brunswick.

“Shortly after the arrival of the loyalists, in 1784, the Province of New Brunswick was created to satisfy those loyalists who had moved to the St. John and who did not wish to be governed from Halifax. With the loyalists were several thousand Black people. Some came as slaves or indentured servants, others as free Blacks or mack loyalists. In documents, the loyalists always preferred to refer to their slaves as “servants”. However, the status of the majority of Blacks who were listed as “servants” was certainly no different than that of those listed as slaves.” (MyNB, 2015)

The loyalists arrived to Canada following the American Revolution with both free and enslaved Black people. It is very difficult to determine how many slaves arrived with the loyalists to New Brunswick (Smith, n.d.). During the war the loyalist promised some Black people that if they helped them fight in the war then they would bring them to Canada and offer them land and freedom (MyNB, 2015). This did not happen for the most part as many of the Black people remained segregated, did not receive the promised land, and their “freedom” existed in some of the worst living conditions possible (Saunders, 1994). Slavery was most definitely accepted in Canada and when the loyalists arrived with Black slaves, slavery became even more widespread in New Brunswick (MyNB, 2015). In New Brunswick, there is evidence of the purchasing of slaves continuing into the early- to mid- 1790s (Smith, n.d.). In the city of Saint John specifically there is no concrete record of slavery after 1795, but this is likely due to the loss of documentation (Smith, n.d.). Thus, it is important to acknowledge and further educate ourselves about the existence of slavery in New Brunswick.

Biography: Megan Watt is a student at the University of New Brunswick, living in Fredericton and Saint John, New Brunswick. She has finished her undergraduate degree in Psychology and is currently working on completing her Education degree.

Further Reading:

1.     United States, Congress, Provincial Archives of New Brunswick, and T. Watson Smith. “The Slave in Canada.” The Slave in Canada. Retrieved from: http://archives.gnb.ca/exhibits/forthavoc/html/Slave-in-Canada.aspx?culture=en-CA

2.     C. R., Saunders. (1994) The Story of the Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children. Share & Care.

Notes: 1) Whitfield. H. A. (2012) Acadiensis. Journal of the History of the Atlantic Region. Retrieved from https://journals.lib.unb.ca/index.php/acadiensis/article/view/20066/23079

2) My New Brunswick (Username). (2015). Black History of New Brunswick. Retrieved from https://mynewbrunswick.ca/black-history-of-new-brunswick/

3) Government of New Brunswick. Smith. T. W. (n.d.) The Slave in Canada. Provincial Archives of New Brunswick. Retrieved from http://archives.gnb.ca/exhibits/forthavoc/html/Slave-in-Canada.aspx?culture=en-CA

4) Image of the article of the divided opinion of slavery in New Brunswick http://preserve.lib.unb.ca/wayback/20141205151334/http://atlanticportal.hil.unb.ca//acva/blackloyalists/en/context/gallery/1800_02_18.html

Introduction

Mary Matilda (Tilly) Winslow was born in Woodstock, New Brunswick in 1885 and was the first Black woman to graduate from the University of New Brunswick. In 1901 Tilly started her Bachelor of Arts in Classics and graduated with honours in 1905. She also received the Montgomery-Campbell Prize for excellence during her studies.

Despite her achievements Tilly was not able to secure a teaching position in any New Brunswick schools. She briefly taught in Halifax, Nova Scotia before moving to the United States of America. In the United States she started as a music teacher and eventually became Dean of the Normal (Education) Department at Central College in Alabama.

Little else is known about Tilly, despite her accomplishments and the same is true for many other Black women in history. White (1987) writes that despite the “emergence of Afro-American history and women’s history” (p. 237) in the 1970s, there was “a missing character – the black women” (p. 237). A combination of two categories that infrequently enter history books, Black women still do not receive a deserving amount of recognition. “Black children entering the schools have no sense of Blacks being here for generations, and, hence, that there is a 400-year presences and contribution of African Canadians in this country.” (Bristow et al., 1994, p. 3 as quoted in Este, 2008, p. 390).

 Tilly’s story inspires. She broke down barriers for Black women and stories like hers should not be left out of New Brunswick history. Including stories like Tilly’s enrich local history and encourage inquiry into forgotten histories.

Biography

Trista Wood is a student in UNB’s B.Ed. program with a background in environmental studies, particularly renewable energy / bioenergy. Upon completion of her B.Ed. Trista will begin her teaching career internationally in Kuwait.

Further Reading/Resources

1.     Youngberg, G. & Holmlund, M. (2003). Inspiring Women: A Celebration of Herstory. Regina, Saskatchewan: Coteau Books.

2.     Yüksel, S. N., & Acrolect International. (2001). Pioneer women of New Brunswick. Fredericton, N.B.: Acrolet International.

Notes

· Images used were retrieved from #7 in the resource list that follows as well as a google image search for “UNB logo”.

·  Resources listed on back of page.

Resources

1. Este, D. (2008). Black Canadian Historical Writing 1970-2006: An Assessment. Journal of Black Studies, 38(3), 388-406. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.proxy.hil.unb.ca/stable/40034387

2. NB Heritage. (2017). Spotlight on Our Heritage #5: Black History Month in New Brunswick. Retrieved from http://nbheritageonlinenewsletter.blogspot.ca/2017/02/spotlight-on-our-heritage-5-black.html

3. New Brunswick Black History Society. (2010). Women in History. Retrieved from https://www.nbblackhistorysociety.org/women-in-history.html

4. UNB Archives and Special Collentions. (2014). Mary Matilda Winslow. Retrieved from http://unbhistory.lib.unb.ca/index.php/Mary_Matilda_Winslow

5. White, D. (1987). Mining the Forgotten: Manuscript Sources for Black Women's History. The Journal of American History, 74(1), 237-242. doi:10.2307/1908622

6.  Youngberg, G. & Holmlund, M. (2003). Inspiring Women: A Celebration of Herstory. Retrieved from https://books.google.ca/books?id=XhHUzUwJtA4C&pg=PA132&lpg=PA132&dq=Mary+Matilda+(Tilly)+Winslow&source=bl&ots=8c3onDQbCX&sig=Cq6xGxHytdvqB06vG_uUUQ_drVk&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjkv97zgYnZAhVDZawKHSejDUAQ6AEIQjAI#v=onepage&q=Mary%20Matilda%20(Tilly)%20Winslow&f=false

Introduction

“There was a clear relationship between exploitation in the workplace and limited language skills, for without familiarity with local institutions and laws, many immigrant workers were unable to defend themselves against poor working conditions and limited workers’ rights”

-       Heritage Toronto - The sun rises for everyone - Portuguese Heritage in Toronto

The subject I have chosen to expose are the men and women of Polish, Portuguese, and Italian background, who made up the large undocumented population of the labourforce in Toronto from the beginning of the 20th century up through to the 60’s and 70’s, when the city’s commercial landscape and cultural landscape were shifting to resemble that of the modern day Metropolis. Their largely undocumented stories are important because their experiences of mistreatment, wage theft, and work in unsafe conditions became the foundation for the mobilized effort of Toronto's diverse cultural group factions to form the construction unions whose role today is to protect their workers rights and safety. Without proper legal status and working papers, the recently arrived immigrant workers had to form their own communities, resettling in locations that have left their impressions today for their cultural diversity, such as the Kensington Market. The Portuguese men, working together with other immigrant workers, were one faction of the backbone that are responsible for the construction of the most iconic structures of Toronto such as the CN Tower, Metro Convention Center, the Bloor Danforth subway line and the Pearson Airport. Whereas the men faced the high risks of work-place related accidents, unreported in order to avoid external investigation, the women who worked in the maintenance and clothing industries had arguably even less representation. Despite knowing very little english, these women were recognized for their multiple forms of protests against the malpractices of the hiring businesses, bringing light into a history of unreported ongoing abuse.

The dubbed title for the poster originates from Michael Ondaatje’s fictional retelling and reimagination of the construction of Toronto’s Bloor St Viaduct and the Waterworks, completed throughout the 20’s and 30’s. In his novel, In the Skin of a Lion, he chooses not to write about history’s recorded events, but instead to focus on the margnizalied experiences often not told in our grand narrative of nation-building : “By choosing to write about groups ‘hopelessly predestined to insignificance,’ Ondaatje challenges traditional patterns of Canadian thinking” (Carol Beran 1993).  In his reexploration of a historical Canadian event, the names of the rich and powerful are made known to the reader, such as Commissioner Harris who is responsible for the construction of the “murderer” bridge. The protagonist however, is a witness to the fragmented perspective of Canadian nation forming, often kept subverted for the ‘good and peace of the establishment’ so as to not disrupt this mystified version of meritocracy, that this nation was built on the backs of nativists and not by taking advantage of the minority’s life and death in their work. It calls into perspective the desirable traits that we search in our nation’s citizens, defined by who that we determine can contribute to our society and who can be exploited by those in power.

Biography: Connor Trach is a undergrad student currently completing his B.ED Program at the University of New Brunswick. Born in Hamilton, Ontario, where he returns to works each summers as a construction labourer. When he is not working he enjoys exploring the famous and hidden structures of the nearby city of Toronto.

Further Suggested Readings:

Ondaatje, M. In The Skin of A Lion

Articles from Heritage Toronto about the formation of the Portuguese Community:

http://heritagetoronto.org/the-sun-rises-for-everyone-portuguese-heritage-in-toronto/

http://heritagetoronto.org/the-price-of-prosperity-portuguese-labourers-in-toronto/

Article from the Toronto Star on Commissioner Harris’s Work in Toronto:

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2015/07/09/once-upon-a-city-rc-harris-the-man-behind-the-bloor-viaduct.html

Beran, L. Carol. EX-CENTRICITY. MICHAEL ONDAATJE'S IN THE SKIN OF A LION AND HUGH MACLENNAN'S BAROMETER RISING

Introduction: This is the hundredth year of women having the right to vote in Nova Scotia, which is the inspiration for this poster. The idea that men and women are not equal is something that is frequently glossed over in history. Gaining the right to equal suffrage is very important in understanding current women’s rights. This poster is set up for a child to be able to look at it and understand the basic timeline of women’s suffrage in Canada, and hopefully inspire a desire to dig deeper into the names and movements represented.

Beginning in Manitoba in 1894, the Equal Franchise Association (also know as the Equal Suffrage club) was formed. This association allowed for both men and women to be members, however only women were permitted to be leading roles. The purpose of this group was to gain rights for women. (Foot, 2013)

In 1913, a petition was circulated to allow women to vote, it obtained 20,000 signatures. However, it was still not enough. (Foot, 2013)

In 1914, Nellie McClung, founder of the Equal Franchise Association, lead a five-person delegation with the then premier Rodmond Roblin. The conversation did not go well, as Roblin did not agree with women’s suffrage, claiming that it would break families up. (Commitee, 2005)

In 1916, Tobias Norris then becomes the premier. He was dedicated to allowing women equal suffrage. Roblin is forced to resign from office because of allegations of kickbacks and corruption surrounding the construction of the Manitoba legislative building. Manitoba then passes a bill, making them the first province to allow women to vote. This bill passing then influences the other provinces of Canada, who also allow women to vote. (Commitee, 2005) (Foot, 2013)

·      1916: Saskatchewan and Alberta grant the right to vote to women.

·      1917: British Columbia and Ontario grant the right to vote to women.

·      1918: Nova Scotia grants the right to vote to women.

·      1919: Yukon and New Brunswick grant the right to vote to women.

·      1922: Prince Edward Island grant the right to vote to women.

·      1925: Newfoundland and Labrador grant the right to vote to women.

·      1940: Quebec grants the right to vote to women.

However, this does not include visible minorities or Aboriginal women. Visible minorities are not granted the right to vote until 1948, and Aboriginal women were granted in 1960. (Foot, 2013) (Milestones in Human Rights in Nova Scotia , 2012)

Biography: Nicky Madill is originally from Black Point, Nova Scotia. She is currently a student in the Bachelor of Education program at the University of New Brunswick and hopes to become an elementary school teacher abroad.

Further Reading:

1.Commitee, M. M. (2005). Women Win the Vote. Retrieved from Manitobia:   

http://manitobia.ca/content/en/themes/wwv

2. Foot, R. (2013, October). Women's Suffrage in Manitoba . Retrieved from The Canadian Encyclopedia: https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/exhibit/womens-suffrage-in-manitoba/

3. Milestones in Human Rights in Nova Scotia . (2012, November ). Retrieved from Nova Scotia Human Rights Commisson: https://humanrights.novascotia.ca/content/milestones-human-rights-nova-scotia

Introduction: In the early 1800s, Thornton Blackburn and his wife Lucie were born into forced slavery in Louisville, Kentucky. Desperately seeking freedom, the couple managed to escape on a steamboat to Michigan, where they lived for two years on the run as fugitives before being captured and held prisoner while arrangements were made for them to return to the south. Brave locals aided in their escape, inciting the “Blackburn Riots,” the first race-riot in Detroit in their wake (Smardz-Frost, 2007) as citizens voiced their utter contempt towards racial segregation and slavery. Thornton and Lucie fled to Canada where they set their roots in Toronto in 1834 (Bateman, 2012).

While working as a waiter at Osgoode Hall, Thornton noticed the obvious lack of public transportation options in Toronto. He decided to commission the design of a wooden four-seated taxi and concurrently founded a company to run it which he named “The City”. The red and yellow colouration which Thornton used in his designs is retained to this day by the Toronto Transit Commission.

Thornton and Lucie never gave up the fight for the abolition of slavery. They worked tirelessly by helping to establish the Little Trinity Anglican Church, attending the North American Convention of Coloured Freemen, as well as helping escaped slaves to settle down and acclimate to life in Toronto. (Bateman, 2012)

In addition to their anti-slavery work, Thornton and Lucie Blackburn took advantage of their newfound freedom in Canada, and by the time of Thornton’s passing in 1898, the couple’s estate exceeded $18,000 in addition to ownership of six properties. The Blackburns turned rags into riches, and their contributions both during and following the face of hardship deserve to be acknowledged and remembered. 

Biography: Travis Allen is a teacher candidate at the University of New Brunswick. Previously, he has worked overseas as a teacher in Seoul, South Korea and Singapore. In addition, he is a published travel writer and photographer.

Further Reading:

1.     Bateman, Chris. “The Fascinating Story of Toronto’s First Cab Company.” BlogTO, 16 June 2012, https://www.blogto.com/city/2012/06/the_fascinating_story_of_torontos_first_cab_company/.

2.     Smardz Frost, Carolyn. “I’ve Got a Home in a Glory Land.” New York Times, 17 June, 2007, https://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/17/books/chapters/0617-1st-fros.html.

Images:

Background – The family of Thornton and Lucie Blackburn: https://torontosavvy.me/2012/05/30/kentuckydetroittoronto-thornton-lucie-blackburn-rode-the-underground-railroad/

Modern TTC Logo from the Toronto Transit Commission

Introduction:

Jean Cuthand Goodwill was a Cree woman from the Little Pine First Nation in Saskatchewan, Canada. She spent three long years in a sanatorium in Prince Albert after contracting tuberculosis in her teenage years (New Journeys, 2016). Spending so much time in and around hospitals eventually led her to pursue an education in nursing. She received her nursing diploma from Holy Family Hospital in 1954, and became one of the first Indigenous women in Canada to become a registered nurse. She began her career at the Indian Hospital of Fort Qu'Appelle and eventually became head nurse at the La Ronge nursing station. After many years of working in incredibly difficult conditions in Northern Saskatchewan, Jean decided to leave Canada and worked in the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital in Bermuda (Library and Archives Canada, 1997).

Upon her return, Jean became steadily involved in developing Aboriginal organizations throughout Canada. She believed that the number of health problems for Indigenous people were due mainly to poverty and poor standards of hygiene. Her goal was to ensure Aboriginal communities received appropriate health services within suitable cultural and social conditions (Library and Archives Canada, 1997). Jean sat on several committees and received many awards for her dedication to the Aboriginal cause throughout her lifetime. She lived an active life, driven by her desire to improve the quality of life for her people but eventually died of cancer at the young age of 69.

Her involvement and dedication to Indigenous rights resulted in nursing programs for Indigenous people, clinics on reserves and an improvement in the overall living conditions of Aboriginal people across Canada.  

Biography: Natalie Chappelle is currently finishing her Bachelor of Education at the University of New Brunswick (UNB) in the Elementary stream. She finished her Bachelor of Recreation and Sport Studies at UNB in 2014 and spent the last four years working as the Youth Coordinator at Special Olympics New Brunswick (SONB). She has a passion for working with students of all abilities and her work with SONB drove her to finally follow her dream of becoming a teacher.

References & Further Reading:

New Journeys: 6 Indigenous women every Canadian should know about. (2016, October 3). Retrieved from https://newjourneys.ca/en/articles/6-incredible-indigenous-women-every-canadian-should-know-about

Library and Archives Canada: Celebrating women’s achievements: Jean Goodwill. (1997, November). Retrieved from http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/women/030001-1406-e.html

Aboriginal Faces of Saskatchewan: Jean Goodwill. Retrieved from: http://www.sicc.sk.ca/archive/faces/wgooje.htm

Canada’s First Aboriginal Nursing Graduate. Retrieved from: http://resources.cpha.ca/CPHA/ThisIsPublicHealth/profiles/item.php?l=E&i=352

Notes:

1) Image of Jean Goodwill in her early years retrieved from

2) Image of Jean in her later years retrieved from Library and Archives Canada (https://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/women/030001-1406-e.html)

3) Image of the Canadian Indigenous Nurses Association badge retrieved from the Canadian Indigenous Nurses Association Website (http://indigenousnurses.ca/).

Ella Hatheway. Ella Hatheway was born in 1853 and lived in Saint John, New Brunswick. Throughout her lifetime (d. 1931), Ella was prominently known as a suffragette, working on several social reform projects. What Ella is most recognized for is not her accomplishments but the fact that she was married to Warren Franklin (Frank) Hatheway, a forward leader in labour and social reform in Saint John. While Ella fought for causes that benefited children and the poor, on issues of education, labour reform, health and safety, she too was overshadowed by her husband’s title and successes. Ella was a member of the first wave of feminism, and often worked alongside her husband to accomplish social reform. However, when successful the credit is often given in history to Frank and Ella stood on the sidelines of the recognition.

While both Ella and Frank worked together on many reforms, Ella belonged to the Dominion Women’s Enfranchisement Association (DWEA). It was noted that Ella had a reserved temperament but was not held back when she felt her opinion was being restricted. Her notes are throughout the DWEA minute books and show her evident frustrations. Ella refused to be quieted and when she was part of the delegation that travelled to the legislature in Fredericton to describe the declassing of women through sexual discrimination, Ella turned a lewd joke made toward her around and shamed those legislators. Her audience of followers continued to grow after this but her recognition was still undermined.

Biography

My full name is Indigo Shadow Porscha Clement and I’m originally from Ontario but have spent that last 6 years on and off in New Brunswick. I am 23 years old and live in Quispamsis, New Brunswick. I have my BSc in Bio-Psychology and am currently completing my BEd in Primary Education with a concentration in Exceptional Learners and a certificate in Early Childhood Education.

Resources to Continue the Discussion on Ella Hatheway

Cleverdon, Catherine. (1950, December 15). The Woman Suffrage Movement in Canada. Retrieved October 15th, 2018.

Frank and Ella Hatheway Labour Exhibit Centre. (2012). Retrieved October 15th, 2018, from http://www.wfhathewaylabourexhibitcentre.ca/labour-history/in-search-of-ella-hatheway- social-reformer-in-early-20th-century-saint-john-new-brunswick/

Labour History in New Brunswick. (2018). Retrieved October 15th, 2018, from https://archives.gnb.ca/lhtnb/Welcome_en-CA.aspx

Sangster, Joan. (2017, March 8). ​One Hundred Years of Struggle: The History of Women and the

Vote in Canada. Retrieved October 15th, 2018.

Introduction: In 1985 Grace Getty was a public health nurse in New Brunswick who had just finished her Master’s thesis on the health and wellness of gay men (Doyle 4). Due to the recent HIV/AIDS epidemic and the ever present debate about homosexuality, such a topic was hotly disputed at the time. Luckily for New Brunswick, Getty decided to help the problem rather than ignore it. The healthcare system in the 80s dehumanized people living with AIDS by removing their agencies in regards to their health and not guarding confidentiality. Outraged, she created AIDS New Brunswick, with help, as a minor rebellion. She claims “[f]rom the very beginning we were an advocacy group that were there to kind of hold the government’s feet to the fire” (7). While the organization pushed for healthcare reform it also took matters into its own hands. AIDS New Brunswick has helped the province by offering education, prevention, and support. This includes the Condom Distribution Program, Needle Exchange Programs, presentations/workshops, public resources for education and legal support, programming to help improve quality of life, providing appropriate health clinics, and helplines (aidsnb.com).

Grace Getty has been an irreplaceable figure in New Brunswick’s fight against AIDS, and on top of this she is also an awarded professor at the University of New Brunswick. The university states that “she is recognized as a leader in the faculty [of nursing], the university and the community as an advocate for aboriginal people in New Brunswick; and nationally and internationally for her work with HIV/AIDS.  She has had a distinguished career as a teacher, a researcher, and an administrator, and was one of the founders of the Faculty of Nursing Community Health Clinic” (unb.ca).

AIDS New Brunswick is still important today because HIV/ AIDS remains a serious issue in Canada. The disease continues to spread, the stigma is burdensome, and resources like the ones AIDS New Brunswick offers are often scarce.

Biography: Lauren Coffey is currently completing her Bachelor of Education at the University of New Brunswick. She recently earned her BA in English Honours from the same institute.

Further Reading:

1- “AIDS New Brunswick.” AIDS New Brunswick | SIDA Nouveau-Brunswick, www.aidsnb.com/en/.

2- “Grace Getty.” Grace Getty | UNB, www.unb.ca/faculty/emeritus/honorees/fredericton/dtog/getty.html.

3- Doyle, Nicholas S. “25 Years Serving the Community.” AIDS New Brunswick | SIDA Nouveau-Brunswick, 2011, pp. 1–52., www.aidsnb.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/AIDS-NB-History.pdf. Public Health Agency of Canada.

4- “Canada’s source for HIV and hepatitis C information.” CATIE, https://www.catie.ca/en/home

Shubenacadie Residential School (1930-1967)

Introduction:

The first group of residential schools began operating in Canada in the 1870s as a result of the Canadian government, who believed that it was their obligation to educate and integrate aboriginal peoples into Canadian society. The schools were religiously run and funded by the Catholic Church and Indian Affairs ("A history of residential schools in Canada | CBC News," 2016). Harper (2008) recognized that aboriginal children were taken from their families to attend these schools, as it was believed that the best way to assimilate children into the Euro-Canadian culture was to remove them from the influence of their families. Aboriginal culture and beliefs were presumed to be inferior and the goal of residential schools was to eliminate these (as cited in Hanson, n.d.).  

Shubenacadie Residential School was opened in Nova Scotia in 1930, with children arriving on February 5th. Conditions at the school were gruesome, including corporal punishment, starvation, racism, punishment for using the Mi’kmaw language, and cases of sexual assault, to name just a few. The school closed on June 22, 1967 after having operated for 37 years, with approximately 1000 children having lived in it over this period of time ("Shubenacadie Indian Residential School," n.d.).

Although Shubenacadie Residential School was closed quite some time ago, survivors living today will never forget their cruel time spent there. Last year, June 2017, marked the 50th anniversary of the closing of the school. A woman by the name of Rose Prosper explained how she still finds it very hard to talk about her time in Shubenacadie Residential School. She describes how her name was taken away from her immediately upon entering the school in 1960; in return she was given a number and a letter, which was her new identity. "I just hope that all us survivors find healing of some sort, I know I'm trying to find mine" (Colley, 2017).  

Residential schools are a very important part of our history but are often left out of discussion. Perhaps this is because we are ashamed that this kind of injustice was permitted in our country, although this makes it even more important to include in teachings. Children deserve to hear the stories of brave survivors and know the truth behind residential schools and that although far too late, a formal apology was made, and it is now recognized how wrong this system was.  

Biography: Katie Cottreau is a Bachelor of Education Student at the University of New Brunswick. She completed her undergrad with a major in Psychology and minor in Sociology at Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Having grown up in Halifax, she aspires to be an elementary school teacher in her hometown and ensure that her students are educated about the events in history that are so often “swept under the rug”, but have played a big role in where we are today.

Further Reading:           

1.     A history of residential schools in Canada | CBC News. (2016, March 21). Retrieved from https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/a-history-of-residential-schools-in-canada-1.702280

2.     Colley, S. (2017, June 21). Memories of abuse at Shubenacadie Residential School linger 50 years later | CBC News. Retrieved from https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/abuse-residential-schools-nuns-survivors-native-children-1.4171588

3.     Hanson, E. (n.d.). The Residential School System. Retrieved from https://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/the_residential_school_system/

4.     Miller, J. R. (2018). Residential Schools in Canada | The Canadian Encyclopedia. In Home | The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/residential-schools

5.     Shubenacadie Indian Residential School. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://explore150.tigweb.org/en/shubenacadie-indian-residential-school 

Notes: 1) Photo of children in front of Shubenacadie Residential School was retrieved from https://www.theguardian.pe.ca/opinion/letter-to-the-editor/indian-residential-schools-a-tragic-legacy-111652/

2) Photo of Shubencadie Residential School was retrieved from https://www.theguardian.pe.ca/opinion/letter-to-the-editor/indian-residential-schools-a-tragic-legacy-111652/

3) Quote by Beverley McLachlin on poster retrieved from https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/chief-justice-says-canada-attempted-cultural-genocide-on-aboriginals/article24688854/

Introduction: Many Aboriginal communities and organizations have implemented the 7 guiding principles, also known as the seven grandfather teachings, as a moral stepping-stone and cultural foundation ("Southern First Nations Network Care", 2018). Each community has applied the teachings to meet the needs of their community values ("Southern First Nations Network Care", 2018). Despite where the teachings originated from, they share the same concept to respect all living things ("Southern First Nations Network Care", 2018).  

The Seven Grandfather Teachings are the following: ("Southern First Nations Network Care", 2018).

·      Love –represented by an Eagle                                 

·      Respect –represented by a Buffalo

·      Courage –represented by a Bear

·      Honesty –represented by a Sasquatch

·      Wisdom –represented by a Beaver

·      Humility –represented by a Wolf

·      Truth –represented by a Turtle

The Ojibwa’s (group of Indigenous Peoples in North America) story of the Seven Grandfather Teachings was passed down for many generations from parent to child and is summarized below: (“The Longhouse, Quiet Land Healing Lodge”, 2018).
The Creator gave the Seven Grandfathers the responsibility to watch over the people and they realized people were living a hard life. They sent a helper six different times to help people realize they could live in a good way with all of creation. The helper found a pure baby boy, who received the teachings, and would be a symbol to the people that it is important to start educating the young right from the beginning. While the boy was traveling with the helper, they were visited seven times by the spirits, who told them about the seven gifts. The young boy was then taken care of by the Otter who returned him to the people to teach them what he had learned. Now an old man after spending so much time in the spiritual world, he shared his spiritual journey back to the seven grandfather’s lodge. He explained the gifts and how to use them when following the path of a good and healthy life by using the seven grandfather’s teachings (“The Longhouse, Quiet Land Healing Lodge”, 2018). 

Biography: Ronnie Daley is from Miramichi, New Brunswick, and is a student at the University of New Brunswick pursuing her Bachelor of Education. She hopes to achieve a Master’s in SLP, The Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Child Psychology, or Exceptionalities.

Further Readings and Resources:
The Gifts of the Seven Grandfathers. (2018). Retrieved from http://ojibwe.net/projects/prayers-teachings/the-gifts-of-the-seven-grandfathers/

Native Teachings & Spiritual Gatherings. (2018). Retrieved from http://www.thelonghouse.org/Medicine-Wheel-and-Seven-Grandfather-Teachings.html
The Seven Teachings. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.southernnetwork.org/site/seven-teachings

What are the Seven Teachings of the Aboriginal Tradition?. (2018). [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuzcVqk4IoY&frags=pl%2Cwn

Follow-up:  Image of The Seven Grandfather Teachings Wheel was retrieved from:

https://www.southernnetwork.org/site/seven-teachings

Deaf schooling and community in Fredericton, NB

Many hearing people do not realize that Deaf people all over the world have their own distinct linguistic and cultural customs, as well as histories, which their communities take pride in. The term “culturally Deaf” refers to Deaf people who do not identify with the idea of deafness as a disability but rather as a unique physical and cultural attribute which is inherent to their identities. North American Deaf culture was largely formed in Deaf residential schools, where most Deaf children travelled and boarded throughout the 1800s and 1900s. The history of these schools is complex as they were both sites of oppression and abuse from hearing society, as well as sites of incredible resistance/support for Deaf Canadians.

Fredericton itself was home to the Fredericton Institution for the Education of the Deaf and Dumb (1883 to 1902.) From 1897 to 1902 the school was housed in the Old Government Building. The school was reviewed for questionable practices in 1902, with many students testifying that they had been emotionally and physically abused by administrators, an experience that was common in Deaf schools throughout Canada. This abuse was a result of hearing culture’s tendency to construct deafness as a disability and deficiency. During this era, American Sign Language, the first language of most Deaf people in North America, was actually banned in Deaf schools and Deaf children were forced in class to perform as hearing children, to their academic and personal detriment.

New Brunswick is now home to a thriving Deaf community which publically practices and fights for their linguistic and cultural rights. The top part of my poster documents a rally to recognize Deaf culture, held in 2009; I attended a very similar rally this Fall, which fought for the recognition of ASL and LSQ as official Canadian languages in disability legislation.

Biography: My name is Amy Foster. I am a hearing Canadian who was lucky enough to do a minor in American Sign Language at Carleton University. Throughout my degree, I became familiar with Deaf culture and the Canadian Deaf community, and discovered a passion for the protection and support of Deaf childhoods throughout the world. Deaf Canadians have a strong, important, and complex history in education that it is important to acknowledge and study in support of the Deaf community.

For further reading see:

Canadian Cultural Society of the Deaf. (2017, October 23). Retrieved from https://deafculturecentre.ca/canadian-cultural-society-of-the-deaf/

Baynton, D. C. (1998). Forbidden signs: American culture and the campaign against sign language. Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press.

Gannon, J. R., Butler, J., & Gilbert, L. (2012). Deaf heritage: A narrative history of deaf America. Gallaudet University Press.

(n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.rubycusack.com/issue148.html

Introduction: There is a strong connection that can be made between art and history. There is also a great importance placed on learning about different cultures and ways of expression, which can be achieved through incorporating art history into the classroom. In her book “Teaching Visual Culture: Curriculum, Aesthetics, and Social Life of Art”, Freedman (2003) argues, “art is communicative and can help people understand aspects of the world that they could not gain access to through other means” (p.xi). In addition, Freedman (2003) contests that art, in itself, is education, and provokes creativity and critical thinking skills; “when students develop a deeper understanding of their visual experiences, they can look critically at surface appearances and begin to reflect on the importance of the visual arts in shaping culture, society, and even individual identity” (p.xi). In turn, the inclusion of art history within the classroom is vital, and provokes extensive and interactive learning for students.

Kenojuak Ashevak was born on the southern coast of Baffin Island on October 3rd, 1927 and died on January 8th, 2013. She was one of the first Inuit women from Cape Dorset to draw. As a result of her beautiful and inspiring art pieces, she went on to become a widely recognized and renowned artist. Kenojuak Ashevak used a variety of different art tools to construct her artwork including graphite, felt tip pens, coloured pencils, paints watercolours as well as acrylics. In addition, she produced soapstone carvings as well as stonecut prints. Her husband, Johnniebo Ashevak, was also an artist and the two of them would often work together until he passed away in 1972.

Kenojuak Ashevak is considered widely to be the most distinguished Inuit artist in history. Her artwork has been on Canadian stamps as well as coins and her prints “Enchanted Owl and Rabbit Eating Seaweed” have become extremely well known pieces of artwork. In turn, Ashevak was voted a member of the Royal Academy of Arts in 1974, appointed a Companion of the Order of Canada in 1982, and received honorary doctorates from Queen’s University and the University of Toronto. She was also inducted into Canada’s Walk of Fame in 2001 (https://newjourneys.ca/en/articles/6-incredible-indigenous-women-every-canadian-should-know-about). Art is an outlet that can be used to express powerful information and emotion and this is what Kenojuak Ashevak was able to do through her artwork. Her story is not only valuable to history as a result of the fact that her artwork is a part of Canadian money, as well as stamps; it is valuable because she used her passion to provoke change and share her story.

Biography: Emma Foster is an education student at the University of New Brunswick. She has a Bachelor of Philosophy and Leadership from Renaissance College and a minor in sociology from the University of New Brunswick. She has a passion for the arts, writing, and working with children.

Further Reading:

1. Auger, E. E. (2011). Way of Inuit art: Aesthetics and history in and beyond the arctic. Jefferson: Mcfarland.

2. LaBarge, D., & Ashevak, K. (1986). From drawing to print: Perception and process in Cape Dorset art. Calgary: Glenbow Museum.

3. Freedman, K. (2003). Teaching Visual Culture: Curriculum, Aesthetics, and the Social Life of Art. Teachers College Press.

Notes: 1) Portrait Kenojuak Ashevak was retrieved from: https://newjourneys.ca/en/articles/6-incredible-indigenous-women-every-canadian-should-know-about.

2) Images of Kenojuak Ashevak creating artwork were retrieved from: https://blog.nfb.ca/blog/2013/01/09/inuit-artist-kenojuak-ashevak/

and http://arcticjournal.ca/arts-culture-education/kenojuak-ashevak-a-woman-of-heart/.

3) Image of Canadian 10-dollar bill was retrieved from: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/bank-of-canada-unveils-new-10-banknote-for-canada-150-celebrations-1.4060501

4) Images of Kenojuak Ashevak’s artwork were retrieved from: http://www.spiritwrestler.com/catalog/index.php?products_id=2729 and https://www.whetung.com/products/preening-owl-by-kenojuak-ashevak.

5) Quote Used on poster retrieved from: http://www.art-quotes.com/auth_search.php?authid=7188#.W7UXea2ZPq0

Introduction: Louis Riel is often referred to as the “Father of Manitoba” and the main driving force behind the region becoming Canada’s fifth province (McLachlin, 2011, p. 11). As the leader of the Metis people of the Canadian Prairies, Louis Riel fought to preserve Metis rights and culture during a turbulent time in Canadian history (Patterson & Lee, 1992). Today, he remains one of them most controversial figures in our country’s past. To many, he is seen as Canadian visionary, a folk hero and a leader. To others, he is a traitor and a mad man.

Riel was born on October 22, 1844 in the Red River settlement near modern day Winnipeg, Manitoba (McLachlin, 2011). This area was heavily populated with Metis and First Nations people. By the 1860’s, religious and racial tensions had intensified in the Red River with the arrival of Anglophone protestant settlers from Ontario (McLachlin, 2011). The political situation in the region had also become unstable. The Red River area was originally controlled by the Hudson’s Bay Company and in 1869, they sold a majority of their rights to new dominion of Canada (McLachlin, 2011). The Metis resisted the takeover of their homeland, known as the Red River Rebellion (McLachlin, 2011). It was during this time that Louis Riel emerged as a charismatic leader for the Metis people, and set out the terms under which Manitoba would enter into Canadian Confederation (Patterson & Lee, 1992). He helped form a provisional government and became its leader. After several contentious negotiations with Ottawa, it was agreed that the Red River Settlement would enter into confederation as the province of Manitoba in 1870 (McLachlin, 2011).

Shortly thereafter, Riel went into exile in the United States before being admitted into a mental asylum in Montreal, where he would remain for seven years (McLachlin, 2011). During this time, many Manitoba Metis who had moved Northwest into parts of present-day Saskatchewan, petitioned the federal government for recognition of their status as rights-bearing citizens and of their claims to land (McLachlin, 2011). Getting no response from the government, the Metis of Saskatchewan reached out to Louis Riel to join their efforts. Failed negotiations led to further conflict between the Metis and the Royal Mounted police, which resulted in the Northwest Rebellion (Patterson & Lee, 1992). The Canadian government responded with the force of 8,000 men and the Metis were defeated on May 12, 1885 and Louis Riel surrendered three days later (McLachlin, 2011).  He was taken to Regina to stand trial for treason, where he was found guilty. Louis Riel was hung, and died on November 16, 1885 (McLachlin, 2011).

His execution was seen as an enormous defeat for the Metis people, and would have lasting political ramifications for many Canadians; particularly is Manitoba and Quebec (Patterson & Lee, 1992). Today, this impact is still felt around the country, and Louis Riels legacy continues to be surrounded by controversy.

Biography: John Friesen is a Bachelor of Education student at the University of New Brunswick. John completed his Bachelor of Arts degree and the University of Manitoba, and plans to begin his teaching career in Manitoba upon completion of the B.Ed. program.

Further Readings:

McLachlin, B. (2011). Louis Riel: Patriot Rebel. Manitoba Law Journal, 35(1), 1-13.

McLaren, I. (Director). (1974). This Riel Business [Motion Picture]. National Film Board. Retrieved October 16, 2018, from https://www.nfb.ca/film/this_riel_business/

Patterson, R., & Lee, A. (1992). Louis Riel and the insanity plea that never came. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 174(1), 84-87.

Notes:

1) Image of Louis Riel was obtained from openclipart.com: https://openclipart.org/download/125299/Louis-David-Riel-Outline-by-Merlin2525.svg

2) Quote from Louis Riel was obtained from Manitoba Metis Federation website: http://www.mmf.mb.ca/louis_riel_quotes.php

Introduction

The Canadian eugenic policies of the 1900s help further illustrate the extent to which the predominantly non-white and non-middle-class colonial population have been disadvantaged in Canada (Billinger, 2014). Most critically the existence of these policies show the fundamental ways in which minority groups, especially First Nations, were viewed by the general population. Highlighting these injustices today not only help prevent history from repeating itself but also work to dispel unsubstantiated beliefs that exist about the humanitarian aspects of past Canadian Governments.

Despite such devastating policies it is exceptionally notable that First Nations groups have persevered and continue to reclaim nearly lost cultures and identities. The will to survive underscores their strength in the face of extreme adversity and the frequent attempts to systematically dismantle any sense of belonging they might have in this country. 

Recently, victims of these policy have settled with the Government for the crimes committed against them. One of these victims was Leilani Muir. Muir’s fallopian tubes were removed without her knowledge at the age of 14 and with the understanding that she was undergoing an appendectomy. She was the first individual to successfully file a lawsuit against the Government of Alberta. Her landmark victory paved the way for thousands of other victims of eugenics policies to become survivors of eugenics policies (Whiting, 1996).

Biography

Sam Garber is a student in the University of New Brunswick Education program. He has travelled coast to coast in this country and struggles with coming to terms with how his history has impacted the people whose land he now lives on. Developing an understanding based on respect and compassion, and hoping to one day stimulate a historical consciousness in future generations is how he hopes to play a role in truth and reconciliation.

Resources and Further Reading/Viewing

*Billinger, M. (2014). Aboriginal and Indigenous Peoples. Retrieved from http://eugenicsarchive.ca/discover/encyclopedia/535eea597095aa000000020d

Eugenics: Canada's Human Rights History. Retrieved from https://historyofrights.ca/encyclopaedia/main-events/eugenics/

Leilani’s Story. Retrieved from http://leilanimuir.ca/about-leilani

Muir v. The Queen in right of Alberta (Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta 1996).

Stote, Karen. (2015) An Act of Genocide: Colonialism and the Sterilization of Aboriginal Women. Fernwood Publishing.

Whiting, G. (1996). The Sterilization of Leilani Muir [DVD]. National Film Board of Canada.

*The entire eugenicsarchive.ca website is a robust resource to learn more about eugenics in Canada from many different perspectives and in many formats.

 Notes

Image of female reproductive anatomy adapted from figure at https://www.asnatureintended.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Uterus-Diagram.png

Introduction:

Almost half of the acreage of potatoes grown in the province are harvested in Carleton County. The potato industry in the area is worth over a million dollars (Brown, 2013). For almost a century, schools of all grades within the community scheduled the academic year to correspond with the fall harvest (2013). The two week break from school allowed students, teachers and even bus drivers to work for farmers. Jobs consisted of working in the field picking potatoes by hand, in the potato house, driving potato truck or more recently driving tractor and sorting on the harvester. The success of harvesting the crop in the fall of the year depended greatly on the collaboration of all workers in Carleton County. This shows the significance of the history of New Brunswick workers within this county.

In the beginning, potatoes were gathered by hand with baskets, barrels and a machine that dug up the potatoes from the soil (Stoffman, 2007). Workers filled a basket then transferred the potatoes in barrels at the end of the row in the field. Each barrel was a total weight of one hundred sixty-five pounds. Pay was based on the amount of barrels filled. Each picker placed a tag with their number on their filled barrels and workers in the potato house collected the tags and counted at the end of each day.

In 1968, McCain Foods replaced potato pickers with a potato harvester in which required workers to ride the harvester to sort potatoes and rocks as the tractor drove down the field (2007). The new machinery eliminated younger children working the harvest due to safety regulations however, farmers still required many helping hands in order to be successful in harvest of the crop. In 2012, school distinct 14 ended potato break due to the more modern day technology that involves fewer manual labour workers. Although potato break no longer exist in Carleton County, school must allow students in upper grades to take time off to work harvest and support the students upon their return to school.

Biography: Karlie Guest is an education student at the University of New Brunswick in the elementary stream. She completed her Bachelor of Arts (Child and Youth Study) at Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Born and raised in a small New Brunswick farming town of Florenceville-Bristol, also reffered to as the French fry capital of the world. She aspires to be a lower elementary teacher in her hometown with a hope to educate her young students of the historial apsects of their town.

References/Further Reading:

1)    Stoffman, D. (2007). From the ground up: the first fifty years of McCain Foods. www.mccainfoods.com

2)    Brown, L. (2013, October 29th). Missing the ‘Potato Break’. Retrieved from https://globalnews.ca/news/932913/missing-the-potato-break/

3)    McMahon, T. (2011, February 14th). Low literacy rates may kill New Brunswick potato break. Retrieved from https://nationalpost.com/news/low-literacy-rates-may-kill-new-brunswick-potato-break

4)    New Brunswick Potato World Museum. Florenceville-Bistol, New Brunswick. (https://www.potatoworld.ca)

Notes:

 1) Image of children, youth and adults harvesting potatoes by hand at McCain Foods. This image was retrieved from:https://www.mccain.com/Documents/McCain%20Foods%20Limited.From%20the%20Ground%20Up.pdf

2) Image of modern day machnery used by Hillspring Farms Ltd. This image was retrieved from the video Diggin taters in Kiloween posted in 2018 on the Hillspring Farms Ltd. Facebook page.

Introduction: When people think about Canada, many have this common misconception that there isn’t a negative history associated with it. In school, we learn about the underground railroads that allowed African-American salves escaped to Canada. Consequently, in learning this in school, it implies that African Canadians were free and had a much easier life. In fact, Canadians are not as innocent as everyone makes us out to be. Although slavery was not as widespread as it was in the United States, it does not mean that the experiences of those effected in Canada were not real. "The difference [between Canada and the United States] is that our history has been covered up" (Afua Cooper: Gill, 2018). In some ways, hiding this history of Canada is worse than admitting to our mistakes and allowing our country to learn from them. “Slavery is seldom featured in Canadian museums, except to extol the virtues of Canadians who helped runaways escaping north” (Brown, 2018)

“The slaves themselves were silenced. They worked so hard that they died at 20 years old or so. If ever they had time to collect their thoughts, they could scarcely record them for posterity. Masters often prohibited them from speaking their own languages. They stripped them of their original African and Indigenous names, and assigned French and English names, effectively wiping out their identity.” (Brown, 2018)

Maugerville, New Brunswick is a small community outside of Fredericton also has ties to a negative past. In fact, the community is named after Joshua Mauger who was a known merchant who brought slaves from the Caribbean and sold them in Halifax, Nova Scotia (Gill, 2018). 

Upon the abolishment of slavery, African Canadians who resided in Canada were free, but it did not mean they were blessed with an easy life following. They had to work twice as hard and to barely get by in comparison to the white population who flourished under normal circumstances.

Biography: Amanda Kenny was born in Bathurst, New Brunswick but has called Fredericton home for the past 20 years. She has a degree in the Science of Kinesiology and is currently a student in the Faculty of Education at the University of New Brunswick, with a focus in the elementary stream. As a way of giving back, she hopes to someday travel to an under-privileged country and teach for a period of time.

Further Readings:

Brown, K. (2018, June 28). Canada's slavery secret: The whitewashing of 200 years of enslavement | CBC Radio. Retrieved from https://www.cbc.ca/radio/ideas/canada-s-slavery-secret-the-whitewashing-of-200-years-of-enslavement-1.4726313

Frisk, A. (2016, May 31). There are 6,500 slaves in Canada, nearly 46 million worldwide: Charity. Retrieved from https://globalnews.ca/news/2731827/there-are-6500-slaves-in-canada-nearly-46-million-worldwide-charity/

Namakanda, M. (2015, February 11). New Brunswick's Black History – The Argosy. Retrieved from http://www.since1872.ca/features/new-brunswicks-black-history/

References:

Gill, J. (2018, February 21). 'Our history has been covered up': Facing New Brunswick's past on slavery | CBC News. Retrieved from https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/new-brunswick-history-slavery-1.4544260

Brown, K. (2018, June 28). Canada's slavery secret: The whitewashing of 200 years of enslavement | CBC Radio. Retrieved from https://www.cbc.ca/radio/ideas/canada-s-slavery-secret-the-whitewashing-of-200-years-of-enslavement-1.4726313

Notes:

Image of the hand in chains was retrieved from: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/faqs-know-libyan-slave-trade/

Wanted image of Saint-John slave retrieved from: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/new-brunswick-history-slavery-1.4544260

The Petticoat Policy

For a brief but significant period of time in the province of New Brunswick, decades before the political voice of females in this country was acknowledged, women were allowed to vote and had their democratic rights recognized. Lasting from about 1795 until 1849, when the amendment to the Elections act disallowed women this privilege, this brief window in the province’s history highlights the progressive nature, independence, and strength of the women that helped lay the foundation for New Brunswick. This history also provides a unique opportunity to learn about these women and the nature of the elections they participated in.

To be eligible to participate in provincial elections in New Brunswick voters had to meet specific age and property requirements. Most of the women who voted in the elections during this time met these legal requirements for voting which included:

·       Potential electors had to be at least 21 years old

·       Potential voters had to own real estate in the country in which they intended to vote

Many of these female voters could also be described as “femme soles”. They were independent women, either widows or women who had never married and were also socially recognized as the heads of their households.

Most of the elections these ladies participated in were highly competitive contests. Because of this, candidates were willing to ignore social conventions to secure as many supporters as they could. Unfortunately, in scenarios where re-counts were requested and the direct validity of the votes was challenged, the votes cast by female electors were in some instances disqualified.

This noteworthy episode in the history of New Brunswick most importantly highlights that women were active and significant participants in the creation of the colony’s political landscape. Although this power to vote was rarely exercised, women were politically engaged and able to campaign for their favoured candidates, participate in election crowds, and petition the government to address their concerns. These factors were undoubtedly influential in the political history during the formation and growth of this small province.

Biography: Lukasz Kornas is a BEd student at the University of New Brunswick with a focus on the Elementary level. Originally from Poland, he completed his 1st degree in Commerce at McMaster University and spent the last 7 years working in a Recreation Management setting.

Further reading:

1. Kim Klein, "A "Petticoat Polity"? Women Voters in New Brunswick Before Confederation", Acadiensis, XXVI, 1 (Autumn 1996), pp. 71-75

2. Provincial Elections History. https://www.electionsnb.ca/content/enb/en/about-us/history.html 2018 Elections New Brunswick.

3. Cleverdon, Catherine. The Woman Suffrage Movement in Canada. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1950.

Ever since a friend introduced me to the band A Tribe Called Red last summer, I haven’t been able to get them out of my head. The pounding hip hop beat paired with the Native chanting is spectacular, in my opinion. I’ve been doing random research on them ever since and have come across other fascinating Indigenous artists as well.

Researching all these artists further, for this project, was exhilarating. The artists I chose to include are all incredible musicians and storytellers: each one contributes their unique musical style and their passion for Indigenous activism. The combination of traditional chanting and throat singing with modern beats, plus the poignant lyrics, make for an impressive musical twist.

For this poster, I was inspired by A Tribe Called Red’s first album cover, with the headphones being the base for the head dress. The title of my poster is ‘Celebrate Indigenous Music’ with the tagline ‘fueled by mixing traditional singing styles, wicked beats, and lyrical activism.’

The turtle at the bottom of the poster relates to an old Iroquois creation myth, where it’s believed that the world grew on top of a turtle’s back. Since Indigenous cultures are strongly connected with the land, I have the headphones cord plugged into the turtle, as if Indigenous music is plugged into nature, inspired by nature.

Each feather in the head dress represents a carefully selected, mostly Canadian, Indigenous band. Inside each feather: 1. I wrote the name one of their best songs, plus the name of the band; 2. I described the genre of music they play and if they use any traditional chanting or throat singing; 3. And I included a quote by the band that highlights their commitment to Indigenous activism.

I believe that students would undoubtedly appreciate this exhilarating music: it would be a fresh idea in the classroom for them, to listen and to study such unique, Indigenous music coupled with the activism embedded in the lyrics. Teachers could use the issues mentioned – residential schools, climate change, awakening the warrior spirit within, common Indigenous misconceptions, social injustices, abuse, and poverty – in a variety of ways, across the curriculum.

BIOGRAPHY

My name is Amy Lalonde. Up until this summer, I’ve been teaching and travelling abroad for the last 12 years. I’ve taught English in Vietnam, Poland, South Korea, China, and in my hometown of Calgary before all that. In that time, I’ve also travelled extensively through Asia and went on an 8 month trip through Europe last year. But I absolutely loved living in a small town in South Korea – it was nestled between the coast and the mountains and I enjoyed hiking, biking, running, plus plenty of sports with friends. I also rescued over 30 stray cats and dogs from the community there, since there wasn’t an animal shelter in the area. These are probably my most cherished memories – caring for these wonderful fuzzies, until finding them great homes now scattered around the world.

FURTHER READING

Indigenous Artists You Need to Know in 2018, www.cbcmusic.ca www.indigenousmusicawards.com
www.junoawards.ca

FURTHER LISTENING

www.cbcmusic.ca/genres/indigenous http://iskwe.com/music-downloads http://atribecalledred.com/music

POSTER BIBLIOGRAPHY
For the quotes, inside the feathers. From left to right:

2. ‘Unafraid to challenge the convictions of her detractors by honouring her heritage, standing steadfast in her viewpoints, Iskwe’s artistry knows no bounds.” -ikswe.com

1. It’s a “real rebellious nature that fuels Yellowsky's music. “I was raised by residential school survivors... that's where I get my rebel side.” -Yellowsky Facebook page

3. “Mob Bounce’s lyrical content is based on culture, spirituality, sustainable living, healing, Mother Earth and awakening a warrior spirit, since it is a warrior who sacrifices themselves for the better of others.” -Mob Bounce Facebook page

4. “The Jerry Cans are passionate about helping to preserve the Inuktitut language, especially as the north evolves, and are committed to challenging common misconceptions about life in the Arctic.” -The Jerry Cans Facebook page

5. “A Tribe Called Red promotes inclusivity, empathy, and acceptance amongst all races and genders in the name of social justice. They believe that Indigenous people need to define their identity on their own terms.” -junoawards.ca/nomination/atribecalledred-indigenousmusicawards.com/nominees/supaman

6. “His uncanny ability to motivate, encourage, and inspire through dance, and hip hop music keeps him at the forefront among his contemporaries which gives him a platform to educate on Indigenous issues.”

7. “Fueled by issues like politics, climate change and Indigenous rights, she’s an artist, an activist, a protestor and the voice of an entire generation.” -digitaldrum.ca/tag/tanyatagiq

8. “It’s about peace and courage and the idea that it’s time to change the whole paradigm – stop the violence against each other, ourselves, and against the land.” -diggingrootsmusic.com

This poster represents the traumatic history of the fate of Les Patriotes of Quebec during the 1837-1838 rebellion. These men came from many different socio- economic and occupational backgrounds (Government of Canada, 2011). This rebellion was one that arose from the resistance towards British rule and the Catholic Church in every day social and political systems such as the workforce, government and school systems. This rebellion began as peaceful and moved towards violence as time progressed (Government of Canada, 2011). Many deaths occurred, mostly of the protestors at the hands of those in power. As protestors were defeated, their fates were decided (Gill, 2014). Les Patriotes were considered “lucky” as they were not sentenced to death but rather were exiled. They boarded a ship, named the “Buffalo”, that took them on a harsh five month journey to Australia where they worked excruciating labour jobs, building up the surrounding area of what is now Sydney, for 20 months (Buckner, 2018). Exhibiting “good behaviour," compliance and genuine personalities, these men were allowed to pursue work in other areas of the country before receiving full pardons and allowed re-entry to Canada in 1844 (Government of Canada, 2011). All men returned home, except for one; who remained in Australia and create a new life. The areas in which the men laboured are memorialized with names such as “Exile Bay and Canada Bay”(Buckner, 2018).

This bit of history is important to remember in Canada as it exhibits the marginalization that has been faced by minority groups, particularly the Francophones, in Canada throughout time. It is important to know the part our Country its people have played in the history of other parts of the world (in this case, Australia) and that receiving a ‘pardon’ does not erase the horrible treatment, and lost time, of those involved. It is also an incredibly important story of the rise of democracy within our nation and highlights the importance of standing up for what is right, despite ones education, socio-economic background and mother tongue.

Biography

My name is Samantha Laviolette. I am a 23 year old caucasian female who has been born and raised in New Brunswick. I hold a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Anthropology from Mount Allison University. I have grown up traveling and appreciating other cultures and plan to take my education career abroad to teach internationally after UNB.

Further Reading:
Buckner, Phillip A. (2018) . Rebellions of 1837–38. The Canadian Encyclopedia, Historica Canada. https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/rebellions-of-1837. Accessed 20 September 2018.

Government of Canada. (2011). High Commission of Canada in Australia:

Canadian Convicts in Australia. http://www.canadainternational.gc.ca/australia-australie/ bilateral_relations_bilaterales/history-histoire.aspx?lang=eng. Accessed 18 September 2018.

Gill, Stewart (2014). “Labour History.” Labour History, 107, 225–226. www.jstor.org/stable/10.5263/labourhistory.107.0225.

Introduction:

Christi Belcourt is a Michif (Metis) visuel artist who was born in Scarborough, Ontario with roots in Manitou Saskhigan, Alberta. Christi is known as a community based artist, an author, an environmentalist and an advocate for the lands, waters and Indigenous peoples. Christi has received multiple awards including the Governor General’s Innovation award, being named the Aboriginal Arts Laureate by the Ontario Arts Council and was named the winner of the 2016 Premier’s Awards in the Arts. Christi’s beautiful, colourful artwork can be found all over Canadian art Galleries.

Among many things, Christi initiated a commemorative art exhibition, Walking with our Sisters, which she likes to think more of a memorial rather than an exhibition. This project was created to remember and honour missing and murdered indigenous woman. The exhibition displays pairs of decorated moccasin vamps, representing each woman who has disappeared. So far, there are 1820 pairs.

As well, in 2011 she created a stained glass piece titled Giniigaaniimenaning (Looking Forward) to commemorate the Residential School Survivors and their descendants. It was installed above the main entrance in Centre Block, at Parliament Hill in Ottawa.

Most recently, Valentino the famous fashion designer approached her to use her floral designs from her painting called the Water song. After assuring Valentino’s environmental practices for creating the fabrics were up to her standard, she agreed, and the collection is now out. Among all of the work Christi Belcourt has done dedicating her work for social change and justice for Indigenous Peoples, we are sure to hear more about her in the future.

Biography:

Emily Rose Ellen Locknick is currently a bachelor of education student at the University of New Brunswick. She has an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree focusing on Psychology and French as a Second Language from the University of Ottawa. Emily likes to explore nature’s beauty in her spare time and is very passionate about education.

Further readings:

"Christi Belcourt receives Governor General Award for Innovation". CBC News. May 19, 2016. Retrieved 2017-04-03.

Porter, Jody (October 10, 2014). "Walking With Our Sisters installation 'more than beautiful artwork'". CBC News, Thunder Bay. Retrieved May 5, 2016.

"Stained Glass Window in Parliament Commemorating the Legacy of Indian Residential Schools". Indigenous And Northern Affairs Canada. December 12, 2012. Retrieved May 5, 2016.

"Métis artist Christi Belcourt inspires Valentino fashion line". Retrieved May 5, 2016.

Everett-Green, Robert (August 4, 2015). The Globe and Mail

Notes: Pictures were taken from Christi’s website, http://christibelcourt.com/

Introduction: Canada’s history is an important element in every classroom to teach students where we have come from, where we are going and where we are now, but leaving out certain parts of Canadian history is not teaching students a true depiction of what Canada was. Thomas Peters was one of the pioneers and activists for black communities in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick in 1785, he fought for the rights to own land and continued to petition the British government until he was given what he was promised (Walker 1992). Thomas Peters’ history was an important aspect of the segregation and discrimination that happened in Canada as well as just one example of how slaves were treated once in a place where they were supposed to be “free” (Walker 81).

The earliest documentation of Thomas Peters was speculated to be of him being captured and enslaved in Africa and being brought over by boat to be sold as a slave in North Carolina (Alexander and Rucker 377-78). Thomas ran away in North Carolina in 1775 and joined the British army as they promised “freedom to rebel-owned slaves” if they took up arms with the British (Walker 2003). Thomas became a “sergeant in the Black Pioneers and Guides” which was a unit that was normally given to African American’s and although they normally did not fight, they were often in the most dangerous situations, they were used as engineers to “scout, raid and build” (Alexander and Rucker 377)(Cromwell 2017). Once finished with the British army, Thomas and his family were transported to Nova Scotia where they went in homes of the freedom and land they were promised but instead “endured harsh conditions” and were segregated in the community (Walker 78) (Alexander and Rucker 377).

Thomas organized the first petition for land in Nova Scotia in 1784 against the British government for better distribution of land, to no avail (Walker 94). Because he was a sergeant in the Black Pioneers, he held more of a leadership position with the African American community of Nova Scotia and so after being denied land because of the colour of his skin, left Nova Scotia to come to New Brunswick in hope of better treatment of his people (Walker 94). Segregation and discrimination happened all over Canada and is something that is not talked about in the school systems, Thomas Peters story needs to be told as he was promised“he would be given equal treatment with all other loyalists and disbanded soldiers.”

However, when Peters petitioned for a grant of land near Fredericton, which to him appeared vacant and available was informed that that land in question was part of a tract already granted to white Loyalists” (Walker 94).

Unfortunately, the only land the Peters family was granted was un-inhabitable or in very poor conditions and even if they somehow made it work, they would be kicked off the land and placed in a different, worse plot of land. This continued to happen to Peters until 1790, after he had petitioned for three different plots of “profitable” land over New Brunswick and Nova Scotia and was rejected every time, when he decided to by-pass both provinces and petition directly to the British cabinet (Walker 94). He had the support of 102 African American families in Annapolis county as well as 100 African American families in St. John and went directly to England to give the petition (Walker 95). The document contained information on how African Americans were being treated in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia and showed the unfair advantage white loyalists had even when they were promised land. Peters fought for the rights and equality for his people and because of his petitions there was an investigation into how the land was being dispersed in New Brunswick and Nova Scotian communities and the British government offered those that wished to stay in Canada “competent settlements” and also an alternative for those who wished to leave continue to be “free subjects of the British Empire” (Walker 2003). Peters continued to fight for the rights of the equality of African American colonies in Canada and then also in Sierra Leone and is one of the people who helped name “Freetown”, Freetown. (Walker 2003).

Biography: Jean MacDonald did her undergrad in the faculty of arts at the University of New Brunswick and majored in Sociology and English. I live, study and work on unceded and un-surrendered Wolastoqiyik territory. She is almost done her first semester of her Bachelor of Education at the University of New Brunswick and will leave to teach students in Wales in the United Kingdom once finished in Fredericton.

Further Reading:

1.     Walker, J. W. (1992). The Black Loyalists: The Search for a Promised Land in Nova Scotia and Sierra Leone, 1783-1870, 94-107. https://books.google.ca/books?hl=en&lr=&id=BMY79c675JsC&oi=fnd&pg=PR7&dq=black+history+Thomas+Peters+nova+scotia&ots=8_y_4ApUyx&sig=zLVTEf7UEt40Ld_hBa9bu7nx59w#v=onepage&q=Thomas%20Peters&f=false

2.     Alexander, L.M and Rucker, A. (2010). Encyclopedia of African American History, Volume 1, 377-378. https://books.google.ca/books?id=Uhh7GggNxQoC&pg=PA377&lpg=PA377&dq=thomas+peters+black+activist&source=bl&ots=ugZM4WcofZ&sig=U6629VEoOOqjBkcPe7RfxEUyems&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjblquPvo3eAhXrlFQKHbnwC7kQ6AEwEHoECAIQAQ#v=onepage&q=thomas%20peters&f=false 

3.     Walker, J.W. (2003). “PETERS, THOMAS,” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 4, University of Toronto/Université Laval. http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio.php?id_nbr=2115

4.     Cromwell, M. (2017). Black Loyalists: Our History, Our People. http://blackloyalist.com/cdc/story/revolution/pioneers.htm

Notes: 1) Image of Thomas Peters recreated was retrieved from J.W. Walkers Biography from the Dictionary of Canadian Biography.  (http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio.php?id_nbr=2115)

2) Image of the recreation of the boats that were used when caring slaves across the ocean was retrieved from (https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2007/3/6/308981/- )

3) Image of the map of the world was retrieved from https://www.conceptdraw.com/How-To-Guide/geo-map

4) Image in the background of the world is a recreated image of what some of the enslaved people and their families may have looked like when being transported to Canada and was retrieved from (https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2007/3/6/308981/- )

Richard Wagamese (1955-2017) was a writer and in his words  "a spiritual bad-ass." Wagamese was Ojibwa and used his experiences to shape many great indigenous pieces of writing. His parents were raised in residential schools and he was taken away in the “sixties scoop”. Wagamese struggled in his early life with addiction, homelessness and incarceration. Later in life he was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder caused by the number of adversities he was forced to face. Wagamese grew his literary base by reading extensively in public libraries. He was self taught and through talent and hard work became one of the most important writers in Canada. He died in 2017.

Richard Wagamese rose to success in the 1990’s writing on the hit T.V. show “North of 60”. He wrote  for the Calgary Herald and won a National Magazine Award. Wagamese was also a writer for the “Royal Commision on Aboriginal Peoples” in 1996. Indian Horse was a graphic novel turned into major motion picture. A powerful story about an exceptional hockey player who grew up  and was abused in residential schools. This eye opening movie combines the national pride of hockey with the countries  history of despicable treatment of the Indigenous People.

Wagemese writes about indigenous struggle with family in “For Joshua: An Ojibway Father Teaches his Son” and about addiction and death in Medicine “Walk”.

Wagamese in an interview had this to say:

“I’m not a native writer,” says Wagamese. “I’m a fucking writer.… I don’t want to be compared, I don’t want to be ghettoized, I don’t want to be marginalized.… I just want [people] to read my work and go, ‘Wow.’”

Biography: Ryan MacKinnon is a life long learner that was NOT taught the truth about Indigenous issues in the New Brunswick curriculum. He has taken it upon himself to further his knowledge by going straight to the source. Indigenous works will be heavily featured in his current and future teaching.

Further Reading:

Medicine Walk (2014) - Richard Wagamese

For Joshua: An Ojibway Father Teaches His Son (2002) - Richard Wagamese

Photos: https://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/richard-wagamese-obit-1.4020899

https://cfjctoday.com/article/563014/award-winning-author-richard-wagamese-dead-61

http://www.wcaltd.com/richard-wagamese-wins-matt-cohen-award-and-more/

Notes:

https://www.cbc.ca/books/richard-wagamese-on-why-canada-needs-more-indigenous-writers-1.4043777

https://quillandquire.com/authors/a-long-journey/

https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/richard-wagamese

Introduction: It is clear throughout reading and researching about issues regarding safe drinking water in Canada that most of us take access to clean water for granted. For decades, First Nation communities across the country have been living with drinking water full of harmful bacteria, chemicals, and heavy metals (VICE NEWS, 2017). While government-after-government has vowed to fix the problem, the issue has not been resolved (VICE NEWS, 2017). Even though Canada is home to the world’s third largest per-capita freshwater reserve, Indigenous communities are using water that is contaminated, difficult to access, or at risk due to faulty treatment systems (BBC, 2018). It is atrocious that the government regulates water quality for the rest of Canada, but has no binding regulations for water on reserves (Human Rights Watch, 2016).

In 2016, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised to resolve the crisis and end long-term boil water advisories within five years (Klasing, 2018). However, the problem cannot be fixed just with words and empty promises; it is time for Canada to fulfill everyone’s right to clean, healthy water. The government should be collaborating with Indigenous communities to develop a plan for long-term and sustainable solutions with measurable targets to monitor success (Klasing, 2018). There are many countries and people who face water crises, but none have the natural or financial resources of Canada (Klasing, 2018). Communities like Shoal Lake 40, outside Winnipeg, Manitoba, have been under water advisories for over 20 years, and a whole generation of children grew up unable to drink the water from their taps. Individuals from this generation are now starting to have their own children, who only know bottle and jug water as well (Human Rights Watch, 2016).

Biography: Gurdiksh Malhotra is a Pre-Service teacher in the Bachelor of Education program at the University of Brunswick, located on unceded and un-surrendered Wolastoqiyik territory. He is working towards becoming a licensed Secondary School Teacher. He is a lifelong learner, looking to uncover and share issues about Canada’s marginalized and forgotten peoples and groups.

Further Reading:

16x9onglobal. (November 7, 2015) As Long as The Waters Flow. Retrieved September 20, 2018 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDqDKo5nSK8

Human Rights Watch. (June 7, 2016) Canada's Water Crisis: Indigenous Families at Risk. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=11&v=Arnqpnm70Ng Glass Half Empty?

Attallah, M., Duggan, A., Gayama, Y., Kashaf, F., et al. (2018, August 26). Finding a solution to Canada’s Indigenous water crisis. Retrieved September 20, 2018, from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-44961490

Canada’s Indigenous water crisis. (2017, September 8). Retrieved September 20, 2018, from https://news.vice.com/en_ca/article/3kpjby/canadas-indigenous-water-crisis

Klasing, Amanda. (2016, August 30 – Updated 2018, May 16). Why is Canada denying its indigenous peoples clean water? Retrieved September 20, 2018, from https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/why-is-canada-denying-its-indigenous-peoples-clean-water/article31599791/

Lukawiecki, J. (2017, February). (Rep.). Retrieved September 20, 2018, from David Suzuki Foundation and The Council of Canadians, website:

https://canadians.org/sites/default/files/publications/report-drinking-water-advisories-0217.pdf

Notes: 1) Image was retrieved from VICE News Canada (https://news.vice.com/en_ca/article/3kpjby/canadas-indigenous-water-crisis)
2) Quote was retrieved from (https://canadians.org/media/federal-party-leaders-urged-end- drinking-water-crisis-first-nation-communities-once-and-all)

Introduction
Hockey has always been considered the “whitest” of the major sports in North America. However, the sport has the Coloured Hockey League of the Maritimes (CHL) to thank for many of the elements of the modern game. The CHL was founded in the late 1800s by Black evangelicals and intellectuals in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The four men that are credited with the creation of the league are “Pastor James Borden of Dartmouth Church; James A. R. Kinney, a Cornwallis Street Church layman and later the first black graduate of the Maritime Business College; James Robinson Johnston, first black graduate of the Dartmouth University law program; and Henry Sylvester Williams, a Trinidadian law student at Dalhousie University and later founder of the first Pan-African Conference” (Fosty & Fosty, 2018).

The league was comprised of teams from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island and the players were largely the sons and grandsons of slaves that had made their way to the Maritimes by way of the Underground Railroad. Many of the elements of modern hockey were invented in the CHL: the slapshot (thought to have been invented by Canadiens legend Boom Boom Geoffrion until recently), goaltenders leaving their feet to make a save, and goaltenders playing the puck behind the net are all mainstays of the modern game and all came from the CHL (ESPN, 2007).

The CHL had mostly dissolved by 1925 due to the pressures of World War I and the Great Depression (Fosty & Fosty, 2018); however, the legacy of the CHL lives on in the modern game and in players of colour across time and region.

Biography

Mark Mandrusiak is an educator and lifelong hockey fan from Edmonton, AB. He is currently a B.Ed student at the University of New Brunswick on the traditional territory of the Wolastoqiyik People in Fredericton, NB. He hopes to inculcate an appreciation for history, sport, and the intersection of the two in his students current and future.

Further Reading/Viewing

1.     Fosty, D. & Fosty G. (2007) Black Ice: The History of the Colored Hockey League of the Maritimes, 1895-1925, New York: Stryker-Indigo.

2.     Fosty, D. & Fosty, G. (2018, February 2). “Coloured Hockey League.” The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/coloured-hockey-league.

3.     ESPN (Originally aired 25 February 2007). Feature on the Coloured Hockey League of the Maritimes. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2QZm8llvig.

Notes

1.     Image of Halifax Eurekas retrieved from the website Hockey Gods (http://hockeygods.com/images/11865-Halifax_Eurekas___Colored_Hockey_League_Champions_1904) . Original source unknwon.

Introduction:

Daphne Odjig was born 11 September 1919 at Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve, Manitoulin Island, ON to a Potawatomi First World War veteran father and his English wife. Due to an illness in her childhood, she had to leave school and was educated mostly by her grandfather who emphasized sketching, drawing, and what would become her true love, painting. During the Second World War, Daphne moved to Toronto to further her studies and practice of painting, which were mostly influenced by Impressionists like Picasso and Matisse. At this time she hadn’t fully embraced her heritage due to discrimination she had faced and it wasn’t until she attended an annual powwow in Wikwemikong in the 60s that she was inspired to convey her art to channel and celebrate the traditions of her people. The Canadian Encyclopedia describes Daphne as:

“A founding member of the 1970s artists’ alliance Professional Native Indian Artists Inc. (also known as the Indian Group of Seven), she combined her originality as a painter with her social awareness as a feminist Anishinaabe artist and activist to create a body of work that helped bring an Indigenous voice to the foreground of contemporary Canadian art.”

“She was the driving force behind the Professional Native Indian Artists Association, a group considered a pioneer in bringing First Nations art to the forefront of Canada's art world.”- CBC News

Throughout her career Daphne received many honours attributed to her trailblazing way of painting to convey woman and First Nations in a positive light. These include but are not limited to the Order of Canada, Governor General’s Aware and a National Aboriginal Achievement Award for Arts and Culture. Arguably, her most esteemed accomplishment was in October 2009, when Daphne Odjig was honoured with the first solo exhibition by a female First Nations artist at the National Gallery of Canada. Without her impact, feminist aboriginal art would not have transcended and broken down barriers to encourage a new movement of proud artists today.

Biography:

Jaime Mayer is currently completing her BEd at UNB with a passion for early childhood education. She has lived, worked and traveled abroad for almost half of her life and has reached six continents. She hopes to continue to teach internationally upon graduation to see more of this beautiful planet.

Further Reading:

1.) Devine, B., Redbird, D., Houle, R. (2007). The Drawings and Paintings of Daphne Odjig. Natl Gallery of Canada

2.) Odjig, D., Podedworny, C., Boyer, R. (2001). Odjig: The Art of Daphne Odjig 1960-2000. Key Porter Books; 1st Edition

3.) Odjig, D. (1992).  A Paintbrush in My Hand: Daphne Odjig. Natural Heritage Books; 1st Edition

Notes:

1.)  The top painting is Daphne Odjig Harmony and the Universe, can be found at the Gallery Gevik in Toronto.( http://www.mackenzieartgallery.ca/engage/exhibitions/the-drawings-and-paintings-of-daphne-odjig-a-retrospective-exhibition)

2.)  The image on the bottom left is of Daphne Odjig in front of her 1991 painting: Bond With The Earth. (https://vancouversun.com/entertainment/local-arts/world-renowned-kelowna-artist-daphne-odjig-dies-at-97)

3.)  The final image, taken in 2008 and shows Daphne pictured in front of her permanent murals at the Museum of Civilization in Ottawa, (http://www.edmontonjournal.com/sports/Gallery+Artist+Daphne+Odjig+work/4684584/story.html)

Introduction:

John Peters Humphrey was the author of the first draft of The Declaration of Human Rights. Humphrey was born in Hampton, New Brunswick in 1905. He lost both of his parents to cancer at a young age. Unfortunately, he lost his arm at the age of six in a fire (Scott, 2011). Humphrey went through a great deal of trauma and loss at a young age, however, he did not let these circumstances hold him back (Scott, 2011). After graduating from Mount Allison University, Humphrey received his Law Degree at McGill University. After earning his Law Degree, he was granted a fellowship to study in Paris (“Biography,” 2012). Following completion of his fellowship, he returned to McGill to complete his Master of Law with a focus on International Law.

Humphrey was offered the role of Director of The United Nations of Human Rights Division by an old friend who correspondingly worked at the United Nations (“Biography,” 2012). This was when Humphrey’s career took off. He moved to New York and begun working for the United Nations (U.N.). A great deal was asked of Humphrey when he began, in fact, he was asked to create the first draft of The Declaration of Human Rights,

Early in his mandate, in 1946, Humphrey would be asked by Eleanor Roosevelt, the former First Lady of the United States and Chair of the U.N. Human Rights Commission, to do something that had never been done before – to draft an international bill of rights (“The Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” 2012).

Humphrey worked with a team to create the 408-page blue print that would later be transformed into The Declaration of Human Rights (“The Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” 2012). Interestingly enough, he was not given credit for the creation of the Bill until much later in his life. It was not until Rene Cassin, the author who assembled Humphrey’s work to piece together the first draft of The Declaration, recognized |Humphrey’s contribution, that Humphrey received public acknowledgement for his work (“The Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” 2012). Humphrey dedicated much of his life working towards equality, focusing on status of women, freedom of press, and racial discrimination (“Biography, 2012). His hard work for equality paid off through the Bill, and “on December 10th, 1948 the Canadian representation from the U.N. General Assembly, along with 47 others from the U.N. member nations, adopted The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and each year, since 1965, global citizens have commemorated Human Rights Day on December 10th (“The Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” 2012). After Humphrey’s U.N. career, he wrote and continued to speak about the array of issues relating to human rights in Canada and all over the world (Madakoro, 2016).

Biography:

Jess McCutcheon is an Education Student at the University of New Brunswick. She currently resides in Saint John, NB, however, is originally from Toronto, ON. She loves working with children, has a passion for animals and dedicates a lot of her free time to re-reading the Harry Potter series.

Further Reading:

1.     Biography. (2012). Retrieved October 17, 2018, from http://humphreyhampton.org/biography.html

2.     John Peters Humphrey. (2017, April 7). Retrieved October 17, 2018, from https://www2.gnb.ca/content/gnb/en/departments/nbhrc/education-and-engagement/john-peters-humphrey.html

3.     Madokoro, L. (2016, April 7). Out of the Archive: Bringing the John Peters Humphrey Collection into the classroom | Library Matters. Retrieved October 15, 2011, from http://news.library.mcgill.ca/out-of-the-archive-john-peters-humphrey

4.     Scott, A. H. (2011). The boy who was bullied: The story about the life of John Peters Humphrey, drafter of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Tantallon: Glen Margaret Pub.

5.     The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. (2012). Retrieved October 16, 2018, from http://humphreyhampton.org/the-universal-declaration-of-human-rights.html

Notes:

1.     The image of John Peters Humphry was received form an article from McGill University highlighting Humphrey’s activism  http://news.library.mcgill.ca/out-of-the-archive-john-peters-humphrey/

2.     The image of the protesting fists was received from http://www.kunm.org/post/indigenous-rights-power-repeat-protest-spanish-entrada

Environmental Racism, Indigenous Resistance and the Odeyak Voyage

Introduction: The Odeyak Voyage was a 5-week journey undertaken by members of the James Bay Cree Nation and Inuit from Northern Quebec to New York in 1990. The goal of their trip was to raise awareness and to stop the Quebec government and Hydro-Quebec corporation from undertaking an expansion of the James Bay hydroelectric dam complex (Isacsson, Salzman, and Zannis, 1996).

The James Bay project, Quebec’s largest hydro-electric dam facility, was constructed between 1971 and 1986 in Northern Quebec on territory inhabited by the Cree and Inuit people. Prior to the start of construction, the 5000 Cree and 3500 Inuit of the area, as well as environmental groups strongly opposed the project. The Cree and Inuit were not even informed of the hydroelectric project which would flood 11,300 km2 of traditional hunting territory until construction of the access road had already begun (Hornig, 1999).

The impact of the project was felt by the Cree and Inuit both socially and environmentally. The mass flooding caused heavy mercury pollution making fishing in the area an impossibility. The vastness of the reservoirs also led to local climate change (Hornig, 1999).

In the late 1980s, Hydro Quebec proposed an additional project on Great Whale river. The additional electricity generated by this new site was not needed by the province and the power would be sold to the sate of New York as a source of income.  Polsuns (1993) referred to the James Bay project as “Hydro Quebec's utterly crazed scheme to commit cultural and economic genocide against Quebec's northern Natives” (p.10).

In 1990, Grand Chief Matthew Coon Come organized a canoe trip from Hudson Bay to the Hudson river in New York. The crew, consisting of both Cree and Inuit people, traveled in a large canoe-hybrid. The word Odeyak is a portmanteau of the Cree word for canoe ‘ode’ and the Inuktitut word kayak. The voyage was part public relations stunt, part behind the scenes negotiations. Working alongside the NRDC, Coon Come was successful in convincing New York State to withdraw their multibillion-dollar power purchasing agreement from Quebec. In 1994, the Government of Quebec and Hydro-Québec suspended the project indefinitely (Isacsson et al., 1996).

Biography: Madeleine McKane is an EAL teacher and graduate of Concordia University originally from Wakefield, Quebec. She is currently completing her elementary education degree at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton.

Further reading/viewing:

1. Hornig, J. F. (1999). Social and Environmental Impacts of the James Bay Hydroelectric Project. Montreal: McGill-Queens University Press.

2. Isacsson, M. (director), Salzman, G. (producer) & Zannis, M. (producer). (1996). Power [Documentary film]. Canada: National Film Board of Canada.

3. Polsuns, M. (1993). Voices from the Odeyak. Toronto: NC Press.

Notes:

1) Image of the James Bay project dam was retrieved from The Star https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2016/05/02/cree-nation-on-quebec-side-of-james-bay-thriving-while-first-nations-on-ontario-side-languish.html                                                                                                                          2) Image of the Odeyak voyagers was retrieved from the CBC https://www.cbc.ca/winschgaoug/episodes/2011/02/18/historic-odeyak-canoe-returns-to-eeyou-istchee/                     

3) Image of the Hydro Quebec logo was retrieved from Protégez-Vous https://www.protegez-vous.ca/Nouvelles/Affaires-et-societe/Hausse-des-tarifs-dHydroQuebec-LUnion-des-consommateurs-sinsurge       

4) The quote “The more our land is destroyed, the more our spirit is destroyed” was from Power (Isacsson et al., 1996).

Introduction:

     Corinne Gallant was a renowned feminism leader from New Brunswick, Canada. She was born in Moncton, NB, Canada in 1922. Ms. Gallant quickly realized at a young age that her Acadian sisters, including herself, were facing a lot of injustice and inequity in “l’Acadie”.[1]  Woman’s rights were not fought for until Corinne provided a voice for those who were too scared to come forward.  She protested for their rights. She dedicated herself and her life to the advancement of woman, especially French woman, living in New Brunswick. If it was not for, her exceptional involvement in woman`s causes and advocating for them, the life as we know it now in New Brunswick and Canada, would not have been the same. [2]

     She created the first feminism course in Canada. Eighty woman from her course kept meeting even after it was over which led to the creation of the first feminist group, La Fédération des dames d’Acadie, in New Brunswick in 1968.[3]To this day the Federation is still running smoothly but with a different name “Regroupement Féminisme du Nouveau-Brunswick”.  She was also president of the first national organization of feminist researchers, the Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women (CRIAW). She played a key role in the creation the New Brunswick Advisory Council on the Status of Women where she co-chaired and remained an active member until 1994.[4]

     Aside being the pioneer in the feminism movement in New Brunswick, she was a professor of philosophy at Université de Moncton for many years and then became the director of the philosophy program later to become Vice Dean of the Faculty of Arts at the same University. She was also one of the first Acadian female to receive her doctorate.[5]

Here are all of her national, provincial and regional awards and honor:[6]

·       125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal

·       Member of the Order of Canada, 1988

·       Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal, 2002

·       Order of Moncton, 2012

·       Governor General's Award for the advancement of women's equality, 2012

·       New Brunswick Human Rights Award, 2014

Biography

Valérie Morin is a B Ed. student at the University of New Brunswick. She was born in Grand-Sault, N.-B., and moved to Saint John, N.-B., in 2013. She now resides in Mispec, a village outside of Saint John, with her husband and her daughter, since 2016.

Further readings:

1.     Gallant, C., (1984). La philosophie ... au féminin, Éditions d'Acadie.

2.     Leblanc-Rainville, S., (2012). Corinne Gallant : Une pionnière du féminisme en Acadie; Institut d’études acadiennes.

3.     Corinne Gallant Receives Human Rights Award (2014). Retrieved on October 15th, 2018 from https://www2.gnb.ca/content/dam/gnb/Departments/hrc-cdp/PDF/communique-human-rights-award-presented-to-corinne-gallant.pdf.

Pictures and quote retrieved from:

1.     Acadie Nouvelle (2018), Retrieved on October 18th, 2018 from https://www.acadienouvelle.com/chroniques/2018/07/26/une-philosophe-humaniste/

2.     Acadie Nouvelle (2012), Retrieved on October 18th, 2018 from https://www.acadienouvelle.com/actualites/2012/10/19/le-prix-du-gouverneur-general-pour-corinne-gallant/

Twitter (2018), Retrieved on October 17th, 2018 https://twitter.com/SenCormier/status/1022575780252016640

[1] Acadie Nouvelle (2018), Retrieved on October 18th, 2018 from https://www.acadienouvelle.com/chroniques/2018/07/26/une-philosophe-humaniste/

[2] Acadie Nouvelle (2018), Retrieved on October 18th, 2018 from https://www.acadienouvelle.com/chroniques/2018/07/26/une-philosophe-humaniste/

[3] Wikipedia (2018). Retrieved on October 15th, 2018 from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corinne_Gallant

[4] Corinne Gallant Receives Human Rights Award (2014). Retrieved on October 15th, 2018 from https://www2.gnb.ca/content/dam/gnb/Departments/hrc-cdp/PDF/communique-human-rights-award-presented-to-corinne-gallant.pdf.

[5] Wikipedia (2018). Retrieved on October 15th, 2018 from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corinne_Gallant

[6] Wikipedia (2018). Retrieved on October 15th, 2018 from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corinne_Gallant

Introduction: Many Canadians have heard about Residential Schools, especially when we talk about issues facing Indigenous peoples in Canada. Residential Schools were a network of boarding schools for Indigenous children, funded by the government and administered by Christian Churches. Canadians have heard of the abuse that happened at these schools, and the effects of intergenerational trauma - where the abuse inflicted on those who attended these schools has been visited upon successive generations, in the form of addictions, abuse, neglect, and other terrible things. The reason for these schools’ existence was a government policy of aggressive assimilation of First Nations, Inuit, and Metis people into the dominant European-Canadian settler culture of this new nation called Canada.

But perhaps not many Canadians have heard of Day Schools. Day Schools were schools located in or near Indigenous communities in Canada, that were operated for the purposes of educating registered Indian, Metis, and Inuit children. Like residential schools, Day Schools were funded by the federal or provincial governments and run by the churches. Day Scholars suffered the very same types of abuses experienced by students who attended Indian Residential Schools. Families of these students suffered the same types of damage as the families of Indian Residential School Survivors, but Day Scholars were exempted from the 2008 federal apology and are ineligible for Indian Residential School Settlement Agreement compensation packages.

The Day Scholars were different from the residential school students in that students returned home at the end of the school day.

In 2006, the Government of Canada announced the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, an agreement between the government and approximately 80,000 Indigenous people who were enrolled as children in the Canadian Indian Residential School system. Many Canadians don’t realize that the IRSSA only dealt with people who went to the Residential Schools, as defined by the Government of Canada. So Day Scholars were separate from that definition and therefore ineligible for compensation because they attended schools that didn’t require them to stay overnight.

In 2009, a legal action was started regarding the forced attendance of Indigenous students at Indian Day Schools across Canada. A Class Action lawsuit to seek compensation for Day Scholars and their families was certified by the Federal Court by Order dated June 21, 2018, and negotiations should begin soon. So far, the legal team says there are between 120,000 and 140,000 living day school survivors who attended more than 700 schools.

Biography: William Pacey is a UNB Bachelor of Education student, who has lived his entire life in Wolastokuk/Mi’kmaqi, unceded Wolastoqey & Mi’kmaw territory. He is a musician and theatre performer by trade.

Further Reading: http://aptnnews.ca/2018/07/27/ottawa-set-to-start-negotiations-with-indian-day-school-survivors-lawyer/

https://ca.gowlingwlg.com/dayschoolclassaction/

http://aptnnews.ca/2017/06/19/aptn-investigates-indian-residential-schools-settlement-agreement/

http://www.residentialschoolsettlement.ca/detailed_notice.pdf

http://www.trc.ca/websites/trcinstitution/File/2015/Findings/Exec_Summary_2015_05_31_web_o.pdf

Notes: All the photos used in this project were taken from the same website: http://aptnnews.ca/2017/06/19/aptn-investigates-indian-residential-schools-settlement-agreement/. The image of Parliament and a Church steeple and the image of survivors were taken from the APTN Investigates video “Truth? Or Reconciliation?” about the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement available on the website.

Introduction:

 Mary Two-Axe Earley was a Mohawk elder who was born in Quebec. When she married a non-Indigenous man, she lost her Indian Status. The Indian Act created many injustices for Aboriginal women. The amendment from 1876 stated that any Status Indian woman who “married out” (ie: married a non-Status Indian man) would lose their land and treaty rights (The Canadian Encyclopedia, 2017). Status Indian men at this time were allowed to maintain their status even if they married a non-Indigenous woman. This inspired Mary Two-Axe Earley to advocate for the rights of Indigenous women. She also established the Equal Rights for Indian Women Association, this association advocated for changes to the Indian Act (New Journeys, 2016).

While at an International Women’s Year conference in Mexico City, Mary received a phone call stating that the Kahnawà:ke band council had served her, as well as the other Kahnawà:ke women in attendance, with eviction notices. Two-Axe Earley used this situation to her advantage by highlighting the racist and gender discrimination she and other women faced in this situation during an international forum. Because of the negative coverage, the band council withdrew their original evection orders (The Canadian Encyclopedia, 2017). This is just one way in which Mary advocated for the rights of Indigenous women. During the 1970’s when the Canadian government was unwilling to make any amendments to the Indian Act, Two-Axe Earley continued to fight this human rights battle. All of Mary Two-Axe Earley’s work culminated in Bill C—31 being passed on the 28th of June, 1985. Her status was finally reinstated at a ceremony in Toronto in 1985 (The Canadian Encyclopedia, 2017).

Biography:

Emily Roy has recently finished her degree in Philosophy and Interdisciplinary Leadership at UNBF, she is currently attending UNBF once again to obtain her Education Degree. She hopes to teach abroad next fall. Currently, she is completing her practicum at Geary Elementary School in a fifth-grade intensive French class.

Further Reading:

1.     Kathleen Jamieson, “Multiple Jeopardy: The Evolution of a Native Women’s Movement,” Atlantis (1979).

2.     Cora A. Woolsey, “The Indian Act: The Social Engineering of Canada’s First Nations.” Explorations in Anthropology (2013).

3.     Mary-Jo Nadeau, “Troubling Herstory: Unsettling White Multiculturalism in Canadian Feminism,” Canadian Woman Studies (2009).

Notes:

Photo of Mary Two-Axe Earley was retrieved from: https://www.canadashistory.ca/education/ classroom-resources/canada-s-women-of-history

The Canadian Encyclopedia. (2017). Mary Two-Axe Earley | The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/mary-two-axe-earley

New Journeys. (2016). 6 incredible Indigenous women every Canadian should know. Retrieved from https://newjourneys.ca/en/articles/6-incredible-indigenous-women-every-canadian-should-know-about

Black History and Anti-Racial Progress in New Brunswick

I have yet to talk to a parent who has non-white children in the school system who says, 'No, my kids haven't experienced anything.- Manju   Varma

Manju Varma works with the federal government in employment equity and diversity. She has studied youth and racism in New Brunswick for more than 20 years. She claims not much has changed since her first research project in 1995.

When I think about the progress that minorities and specifically, the Black population have made since the first recorded arrival in 1608, I wonder what the best ways there are to advance equality and end racism. To me, special events heighten awareness for a short time only and may not have a lasting effect. Varma’s experience is that racially based verbal bullying is a major contributor to the lack of real progress.

The recently completed New Brunswick wide Black History Month in February seemed to focus on current Black cultures, the older and newer immigrant populations, the cultures they bring and add to communities as well as the contributions they make. This is what you see reported in the news. The UNB Arts Center did put on a series of 3 evening films and 5 noon lectures about the treatment of the Black population in the past. I’m not certain how large an audience would have been able to attend. Certainly there were other places and times where events were held.

Schools definitely do their part in Black History Month. There is a full range of activities and themes but it seems at the end of the month not much has changed. The verbal bullying continues and is most often not dealt with – neither the specific incidents nor an action plan to end it. Varma suggests that to effectively stop it, you need to deal with it directly and have zero tolerance. She also relates that bullied children of new immigrants respond differently to it than minorities that have been here for many generations. Where children of families who have been here for generations might react to the bully, new immigrants often take it and say nothing. This results in unhappy children and parents who plan not to stay.

There is definitely a place for Black History Month and other activities that happen at times through the year. There are citizen groups that are active in renaming street names that are from a past era. One example is Negro Brook Road in St. John now renamed Harriet O'Ree Road after a woman who lived there. There are special events to recognize people of colour who have accomplished important things. All of these efforts and more have positive but localized and short term effect.

Perhaps the most effective strategy which has not been used is the simplest and most direct. In our schools we need to deal with racial verbal bullying directly and consistently when it happens. Varma suggests this isn’t happening. Train our educators in effective methods of confronting and counselling incidents when they come up and be consistent - zero tolerance.

Further Reading:

1. Library and Archives Canada: https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/history-ethnic-cultural/Pages/blacks.aspx

2. Printed in the Argosy: http://www.since1872.ca/features/new-brunswicks-black-history/

3. CBC News · Posted: Feb 28, 2017 5:32 PM AT | Last Updated: March 1, 2017

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/black-nb-history-february-1.4002672

Biography: Manju Varma - Multiculturalism Expert - Manju Varma has a PhD in multicultural education and has worked in the areas of multiculturalism and immigration for nearly 25 years. She currently works in the field of conflict mediation.

Internment Camp B-70

The New Brunswick Internment Camp or Internment camp B-70 was a camp located in Ripples NB and was in use from 1940-1945. It was a total of 58 acres, which included 5 rows of barbed wire and 6 machine gun towers and had 52 buildings. The camp was one of 26 camps in Canada but the only one of it's kind in Atlantic Canada. It is said that there were around 711 Jewish men and teenage boys sent to the camp. These men and boys had escaped from the Holocaust and went to England. Unfortunately, the prime minister of England at that time, Winston Churchill, believed that there were spies among those that had escaped. Churchill asked the USA and Canada to take in these people and they were placed at this camp. The guards made the people of the camp do chores such as chopping wood everyday. People of the camp were made to wear jumpsuits with red on the leg as to be easily identified if they tried to run away. One person who survived the camp said that the guards called it a target and said that it was to shoot at. There were two Phases in this camp, the first just housed the men that came from England but after about a year, Britain had realized that a lot of people that were at these types of camps could help out during the war. So, they were given the choice to either return to England or to try and get a sponsor and stay in Canada. During the second phase, the camp was used as a prisoner of war camp. Over the next four years, Camp B-70 would have over 1,200 POWS pass through. Many residents of the area knew there was a camp but had no idea what it was, it seems to be a forgotten and un talked about piece of New Brunswick history. Of those who went to this camp, many survivors would rather forget their time there but as many Holocaust survivors will tell you, never forget. We must remember no matter how painful it may be or else, we may never learn from it.

Further Readings & Viewings

https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2013/08/03/internment_camp_for_jews_in_second_world_war_a_littleknown_piece_of_new_brunswick_history.html

https://mynewbrunswick.ca/internment-camp-b70/

https://atlantic.ctvnews.ca/remnants-of-second-world-war-internment-camp-remain-in-rural-n-b-1.1520496

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pFin-N1EAk

Bio:

My name is Emily fudge, I was born in Fredericton and am a current education student at UNB in the elementary stream. I was a graduate of UNB with a double major in Psychology and Sociology which really has provided me with a passion for people and trying to understand them. I decided to do this topic because I have a big interest in the Holocaust and for the poster, I decided to look into any involvement Canada had in the Holocaust and one of the things that came up with camp B-70. I have lived in this area for over 10 years and have never heard of this site. It is a place that NB would rather try and forget but for the people who had to experience this, I feel that it is important to share it with the world.

Remembering Dr. Constance Timberlake

In the year 1930, Dr. Constance Timberlake was born in Saint John, New Brunswick. Dr. Timberlake was born into a family that had emigrated to Canada as part of the Black Empire Loyalists in the 1700s. Throughout her life, Dr. Timberlake was a Civil Rights Leader and through this she earned many different honours for the work she had done. One of Dr. Timberlake’s most notable pursuits was the demonstration she led at Fairyland Park in Kansas City. In the year 1963, Dr. Timberlake was head of the Kansas City Chapter of the Congress of Racial Equality. While in this role, Dr. Timberlake arranged a protest where she and 15 others entered an amusement park where Black persons were not allowed. As part of their demonstration, the group proceeded to enter the park and lay on the ground. The group refused to move, and they were taken to jail a short time later by the local law enforcement. This is a particularly noteworthy protest as just one week after the event, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I have a dream” speech. This past September, Dr. Timberlake passed away at the age of 88. She has left a large impact on not only New Brunswick history, but also the history for Black persons in North America.



Further Reading:

https://www.nbblackhistorysociety.org/women-in-history.html

https://www.meaningfulfunerals.net/obituary/dr-constance-timberlake?fh_id=10401

https://www.nbblackhistorysociety.org/uploads/4/0/2/5/40255847/the_evening_times_globe_1994_may_6_pg_a7_the_hectors_of_spar_cove_road_the_league.pdf

Bio:

My name is Lana McAfee and I am a Bachelor of Education student at the University of New Brunswick, Fredericton. I grew up in New Brunswick then moved to Nova Scotia for seven years during which I completed my Bachelor of Business Administration. I have now moved to the rural town of Hartland, New Brunswick where I plan to teach this coming Fall.

The Lady Boats began their seafaring years as both tourist and shipping vessels. Each of the five ships was named after the wife of a British admiral who had a connection (oftentimes a colonizing one) to the West Indies (Boileau 2). Lady Nelson, Lady Hawkins, and Lady Drake travelled from Halifax to Bermuda, St. Kitts, Nevis, Antigua, Montserrat, Dominica, St. Lucia, Barbados, St. Vincent, Grenada, Trinidad, and British Guyana, and would follow the same route in reverse, with a final destination of Saint John (Boileau 2). Lady Somers and Lady Rodney operated on similar routes, but with departures and arrivals in Montreal (Boileau 2-3).

Passengers in those days could book a round trip passage for $95 (Boileau 3), and many Canadians and Americans took advantage of this cheap rate. In their inaugural year, the Lady Boats carried 22,373 passengers on their Caribbean routes. In addition to tourists, many island schoolchildren travelled on the vessels to attend boarding schools or universities in Canada (Hanington 22).

The Lady Boats were also responsible for carrying Canadian goods to the islands of the West Indies, and returned with an abundant supply of fresh fruits to sell in Canada. In 1929, 2 million stems of bananas were transported aboard the Lady Boats (Hanington 22). In order to ensure the safe passage of so many bananas, the ships were equipped with refrigerating chambers (Boileau 3) and a “refrigerating engineer” (Hanington 21), who was responsible for maintaining the temperature of the refrigeration chamber at 11 degrees Celsius (Boileau 3), by changing the air cooled by brine every four hours (Hanington 21). In Bermuda, where there exists no ground water, inhabitants have always been forced to catch rainwater on the stepped rooves of their houses. This water delivery mechanism proved insufficient for the needs of the island’s only hospital, so the Lady Boats were responsible for bringing enormous barrels of fresh water to be used in the hospital (Hanington 26).

When Canada entered the Second World War in 1939, the Lady Boats were all painted grey as a precaution (Boileau 4), but continued their routes as usual. Cruise vacations on board the boats were no longer advertised, as no one could be assured of the safety on the open seas. The Ladies’ captains were given their secret sailing instructions immediately before departure (Hanington 68). The ports of call remained the same, but the ships followed an unpredictable “zigzag pattern” (Boileau 4) in order to avoid any submarines, which could be skulking anywhere beneath the surface of the dark waters. Passages were completed in darkness, and radio transmissions were silenced. Even smoking on deck was prohibited for fear of being spotted (Hanington 68-69).

It was at precisely this time that Jacqueline Motyer was preparing to enter her first year of post-secondary education at Mount Allison University. She had never before left the island of Bermuda, and doing so for the first time on a darkened ship in dangerous waters seemed terrifying to say the least (Blagrave). With female students representing less than 20% of all students enrolled in Canadian universities in the 1940’s (Gaskell), it is a wonder that Jacqueline’s family made the choice for her to attend university at all – let alone in the middle of a world war. The day of her departure was a tearful one. Her younger brother, Arthur Motyer, plunked out “For Those in Peril on the Seas” on the piano, which did not help matters (Blagrave). Once on board the ship, Jacqueline tried to get some sleep in her tiny room below decks. Seasickness overtook her, and a crew member took pity on her. “Jackie,” he said, “We haven’t even left the dock yet!” (Blagrave)

This was Jacqueline’s first and last trip aboard a Lady Boat (Blagrave). In the next few years, four of the five Lady Boats were torpedoed by German submarines (Boileau 6). Some were irrevocably damaged, but the Lady Nelson was repaired and converted to Canada’s first hospital ship in April of 1943. She sailed across the Atlantic thirty times during the rest of World War II, bringing home 25,000 wounded Canadian soldiers (Boileau 5).

Thanks to Jacqueline’s choice to risk her life for further education and because of her safe passage on one of the Lady Boats, Mount Allison University continues its strong bond with Bermuda to this day. There is a Bermuda House on campus; a Bermuda Wing in the Student Centre shows artwork from Bermudian graduates; and credit transfers are now possible between Bermuda College and Mount Allison University, enabling students to complete more of their post-secondary degree without leaving the island (“Mount Allison University”). Beyond all of that, her story reminds us that many of our ancestors’ oral histories will be lost if we do not take the time to learn and remember them.

Further Reading :
Blagrave, Jacqueline (Motyer). Personal interview. December, 2016 and January 25, 2020.

Boileau, John. “The Lady Boats.” Legion Magazine. January 1, 2007. https://legionmagazine.com/en/2007/01/the-lady-boats

Gaskell, Jane. "Women and Education". The Canadian Encyclopedia, 10 July 2014, Historica Canada. https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/women-and-education

Hanington, Felicity, and Percy A Kelly. The Lady Boats: The Life and Times of Canada's West Indies Merchant Fleet. Canadian Marine Transportation Centre, Dalhousie University, 1980.

“Mount Allison University | Mount Allison University, Bermuda College Sign New Pathways Agreement.” 23 July 2019, www.mta.ca/Community/News/2019/July_2019/Mount_Allison_University,_Bermuda_College_sign_new_pathways_agreement.



Bios:

Newcomer to the painting scene, Daphne Tai dabbles primarily in hand lettering, bullet journaling, and infographic notation of her classes at UNB, where she is studying to become an early childhood educator. Her doodles are often inspired by her time spent in the ocean, as well as nature and the people around her. Daphne hopes to one day teach Grade 1 in the same school as Pippa Wennberg, create illustrated children’s poetry, and train guide dogs for the visually impaired. Lady Boat is her first attempt at a full-sized painting and she is thrilled to be part of the visualization of a story rarely told.

Pippa Wennberg is the granddaughter of Jacqueline Blagrave, and is currently enrolled in the University of New Brunswick’s Bachelor of Education program. Pippa was thrilled that this topic also interested Daphne Tai, since she’d like Daphne to be involved in as many parts of her life as possible.

Introduction
During the 20th century many Canadian provinces considered using or used Eugenics; which is essentially a way to “control” breeding. They wished to discourage the procreation of unwanted genes and would sterilize indigenous people, people in mental institutions, people with disabilities and much more. However, British Columbia (1928) and Alberta (1933) were the only provinces to pass Sexual Sterilization acts that created Eugenic programs. These acts were eventually repealed in the 1970’s, but by then, thousands of people had already been sterilized against their will.

Although forced sterilization is considered a thing of the past, discrimination and violence against Indigenous people has yet to come to an end. Indigenous women are immensely mistreated and are still being forced and coerced into sterilization to this day. A woman going by the name S.A.T in the article written by Ankita, recalls the doctor speaking to her once the forced sterilization procedure was done. “The doctor, I remember, he looked at me when it was done and said, “Okay, you’re tied, cut and burned, nothing will get through that” (Rao, 2019). This inhumane act is still happening today, yet many people are not aware of it.
Many stories in Western provinces are being brought forward but little to no public documentation is found on people in other provinces who have suffered from forced or coerced sterilization. Simply because it is not talked about does not mean that it is not happening. Hopefully, by more people coming forward to share their stories and seek the justice they deserve, it will help others to come forward and use their voice to speak out about their injustices as well.

Further Reading:

Canadian Women’s Foundation. (2018, December 10). Urgent Action Needed to Ensure Indigenous Women Are Not Sterilized Without Their Consent. Retrieved from https://canadianwomen.org/action-needed-forced-indigenous-sterilization/?gclid=CjwKCAiA35rxBRAWEiwADqB377g3v9G-i2pmG4hfJWwLxZsuvXzcvTVz7SHrg-G3cGLMfNj6rTkZSBoCq7YQAvD_BwE

Rao, Ankita. (2019, September 9).Vice: Indigenous Women in Canada Are Still Being Sterilized Without Their Consent. Retrieved from https://www.vice.com/en_ca/article/9keaev/indigenous-women-in-canada-are-still-being-sterilized-without-their-consent

Stote, Karen. (2012). The Coercive Sterilization of Aboriginal Women in Canada. American Indian Culture and Research Journal, 36 (3),117-150. https://www.fqpn.qc.ca/main/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/AICRJ_STOTE-STERILIZATION.pdf

Bios
Jessica Anthony and Marie Randall are UNB students in the Bachelor of Education program. Jessica and Marie are coming to know more information about Indigenous history through their program, and through other university experiences. They were not aware that forced sterilization of Indigenous women is still happening today in Canada, which was a big motivator for why they created this poster. Through their research for this project they found that women are coming forward and seeking justice for the atrocities that have happened to them. However, knowing that there are health care professionals that are committing these acts, believing they are doing the right thing and getting away with it left Jessica and Marie feeling angry, unsettled and especially sorrowful for the women that have endured this procedure. The hope is for this poster to make more people aware of these horrible procedures happening to Indigenous women in Canada and to bring it to an end.

Introduction

A history that is missing from or downplayed in the New Brunswick elementary social studies curriculum is Indigenous history. Focusing on the 7 Grandfather Teachings is an easy way to implement this into an elementary Social Studies curriculum. The Seven Grandfather Teachings are a set of traditional teachings that have been passed down from generation to generation. Many Aboriginal organizations and communities have adopted the 7 guiding principles, in one form or another, as a moral steppingstone and cultural foundation. Each community has adapted these teachings to fit their community values. Despite where the teachings may have originated, they share the same message of abiding by a moral respect for all living things. The Seven Grandfather Teachings include respect, honestly, truth, humility, courage, wisdom and love.
These teachings impact our surroundings, along with providing guidance toward our actions to one another.

Part of the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action Under Education for Reconciliation section 62 states that “we call upon the federal, provincial, and territorial governments, in consultation and collaboration with Survivors, Aboriginal peoples, and educators, to: i. Make age-appropriate curriculum on residential schools, Treaties, and Aboriginal peoples’ historical and contemporary contributions to Canada a mandatory education requirement for Kindergarten to Grade Twelve students.
By educating pre-service teachers in Indigenous culture we are deepening teacher effectiveness and intellectual capacity through engaging students with the outcome of a reversal of perspective.

Further Reading:

1. Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://nctr.ca/assets/reports/Calls_to_Action_English2.pdf

2. Nabigon, & Annie. (2012, December 3). "Wise Practices": Integrating traditional teachings with mainstream treatment approaches.

3. The Teachings of the Seven Grandfathers. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.northernc.on.ca/indigenous/teachings-seven-grandfathers/

Bios:

MacKenzie Keir:
Recently finished her Undergraduate Degree at The University of New Brunswick Saint John in Business Administration. Currently pursuing an Education degree at UNB living and studying on unceded and un-surrendered Wolastoqiyik territory.

Leah Dodsworth:
Recently finished her Undergraduate Degree at The University of New Brunswick Saint John in Business Administration. Currently pursuing an Education degree at UNB living and studying on unceded and un-surrendered Wolastoqiyik territory.

Rigoberta Menchú was born in Chimel, on January 9, 1959. She is an Indigenous Guatemalan woman, who learned to love and respect the environment. She was also able to see the injustices and the extreme poorness in which many Mayan people live. She became an activist campaigning against human rights violations committed by Guatemalan sources during the Civil war from 1962 to 1996. By fighting for what she believed, Indigenous people’s rights, environmental issues, gender equality, she was forced to leave the country she loves and go to Mexico. Even with being forced out of her country and hearing about the tragic accidents that took the life of members of her family and other activists, she continued her work by campaigning to have members of the Guatemalan political and military establishment tried in Spanish courts. She wrote her life journey and of other Indigenous people in the book, “I Rigoberta Menchú: An Indian woman in Guatemala” where she exposes the gross injustice against the Mayan people and how institutional racism is still in full effect. Menchú conveys the traditional beliefs of her community and showcase her enduring courage and passionate sense of justice. She was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1992 in recognition of her work for social justice and ethno-cultural reconciliation based on respect for the rights of Indigenous peoples. Rigobertà Menchú uses her voice to fight a system that has been continuously against her, not just for herself, but for everyone who has not felt equal to another and to defend the land that some take for granted.

Further Reading:

Menchú, R., & Burgos-Debray, E. (1984). I, rigoberta menchú : An Indian woman in guatemala. London: Verso.

Menchú, R., & Wright, A. (1998). Crossing borders. London: Verso.

Lazo, C. (1994). Rigoberta menchu (1st ed., Peacemakers). New York: Dillon Press.

Bio:

My name is Allison Quiring and I am an Education student at the University of New Brunswick.

Nancy Morton (Sued for her Freedom)
Nancy Morton had a devastating life from the moment she was born until and hopefully the moment she was finally freed. Nancy was born to an African slave in Maryland, but shortly after was taken to New Brunswick by a man named Captain Caleb Jones in 1785. After a year of being enslaved to Captain Jones, Nancy, her 4-year-old son Lidge, and five other enslaved people made an attempt to escape. Mr. Jones had released articles in the newspaper, offering a reward of six dollars for each of the women returned plus a reward of two guineas for every male returned. It wasn’t long until Nancy and the others were captured and returned to Caleb Jones. After Nancy’s escape attempt, she went to the courts to sue Caleb Jones for her freedom. Unfortunately, Nancy’s suit did not work and she was forced to return to enslavement for another 15 years. Beyond those fifteen years, no one really knew what happened to Nancy and the other enslaved people. However, the significance of this story is that Nancy’s case appeared in The Supreme Court of Canada. Ultimately, the case ended in a split decision on the fact that the court could not provide enough evidence to prove slavery was or was not real. At the time, there were no laws or legislations in place in New Brunswick to protect against slavery. This therefore meant Nancy was forced to return to Caleb Jones. The case of Captain Caleb Jones vs. Nancy Morton played a monumental role of abolition here in our province of New Brunswick. Nancy, as well as many others had suffered tremendously due to slavery, however, Nancy did manage to shed light on how harsh and dehumanizing enslavement can be. Once others heard her story, there was a significant decline in slavery within our province. Nancy may not have been able to break her own shackles, but she was able to help others in New Brunswick so they did not have to endure the same tragedies that she did.
Further Reading:
https://archives.gnb.ca/exhibits/forthavoc/html/Loyalists-and-Slavery-in-NB.aspx?culture=en-CA -
https://www.nbblackhistorysociety.org/women-in-history.html
https://www.gnb.ca/cnb/news/wcs/2007e0118wc.htm

Bios:
My name is Mathew Bainbridge, I am a 25-year-old student at the University of New Brunswick Fredericton. I am currently in the Bachelor of Education program, with aspirations of becoming an elementary teacher upon graduation. I have a great love for all things sports, a passion for the outdoors, but I love nothing more than being around my friends and family.

My name is Lucretia DeWare, I am 22 years old and currently enrolled in the Education program here at the University of New Brunswick. It is my hope to teach primary elementary abroad after completing the program. I’m currently completing my practicum at Royal Road Elementary School, however I will do my 8-week practicum in Bogota, Colombia. I too enjoy being physically active and surrounding myself with my friends and family.

Sleeping car porter’s highlights Canada’s dark past dealing with racism, slavery and indentured servitude. As one of the only jobs available to black men, porters faced harsh working condition, constant travel, and racism from their bosses and clientele. Not limited to specific cities or areas, porter’s served across Canada.
During the late 19th and early 20th century, railway transportation was the main way in which people travelled across Canada’s vast landscape. This meant that people needed to be hired to perform tasks such as carrying luggage, setting up beds, pressing clothes, shovelling coal into furnaces, serving food and shining shoes, as well as various other tasks; these workers became known as porters. Black men were initially hired for these positions as they had a difficult time finding work, meaning they would be more likely to accept precarious and low paying work. White passengers accepted this as they believed the persistent stereotype that black men were natural servants. Porters had to be away from their families for weeks at a time, while often working 21 hours a day. Their jobs were extremely precarious, and they could be fired at any moment without notice. Many train passengers didn’t bother to learn these porter’s names, referring to them as George instead.
Because of these harsh conditions imposed on them, Canadian railway porters attempted to join some newly established labour unions but were unable to due to their race. This led to them attempt to start their own union, which was inspired by American sleeping car porters who had accomplished forming the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (BSCP) in the 1920’s. In 1942 the Canadian porters had succeeded in forming BSCP divisions in major Canadian cities such as Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal and Winnipeg. In 1945 the BSCP signed a collective bargaining agreement with the Canadian Pacific Railway. This gave the porters increased rights, and a sence of legitimacy which was not previously available to them.
Former Canadian Senator Calvin Ruck once served as a railway porter during his youth. He stated that ¨ experiencing racism as a porter was a political awakening. “I felt obliged to protest,” he later said. But organizing at the time seemed impossible. “We were afraid to rock the boat. We thought we might end up with no job at all.”

Further Reading:

Natasha Henry, “Sleeping Car Porter Lesson Plan,” “Railway Men: Black Porters Stand Up for Fairness,” in the Black history in Canada issue of Kayak: Canada’s History Magazine for Kids, n.d., https://www.canadashistory.ca/getmedia/e456fc2a-ea60-4f1a-9bd6-868fefe5386a/EduLesSleepingCar-Porters.pdf.aspx?ext=.pdf&fbclid=IwAR1Cvd9ZjEo0S_g2gD6N_Qnv7TFr-lQ5DBXTLlv7InybMDlG-rqzTEhA2s4

Channon Oyeniran, "Sleeping Car Porters in Canada". In The Canadian Encyclopedia. Historica Canada. Article published February 08, 2019; Last Edited February 19, 2019. https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/sleeping-car-porters-in-canada

Bios:

Kevin Oullette and Brody Mann are education students at the University of New Brunswick.

For years in Canada, there has been discrimination in the adoption process towards individuals who have non-conforming gender or sexual identities. This has not only been a horrendous disservice to the individuals trying to start their families, but also to the children who are placed in a burdened system. On December 22, 1967, Justice Minister Pierre Trudeau stated: “I think that what's done in private between adults doesn't concern the Criminal Code...when it relates to minors this is a different matter."1 This statement gives insight into how the government viewed the idea of not only same-sex adoption but also the raising of biological children by individuals of gender and sexual minorities a year prior to the decriminalization of homosexuality. In 1996, British Colombia was the first province to change its Adoption Act to allow same-sex couples to adopt children.2 Legislative change related to same-sex couples adopting a child occurred in 2008 in New Brunswick, three years after same-sex marriage was legalized in Canada. Prior to this, much of the ground-breaking legal decisions, such as one that occurred in 2004 in New Brunswick, focused on an individual having the right to adopt the child of their same-sex partner.3 These legal decisions; however, did not make reference to how same-sex couples would be impacted if they tried to adopt a child that neither of them was biologically related to. It is clear that the ability to create a family through adoption has opened up to more people over the years, but there is still a lot of discrimination that happens.

Further Reading:

1 “Timeline|Same-Sex Rights in Canada”. CBC News. Jan.12, 2012. Retrieved from:https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/timeline-same-sex-rights-in-canada-1.1147516
2 “LGBTQ2S+”. Adoptive Families Association of BC. 2020. Retrieved from: https://www.bcadoption.com/lgbtq2s
3 “Same-sex adoption allowed in New Brunswick”. N.B. Human Rights Commission. Retrieved from: https://www.gnb.ca/cnb/news/hrc/2004e0856hr.htm

Bios:
Jennifer Moore and Matthew Sprague are current Bachelor of Education students at the University of New Brunswick. Jennifer previously completed a degree in Psychology at Dalhousie University. Matthew Sprague previously completed a degree in Marketing and Human Resource Management at the University of New Brunswick.

Nora Bernard was a Canadian Mi’kmaq activist who played a key role in the class action lawsuit against the Canadian government for seeking compensation for Residential School Survivors, consisting over nearly 80,000 Canadians. In 1995 Bernard began an organization to represent survivors of the same Residential Schools in which she attended. After 12 hard years of fighting, Bernard’s leadership resulted in over 5 billion dollars being awarded to survivors. After Nora first filed her lawsuit, many others followed behind her. Without Bernard’s courageous efforts and other survivors who followed her guidance, the national settlement would have never taken place for the Shubenacadie survivors.
Bernard herself was taken to a residential school when she was 9 years old despite her mothers consent. This was one of the founding reasons Bernard felt she should take a stand and be a key role in the class action lawsuit.

Further Readings:
International Women's Day 2019 - Nora Bernard: JFK Law: Canada. (2019, March 8). Retrieved from http://jfklaw.ca/international-womens-day-2019-nora-bernard/

Indian Residential Schools History and Dialogue Center . (n.d.). Retrieved from https://collections.irshdc.ubc.ca/index.php/Detail/occurrences/98

Remembering the Shubenacadie Restidental School Class Action Suit (2010) Retreived from: https://www.apmlawyers.com/a-tribute-to-nora-bernard/

Biography:

Marlene Solano: I am a first generation Canadian born in Mexico City but raised in Toronto, Ontario. I am currently a UNB Education student and working part time in mental health services. I am very passionate about mental health because it is a vital part of our wellbeing and impacts everyone in our community. I enjoy travelling the country and the world and meeting new people of different cultures.

Jordan Ackerman: I have lived in New Brunswick all of my life to date and am really pleased with all this province has to offer. I am currently a UNB Education student concentrating my degree in the elementary stream. When I am not in school I work part time and enjoy spending time with family and friends. I am a big believer in mindfulness because it very important for your mental health.

Captain Molly Kool was born in Alma New Brunswick and has had a significant impact on women in the Maritime industry. Molly was the first Female Master Mariner, and the first registered female sea captain in 1939. She was first mate on her father’s 69 ft. scow and learned the inner working of the engines and sails. She sailed wood and pulp through the Bay of Fundy for the majority of her career and would travel as far as Boston on her routes. Her trailblazing achievements lead to the amendment of the Canadian Shipping act to remove the use of “he” throughout the document.

I think it is important that we as teachers ensure that we are teaching students about trailblazing women, Indigenous, and other minorities. Our unique geographical location makes for a various number of different trades from forestry to fishing. The maritime industry is an important part of our culture it is important that we are teaching about representation in those industry. Traditionally if we are going to teach about trailblazers they are typically in a field like engineering or sciences, but I also think it’s important to be teaching them about the women in the trades as well.

Further Reading:

CBC article covering the Coast Guard Ship named after her: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/captain-molly-kool-1.5155417

Video narrated by Capt. Molly Kool: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=823687064670696

Biography: https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-coast-guard/news/2018/12/captain-molly-kool.html

Bio:

Ashley MacCallum is an education student at the University of New Brunswick.

The relationship between the Acadians and the Mi’kmaq people is often a forgotten one, and yet this 400-year old relationship was beneficial for both sides survival (Christmas & Cormier, 2017). In the 16th century, French Settlers who became known as Acadians settled on Mi’kmaq land in the region of Atlantic Canada (Roache, 2017). During this time, the two formed a special alliance that many people do not know about. The two exchanged customs, goods and words. So much so that the Mi’kmaq people derived 350 words directly from the French language (Smith, 2017). The Mi’kmaq developed a good relationship with the French settlers, as newcomers treated them well and encouraged trades with the Mi’kmaq communities. Eventually, there were marriages between the French colonists and the Mi’kmaq people in Acadia, and the children from these unions were welcome in both cultures, further developing a strong relationship. The bonds between the two remain solid today.

These two minorities sadly also share a horrifying past. In the 17th century, the British considered the bond of the Mi’kmaq and Acadian people a threat leading to the banishment of social interactions between the two groups (Christmas & Cormier, 2017). The plan the developed to the Mi’kmaq nation was to be exterminated and the Acadians to be deported as they refused allegiance to the British Crown (Christmas & Cormier, 2017). Then, in 1755, approximately 10,000 Acadians were forcefully removed from their home and this act has become infamously known as Le Grand Dérangement or Explusion of the Acadians (Christmas & Cormier, 2017). Many Acadians were deported to the English colonies of France, Louisiana and the Caribbean (Christmas & Cormier, 2017). The Mi’kmaq, however did not sit quietly and let their Acadians neighbours be forced out and killed. Many Mi’kmaq people fought alongside their Acadian friends and also sheltered hundreds of Acadians families during this horrific time (Christmas & Cormier, 2017). It is thanks to the Mi’kmaq people that many Acadians survived Le Grand Dérangement and were able to eventually come back to the Maritimes. An often forgotten relationship in Canadian history proves to be one of the greatest, and it is due to this special bond that Acadian culture and many of its people survived an unspeakable past.


Further Reading:

Aboriginal Peoples the Mi’kmaq People of Nova Scotia Link:
https://www.ictinc.ca/aboriginal-peoples-the-mikmaq-people-of-nova-scotia

APTN. (2017, August 9). “Mi’kmaq and Acadians celebrate unique history as allies” Link: https://aptnnews.ca/2017/08/09/mikmaq-and-acadians-celebrate-unique-history-as-allies/

Christmas, D. & Cormier, R. (2017). Remembering Mi’kmaw-Acadian Friendship: Senator Christmas & Senator Cormier. Retrieved from: https://sencanada.ca/en/sencaplus/opinion/remembering-mikmaw-acadian-friendship-sen-christmas-and-sen-cormier/

Letter adapted from Ricky G. Richard’s “Acadian letter to the Mi’kmaq” (2018). Retrieved from https://nsadvocate.org/2018/10/10/welalioq-acadian-letter-to-the-mikmaq/

Roache, T. (2017). Mi’kmaq and Acadians celebrate unique history as allies. Retrieved from https://aptnnews.ca/2017/08/09/mikmaq-and-acadians-celebrate-unique-history-as-allies/

Smith, E. (2017). How a bond ‘crucial to life’ was forged between the Mi’kmaq and Acadians. Retrieved from https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/acadian-mi-kmaq-grand-pre-friendship-14243615

Bios:

Maddy MacDougall is a student in the Bachelor of Education program at the University of New Brunswick. She has two previous degrees from UNB, a Bachelor degree in Art and Nursing. She is hoping to be a Kindergarten teacher after she finishes her third degree.

Lexi MacDonald is a student in the Bachelor of Education program at the University of New Brunswick. She has a degree in Psychology from St. Francis Xavier University and is hoping to teach at the elementary grade level.

At 17 years old, Mrs. Lena O’Ree hosted the first Black Radio show on CFBO (later to become CHSL) in 1931 (Women in History, n.d.). The radio station did not publicize to the public listening that Lena was black (Women in History, n.d.). Lena continued to experience racial segregation and racism throughout her adult life (Women in History, n.d.).

In 1936, Mrs. O’Ree had gone to the YWCA in hopes of joining but was told that she was unable to join without 10 other black women applying (Lena O’Ree, n.d.). The next day, she showed up to the YWCA and became responsible for the first Black woman’s group being permitted to join the YWCA in Canada, called the Recreation Club (Lena O’Ree, n.d.).

In Saint John during the late 1950’s, black people were prohibited from entering the city’s main hotel (The Admiral Beatty Hotel) through the front door (Government of New Brunswick, 2017). Even celebrities including Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald were denied access through the main entrance of this hotel because of their race (Government of New Brunswick, 2017). It was not until 1959 when Mrs. Lena O’Ree, a housekeeper at the hotel, insisted on entering through the front door (Government of New Brunswick, 2017). This was an event of national importance as Lena O’Ree was responsible for the admittance of black people through the main doors of the hotel as well as to the dining room in hotels across Canada (Black Loyalists in New Brunswick, 2019).

Mrs. Lena O’Ree also helped found Pride of Race through Unity, Dignity and Education (PRUDE). Prude is an organization dedicated to the full participation of all cultural communities in the social, cultural and economic fabric of mainstream New Brunswick life (About PRUDE: Saint John: PRUDE Inc., n.d.). Prude envisions a New Brunswick where various ethnic and cultural groups work together to build on each other’s strengths (About PRUDE: Saint John: PRUDE Inc., n.d.). The communication and understanding stemming from these connections will position New Brunswick as a choice destination for all Canadians and other ethnocultural groups (About PRUDE: Saint John: PRUDE Inc., n.d.).

In 1998, Mrs. Lena O’Ree was awarded the New Brunswick Human Rights Award (Lena O’Ree, n.d.). This award was established by the Human rights Commission's in 1988 and honours an individual or group who has shown leadership in the promotion of human rights and equality (Lena O’Ree, n.d.).

Further Reading:
1. Black Loyalists in New Brunswick. (2019, March 23). Retrieved February 7, 2020, from https://www.discoversaintjohn.com/black-loyalists-new-brunswick
2. Lena O'Ree. (n.d.). Retrieved February 9, 2020, from https://www.nbblackhistorysociety.org/lena-oree.html
3. Government of New Brunswick, C. (2017, April 24). Black History Month. Retrieved February 9, 2020, from https://www2.gnb.ca/content/gnb/en/news/news_release.2015.01.0064.html
4. About PRUDE: Saint John: PRUDE Inc. (n.d.). Retrieved February 7, 2020, from https://www.prudeinc.org/about
5. Before Willie O'Ree: New Brunswick's surprising black history contributions | CBC News. (2019, March 10). Retrieved February 7, 2020, from https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/new-brunswick-black-history-1.5048864
6. Women In History. (n.d.). Retrieved February 9, 2020, from https://www.nbblackhistorysociety.org/women-in-history.html

Notes:

1) Image of Lena O’Ree was retrieved from the New Brunswick Black History Society website (https://www.nbblackhistorysociety.org/women-in-history.html)

2) Image of newspaper article regarding Lena O’Ree’s Human Rights Award retrieved from the New Brunswick Black History Society website (https://www.nbblackhistorysociety.org/lena-oree.html)

Bio:

Allyson Gallant is originally from Prince Edward Island but is currently a Registered Nurse working and living on unceded and un-surrendered Wolastoqiyik territory in New Brunswick. She is also enrolled in the University of New Brunswick, Fredericton campus where she is working towards her Bachelor of Education.

Between 1755 and 1764, the English forced the suppression of Acadians from Acadia, the region of today’s Maritime Provinces. The Expulsion of the Acadians was part of the British military campaign against New France during the French and Indian War. Under this plan, the British were able to deport approximately 12,500 Acadians, more than three quarters of the existing Acadian population (Landry & Lang, 2014, p. 11). In June 1755, Colonel Charles Lawrence announces to Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Monkton his intention to deport the Acadians (Landry & Lang, 2014, p. 102) in which the decision is officially made several months later. While the deportation order is given, Landry & Lang (2014) precise that the British above all want to avoid the flight of populations and ensure that the property of Acadians falls into their hands (p. 105). As a result, Acadian villages are burned down to deprive the possible fugitives of all infrastructure allowing them to survive clandestinely (Landry & Lang, 2014, p. 106). Lawrence entrusts the task to the New England troops and requests transport ships
from Boston (Landry & Lang, 2014, p. 105). In a circular letter to the governors of the 13 English colonies in America, Lawrence explains his decision to opt for deportation.

[…] I offered such of them as had not been openly in arms against us, a continuation of the possession of their lands, if they would take the oath of allegiance, unqualified with any reservation whatsoever; but this they audaciously as well as unanimously refused…. As by this behaviour the inhabitants have forfeited all title to their lands and any further favour from Government, I called together his Majesty’s Council….To consider by what means we could […] rid ourselves of a people who would forever have been an obstruction to the intention of settling this colony and that it was now from the refusal of the oath absolutely incumbent on us to remove. (p. 105)

According to Rees (2014), the objective of The Great Deportation was “to fragment Acadian society by dividing the deportees into small groups and surrounding them with large numbers of Protestants, enforcing assimilation” (p. 19). Therefore, the Acadian population was assigned to rural communities from the different British colonies in New England. Expulsion expeditions took place in 1755, 1758, 1759 and 1761 (Rees, 2014). Finally, in 1764, a royal decree confirms that Acadians are allowed to settle back in their former Acadian territory with one condition: that they disperse in small groups throughout the province (Rees, 2014, p. 22).

Further Reading:

1. Landry, N. & Lang N. (2014). Histoire de l’Acadie (2nd ed.). Québec: Septentrion.
2. Rees, R. (2014). New Brunswick: An Illustrated History. Halifax: Nimbus Publishing.
3. Historica Canada. (2019). Acadian Deportation. Consult at:
https://www.historicacanada.ca/content/heritage-minutes/acadian-deportation

Bio:

Marie-Christine Basque is a student and almost graduate of the Education(elementary) program at the University of New Brunswick. She has previously completed an undergraduate program in interdisciplinary studies where she had focused her studies in history, foreign languages, and professional and social development.

The 21st century has presented us with many challenges that in the past were otherwise unknown, ignored, or simply dealt with in a different way. As a matter of fact, some of these current challenges are, namely equal wages for women, equity for minorities on the marketplace, and accessible post-secondary education. On the other hand, during the 20th century and notably during the world wars, a different set of problems arose. Numerous men began to join the army, and many more contributed to the latter by proxy. The newly trained soldiers left many jobs vacant, and the longer the war went on this became a problem. Some of these jobs were not previously considered suitable for women, but with a shrinking workforce and an increasing demand for industrialist products, some companies began counteracting the issue of a depleting workforce by hiring women.

In a report by the Women in World War I - an article published by the National Museum of American History, Behring Centre (n.d), - women who followed armies were from the working classes of society, but during the Great War, all women were more than welcome to join and serve in their full capacities. At that time, classes didn’t matter anymore, but if you were in the upper class you were considered as founders and members of wartime organizations. Simply because they could afford to dedicate a lot of their time and money. Middle-class and lower-class women also had the chance to participate by being either a nurse or by undertaking the man’s job at home.

If we take the example of munitions factories, there was a high demand for weapons during the war. Those factories became the largest employer of women in the middle-class in 1918. Other works that suddenly became available for women were jobs such as: railway guards and ticket collectors, bus and tram conductors, postal workers, police, firefighters and as bank tellers and clerks. Some women even worked as engineers and in the civil services. However, they obtained lower wages than men even though they did the same work and that’s where the demand for equal pay started. (World War I ’’1914–1918’’ Striking Women).

Notes:

1) Image of Field Hospital Army Nurses Arrive In France was retrieved from (http://womenofwwii.com/army/army-nurses/field-hospital-army-nurses-arrive-in-france/)
2) Image of the First Navy Flight Nurse on Iwo Jima (March 6th, 1945) was retrieved from Women Of World War I (http://womenofwwii.com/navy/navy-nurses/first-navy-flight-nurse-on-iwo-jima/)
3) Image of America's first Women's Death Battalion — a combat-ready group of women inspired by Russia's band of female World War I fighters — train in Lowell, Massachusetts, 1917. (https://theweek.com/captured/690302/women-world-war )

Further Readings:

City, I. on the L. M. T. in D. K., Missouri, & U.S.A. (2019, March 23). Women in WWI. National WWI Museum and Memorial. Retrieved from https://www.theworldwar.org/learn/women

Grazel, S. (2002). Women and the First World War

Tom, D. (1998). Nice Girls and Rude Girls: Women Workers in World War I

Women in World War I. (n.d.). National Museum of American History. Retrieved February 10, 2020, from https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/object-groups/women-in-wwi

World War I: 1914-1918 | Striking Women. (n.d.). Retrieved February 11, 2020, from https://www.striking-women.org/module/women-and-work/world-war-i-1914-1918
Bios:

Kim Arseneau is currently a B.Ed student at the University of New-Brunswick. She also completed an undergraduate at the Université de Moncton in Kinesiology.
Isabelle Cormier is a student at the University of New-Brunswick currently completing her B.Ed. She previously completed a bachelor of Leisure, Sports and Tourism Management at the Université de Moncton.

I was inspired to talk about my uncle’s father, who served in WWII as an Indigenous soldier. My uncle’s father was a sharpshooter and following the war worked as a fisherman in Northern Ontario. First Nations of Canada volunteered for both WWI and WWI’s war efforts
and sent thousands of people to fight in the war where they were treated as equal soldiers.

Yet after WWI they had to remain on their reserves and abide by the curfew system and even proving themselves again in WWII it took until 1960 to give Indigenous peoples voting rights.

References and further readings :
Main source : My uncle, Edgar Dick and the family photos of his father and his fathers WWII service medals. Other photos were from the following links

This is a 30 minute documentary about ‘honouring Indigenous Heroes’.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f40PLZ0hB30

The Canadian Encyclopedia has very interesting details of the circumstances of the Indigenous participation of the war.
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/indigenous-peoples-and-the-secondworld-war

Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada also has details on policy surrounding Indigenous involvement of the war.
https://www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/eng/1414152378639/1414152548341

This is a CBC news article discussing Indigenous contributions WWI and WWII. https://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/first-nations-contributions-to-ww-i-and-ww-ii-lest-weforget-1.2830332

Bio:

I am Anastacia Richea, of a mixed Eastern European decent. My grandparents were farmers that relied on trading with their First Nations neighbours to survive when the British and Scottish in the villages looked down on them both. My uncles and aunts have married into Indigenous families and my cousins were raised outside of their grandparents’ reserves and cultures and through their recent family reconnections I have learned more about their histories.

From a young age, New Brunswick’s Lena O’Ree was making waves in her community of Saint John. When she was just seventeen years old Ms. O’Ree hosted the first Black radio show. Just a few years later, Ms. O’Ree decided she wanted to become a member of the local YWCA. She was told she could only join if five other Black women joined with her. Ms. O’Ree returned with ten Black women ready to join along side her. These women would become the first Black members of the YWCA in Canada. Later in her life, Ms. O’Ree was working at a hotel where Black employees were expected to use the back door. Ms. O’Ree made another incredible stand and started using the front door. Not only did she make powerful moves on her own, she was also a strong community leader, working with members of her community through her work founding PRUDE (Pride of Race Through Unity and Dignity of Education). Throughout her life she made culture changing moves that would impact the lives of many Black people nationwide. In 1998, she was awarded the New Brunswick Human Rights Award.

Further Reading:

Government of New Brunswick (n.d.). Black History Month: https://www2.gnb.ca/content/gnb/en/news/news_release.2014.01.0098.html

New Brunswick Black History Society Website https://www.nbblackhistorysociety.org/women-in-history.html

The History and Impact of the YWCA on Women’s Rights https://www.thebalancecareers.com/the-history-and-impact-of-the-ywca-on-women-s-rights-3515999
PRUDE: https://www.prudeinc.org/

Bio:

Jordan Murray is an Education student from a small town in Nova Scotia. While researching this project, she was fascinated and in awe of the people who have changed the course of history for minority groups in New Brunswick.

In 1899, Muriel McQueen Fergusson was born in Shediac, New Brunswick. She later graduated from Mount Allison University in 1921 and pursued a career in law. She worked with her father, James McQueen, at his practice until 1926 when she left to marry Aubrey S. Fergusson. They lived in Grandfalls, New Brunswick where she opened the Malabeam Tea Room. She was very involved in community organizations and founded the Grand Falls Literary Club. She eventually took over her husband’s practice and was named New Brunswick’s first female judge of probate court.

McQueen Fergusson was a huge advocate for women’s rights, specifically pay equity and women’s voice in politics. She fought for the right of all women to vote in New Brunswick in municipal elections and was also successful in challenging a women’s right to run for Fredericton’s City Council. In 1950, Muriel ran for office and was the first woman elected on the Fredericton City Council and then became the first deputy mayor in 1953. That same year, she was appointed to the Senate of Canada and became the first woman Speaker of the Senate from 1972 to 1974. In her inaugural Senate speech, she proclaimed “If I can be of help to women in getting justice, I will.” Thereafter, she was made an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Throughout her life, Muriel was an advocate for pay equity, as well as women and children’s rights. She fought to have a pay raise of $100 per year for city employees; a raise man had already received. She later became the Director of Family Allowances, a position that was restricted to males.

Today, her legacy of the protection of women and children lives on within the Fergusson Foundation and the Muriel McQueen Fergusson Centre at the University of New Brunswick. Both of these organizations help women and children who are victims of mental, physical, and sexual abuse.

Further Readings:

About the Foundation. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://mmff.ca/en/mission.php

MyUNB. (2019, August 6). Hon. Muriel McQueen Fergusson • My New Brunswick. Retrieved from https://mynewbrunswick.ca/hon-muriel-mcqueen-fergusson/

Our Vision. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.fergussonfoundation.ca/

Search UNB. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.unb.ca/mmfc/

Bios:

Emily Rowe: My name is Emily Rowe and I’m from Newfoundland and Labrador. I’m currently an Education student at the University of New Brunswick and previously completed a Bachelor of Science (Honours) at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Within my current program, I am focusing on primary/elementary education, as well as early childhood education.

Katelyn Murdoch: My name is Katelyn Murdoch; I was born in Fredericton but moved across the province a few times before settling into Rothesay New Brunswick. I am a Bachelor of Education Student at the University of New Brunswick and recently completed my Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology degree. I am passionate about teaching children and fostering their creativity.

Viola Desmond was a successful businesswoman in the beauty industry with dreams of expanding her cosmetics line, beauty salons, and beauty schools across the province of Nova Scotia. While on a business trip on November 8th, 1946, Desmond’s car broke down in the city of New Glasgow. Since she was going to be stranded in the city overnight, she made the decision to go see a movie at the Roseland Theatre. After purchasing her ticket, Viola found a seat in the lower section of the theatre in a seat close enough to see the screen, which was known to be the “white-section”. The ticket seller entered the theatre and asked her to move to the upper section as her ticket was for seating up above. Viola insisted that she pay for her ticket to be upgraded for the lower section. She returned to her seat in the lower section but not for long as she was escorted out of the theatre by the police. Viola was thrown in jail for 12 hours and was put on trial the following morning. Where she was not given her rights or told she could have representation, and she was found guilty of defrauding the government of 1 cent. 1 cent was the difference between admission from the downstairs and upstairs amusement tax. They never admitted it was about race segregation, it was all just about tax evasion.

Desmond later appealed with the support of prominent members of the Halifax black community. The case went before the Nova Scotia Supreme Court which refused to reverse the conviction. The impact on her was severe, before the incident she was thriving in her career. After November of 1946 it all stopped, she gave up her dream of a chain of beauty salons, her marriage disintegrated, and she left Halifax. Viola Desmond paid a great deal and her impact on racial inequality opened the door and people began to stand up and fight for their rights. In the decades following, associations and groups formed and continued the fight for black equality in Canada. Today, Viola Desmond is the face of the $10 bill and has finally received the recognition she deserves after being wrongfully jailed, convicted and fined.

Further Explorations:
Heritage Minute on Viola Desmond: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ie0xWYRSX7Y

Bingham, R. (2013, January 27). Viola Desmond. Retrieved January 30, 2020, from https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/viola-desmond

One woman's resistance. (n.d.). Retrieved January 30, 2020, from https://humanrights.ca/story/one-womans-resistance

Black History Month: Remembering Canadian civil rights icon Viola Desmond | CBC News. (2016, February 7). Retrieved January 30, 2020, from https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/viola-desmond-wanda-robson-black-history-month-1.3430629

Bios:

Samantha Ricketts is a student at UNBF taking the education program. She will be a 2020 graduate of the program and hopes to educate and inspire students as an elementary school teacher.

Amy Smith is a student at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton, and member of the Bachelor of Education class of 2020. She hopes to bring her passion of learning and education to her future students in an elementary school setting.

Africville was located on the Bedford Basin in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Black Loyalist and Black Refugees established Africville in the late 1700s and early 1800s. It was a tight knit community, until the Halifax Regional Municipality took over and built the Canadian National Railway right through their community. An Infectious Disease Hospital and Rockhead Prison were also built nearby, and toxic waste was being dumped close to their homes. In 1967, the Seaview Baptist
Church was demolished in the middle of the night. None of this was done with their permission, nor were they compensated fairly for this destruction of their community.

Today, there is a replica of the Seaview Baptist Church known as the Africville Museum, which holds artefacts and stories about Africville. Former Africville residents and their families continue to get together every summer on the land to celebrate Africville and keep the
traditions alive.

A current event we were able to relate this is to the Wet’suwet’en protests and arrests happening in Northwestern B.C. Canada Gas Link is a corporation that is trying to build through the Wet’suwet’en territory. They got an injunction to force land defenders out of Wet’suwet’en territory, and the RCMP raided the land and violently arrested people. The land has never been ceded or surrendered, and in the 90s there was a landmark legal case where the Canadian
courts acknowledged that it is not Canadian land.

If our country has apologized for comparable events in the past, why are we allowing it to happen again?

Further reading:

https://africvillemuseum.org/the-community-of-africville/

https://heritageday.novascotia.ca/content/2020-honouree-communityafricville?
fbclid=IwAR0CsdJRAOEsgLreEpjq5BU2KbMYutVKfQL6-QIQJAP27l49ZURIUVRI1Ow

https://humanrights.ca/story/the-story-of-africville

https://globalnews.ca/news/6517089/wetsuweten-bc-pipeline-protests/

Bios:

Kennedy Oomen is from Charlottetown, PEI, and Becky Miller is from Halifax, NS. We bothcompleted our undergraduate degree in Psychology at Mount Allison University, and are nowcompleting our B.Ed in the elementary stream at the University of New Brunswick.

Daphne Odjig was a talented Canadian Indigenous painter. She was born on September 11, 1919 and raised on the Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve on Manitoulin Island in Ontario. Her mother, Joyce Peachey was an English war bride and her father, Dominic Odjig was a Potawatomi First World War Veteran. Daphne was the eldest of four children and her family, as well as widowed grandfather lived in their family house built by her grandfather (Odjig Arts, 2016).

Early on in Daphne’s life, she developed a passion for art. She was often found sketching with her father and grandfather or helping her mother with needlework designs for the church linens. Her grandfather was her inspiration and someone that she looked up to as an artist. At the age of 19, her mother and grandfather passed away within weeks of each other. Due to this, Daphne and her siblings moved to Perry Sound, ON to live with her maternal grandmother. It is here that Odjig encountered racism for the first time, being refused work due to her native appearance. This situation caused Odjig and her family to adopt the surname Fisher. A few years later, Odjig moved to Toronto with her sisters and frequently found herself at the Art Gallery of Toronto. This is where she “discovered” painting and began her journey of teaching herself to paint through trial and error (Odjig Arts, 2016).

In 1945, Daphne moved to British Columbia and was invited to the 4th annual Wikwemikong Pow Wow. She was asked to paint a piece illustrating the traditional legends, in hopes to revive the culture. This is when Daphne realized that she needed to change the focus of her artwork to tell the stories of her culture and community. A couple of years after this, she made her first sale and started to sell her paintings out of a home in Winnipeg. Over the next 40 years of Daphne’s life, she continued to further her art career. She learned how to extend images onto a larger canvas’ and began to make murals (Odjig Arts, 2016). Daphne exhibited her work in solo and group exhibitions in Canada as well as around the world. Her works have been collected by many public and private collectors including the Canadian Museum of Civilization, McMichael Canadian Collection, the Department of Indian Affairs and the Canada Council Art Bank (Devine, 2011). Some of her accomplishments are shown through the co-founding of the Professional Indian Artists Inc. (the Indian Group of Seven) and her work on The Indian in Transition and From Mother Earth Flows the River of Life. She has also received multiple awards and honours, including being presented the Eagle Feather by SCANA (society of Canadian Artists of Native Ancestory) and the Governor General’s Laureate, Visual and Media Arts (Canada’s highest honour in Visual Arts). In 2016, Daphne passed away at the age of 97, leaving behind a legacy of her artistry and activism, helping to bring an Indigenous voice to Canadian art (Odjig Arts, 2016).

Further Reading:

CBC Radio Canada. (1993). Daphne Odjig reflects on her life and her art. Retrieved February 12, 2020, from https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/2682358527

Native Art in Canada. (2015). Daphne Odjig. Retrieved February 12, 2020, from http://www.native-art-in-canada.com/daphneodjig.html

Stoffman, J. (2016, October 21). Aboriginal modernist painter Daphne Odjig led Indian Group of Seven. Retrieved February 12, 2020, from https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/art-and-architecture/aboriginal-modernist-painter-daphne-odjig-led-indian-group-of-seven/article32483636/

References:

Devine, B. (2011, October 17). Daphne Odjig. Retrieved February 12, 2020, from The Canadian Encyclopedia website: https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/daphne-odjig

Odjig Arts. (2016). Daphne Odjig Artist Profile. Retrieved February 12, 2020, from http://odjig.com

Notes:

The top painting is entitled “Roots” by Daphne Odjig. This painting was completed in 1979 and was retrieved from the Government of Ontario Art Collection, Archives of Ontario.

The bottom photograph was taken at the Museum of Civilization in Ottawa on January 17, 2008 in front of one of Daphne’s permanent murals.

Bio:

Katelyn Monk was born and raised in South-West Ontario. She is currently a pre-service teacher studying at the University of New Brunswick. Prior to this, she completed her Bachelor of Arts degree in Hamilton, ON.

Three years ago, New Brunswick’s first licensed midwife began work in Fredericton. At the time, midwifery was described by the provincial government as a new profession, but midwives have been delivering babies in New Brunswick for centuries. Since women’s stories are so often excluded from the larger historical narrative, little is known about the lives of midwives in early Canada, and less about the birth traditions of the Indigenous women who were here before them. Women’s occupations were not usually recorded when census keeping began in New Brunswick, but midwifery existed then, as it does now, at the intersection of politics, power and control of the female body. In the early 19th century, midwives were classified as ‘quasi-physicians’; unlike doctors, they could not be licensed and were often expected to work for no pay or were paid in household goods or food. They tended to be working-class middle-aged widows of Scottish or Irish origin whose work as midwives enabled them to feed their children and have a slightly more valued position in their communities. As the 19th century progressed, birth became increasingly medicalized. Physicians sought control of the field of obstetrics and began to shift the perception of pregnancy and birth towards being dangerous event that should be managed and controlled by medical professionals. Rather than giving birth at home surrounded by their female community and assisted by a midwife, many women began to deliver their babies in hospitals. Despite this, midwives continued to practice in New Brunswick. Some identified themselves as ‘doctresses’, both to affirm their right to practice and to challenge physicians. Now, women have begun to reclaim childbirth and to demand the right to choose where and how they have their babies. In New Brunswick, women, families and midwives continue to advocate for the expansion of midwifery services despite a lack of interest from the provincial government. To date, four midwives have been licensed in New Brunswick.

Further Reading

Benoit, C. (1987). Uneasy Partners: Midwives and Their Clients. The Canadian Journal of Sociology / Cahiers Canadiens De Sociologie, 12(3), 275-284. doi:10.2307/3340703

Carroll, D. and Benoit, C. (2008). Celebrating Birth: Aboriginal Midwifery in Canada. National Aboriginal Health Organization.
https://www.saintelizabeth.com/getmedia/5b080031-a443-4d71-8a64-2dc429b4d34f/Celebrating_Birth_Aboriginal_Midwifery_Canada_2008.pdf.aspx

McCracken, K. (2015). A Patchwork of Care: Midwifery in Canada. Active History.
http://activehistory.ca/2015/01/a-patchwork-of-care-midwifery-in-canada/

The National Aboriginal Council of Midwives
https://indigenousmidwifery.ca/indigenous-midwifery-in-canada/
Young, J. (2020). Nineteenth-Century Nurses and Midwives in Three Canadian Cities, 1861-1891. Canadian Bulletin of Medical History. 30(1),189-208. doi: 10.3138/cbmh.30.1.189


Biography

Cassandra Amaya is an EAL teacher, yoga instructor and Spanish translator from southern B.C. She was cared for by an amazing midwife while expecting her son and believes that all women should be able to access midwifery services.

Tucked away somewhere among the boxes of photo albums in the cold storage of my parent’s home, there is a black and white photograph of a man being pinned to the ground by a
helicopter. It’s from June 11th, 1981. The man in the photograph is my uncle. Approximately 36 hours prior to this photograph, Lucien Lessard, the Quebec Minister of Recreation, Hunting and Fishing, sent a telex to Chief Alphonse Metallic demanding that all fishing nets be removed from the Restigouche river by midnight on June 10th. Salmon fishing has a long history in Listuguj and is a significant source of food and economic growth for the community. Knowing that it was within their treaty rights to fish the Restigouche river, a few brave citizens refused to remove their nets. (Obomsawin, 1984)

On June 11th, over 500 game wardens, fisheries officers, and Sûreté du Québec (SQ) police officers descended on the community in boats, helicopters, and patrol cars. Dressed in full riot gear, they came armed with guns, tear gas, and knight sticks (Wysote, 2011). While I was
unable to find a population statistic from the 80s, the 1996 census listed the population of Listuguj at approximately 1300 residents (Statistics Canada, 1996). 1300 residents, children included, and they sent 500 armed officers. They never intended to be peaceful. The officers cut up nets, destroyed equipment, and showed no mercy in beating and arresting citizens.

Indigenous communities from across North America, heard about the events and banded together to support Listuguj. Nine days later, when the SQ descended for a second raid, they were met with a much larger resistance. This time they didn’t stay long but still managed to destroy and confiscate thousands of dollars’ worth of equipment and injure residents with rubber bullets and tear gas. (Obomsawin, 1984)

My grandfather, a larger-than-life character, has his own account of that day. The ultimate rebel, he tells a colourful story of stealing a police boat and flying through the water giving the one finger salute as the stunned police officers begin to shoot at him.

Meanwhile, the rest of the community recognized that violence was not the answer, yet, they would not cede their rights to fish. Chief and Council met with Lessard and his team to reach an agreement. They spent the next decade developing a framework to manage the fisheries in a sustainable manner. This framework became law in 1995 meaning that the Restigouche river is now managed not by federal or provincial law, but by Mi’gmaq law. It is considered one of the
best managed rivers in Quebec. (Centre for First Nations Governance, 2010)

Further Readings/Viewings

Obomsawin, A. (Director). (1984). Incident at Restigouche. Retrieved from National Film Board
of Canada https://www.nfb.ca/film/incident_at_restigouche/

Mitchell, B., Akiwenzie-Damm, K., Assu, S., Qitsualik-Tinsley, R., Qitsualik-Tinsley, S., Robertson, D. A., . . . Vowel, C. (2019). This Place: 150 Years Retold. HighWater Press.

Centre for First Nations Governance. (2010, December 12). Mi'gmaq Nation Listuguj. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJNAbGXk9cU

Wysote, M.-B. (2011). A Blessing in Disguise. Retrieved from Indigenous Arts & Stories: http://www.our-story.ca/winners/writing/2996:a-blessing-in-disguise#story

Notes
1) Image of treaty clause taken from the book This Place: 150 Years Retold.

2) Photo of ‘We Remember’ march retrieved from the telegraph journal
(https://tj.news/telegraph-journal/story/37975316/listuguj-raid-remembered)

3) All other images retrieved from the film Incident at Restigouche
(https://www.nfb.ca/film/incident_at_restigouche/)

Bio:

Stephanie Martin is currently a student in the B.ED program at the University of New Brunswick. After completing her first undergrad in Commerce, she worked in a number of industries, including starting her own food truck business. Stephanie grew up in Montreal andOttawa and has familial ties to the Listuguj Mi’gmaq First Nation community.

Millions of lives were affected by the events of World War II, and although what happened in Europe was tragic, what transpired in Canada is often forgotten or not spoken about. Our poster focuses on the tragic story about a Japanese-Canadian family and the role of sugarbeet farms in Canada throughout World War II.

The Story of a Japanese Family- How They Came to Taber by Sarawatari tells the story about a Japanese family who settled in Canada and had very successful and fulfilling lives for years. This was a family who worked hard, was happy, and was well respected within the community. However, as a result of the Pearl Harbor attack in 1941, the Okamoto’s comfortable life as Japanese-Canadians was unjustly shattered. They became one set of a large group of victims of widespread fear over the course of six months after the attack. They were subject to a curfew that was implemented for all citizens of Japanese descent, and everyone over the age of 16 was fingerprinted, photographed, and issued a registration number and card. Additionally, they were stripped of many personal belongings and property. Finally, forced evacuation of all Japanese-Canadians who lived within 100 miles of coastal waters commenced. The massive changes forced the Okamotos into different parts of the country where they had no choice but to work on farms, and the sugar beet industry was on the rise.

During the period after WWII, Sugar beet farms were popping up throughout southern Alberta. They were much like plantation farms, with the goal being to monopolize to grow industry. Workers lived on the farms, helped build, maintain, and contributed to other subsequent forms of labour. Articles from the Taber Times Newspaper illustrate how David Holt of Dominon Construction Company wanted these farms to be the most modern on the continent. Because of the development of the sugar beet industry in Taber, other civil work began to increase with the construction of roads and irrigation lines to aid the sugar beet industry. When new factories were built, the owners would show them off to visitors from other towns and cities as well as members of the Taber community to promote the industry. By the end of the 1950’s the sugar beet industry grew all over southern Alberta and farms much like the ones found in Taber were operating in Raymond, Picture Butte, Lethbridge, and Coaldale.

Further Reading

Honouring the Japanese – Canadians who worked Ontario Farms during and after the Second World War
https://www.tvo.org/article/honouring-the-japanese-canadians-who-worked-ontario-farms-during-and-after-the-second-world-war

Japanese Canadian Interment Narrated by David Suzuki https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8TWTuMqM9g

The Story of a Japanese Canadian Family – How They Came to Taber by Mary Sarawatari http://public.musuems.ab.ca/museums.cfm?ItemID=10

Internment of Japanese Canadians. https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/interment-of-japanese-canadians


Bios:

Robert Harvie & Brooks Skyers are education students at the University of New Brunwick.

’Behind These Walls’ is a poster representing the Shubenacadie Indian Residential School open from 1930-1967 in Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia. [1] Though this was the only residential school in Atlantic Canada, it was funded by the same government as the other 129 schools throughout the country and held the same intentions - To wipe these children of their culture. Opening their doors on February 5th, 1930, the Shubenacadie Indian Residential School was home to over 1,000 students throughout its 37 years of being open (Roughly 150,000 students attended these schools across the country).

Through Indian Affairs and the Roman Catholic Church, these schools were created in attempts to convert Indigenous children into what the government considered to be ‘Canadian’ culture and to integrate them into Canadian society. [1] The Shubenacadie School was no exception to the overall goal of these residential schools. As mentioned in the
poster, children were taken from their homes and their families, and were often even separated from their siblings and divided by gender upon arrival. [2] These children quickly realized their new reality - Not being allowed to speak their language, having their hair cut, being given uniforms, and even being forbidden to bring any Indigenous
spiritual traditions with them. Many of these children didn’t see their families for years, as holidays were often spent at the school as well. It is also portrayed in the poster the lives, culture, and spiritual opportunities that were taken from these children while at these schools.

School days were typically half days of class, half days of work. [1] Girls were tasked with cleaning, laundry, cooking, etc. while the boys were forced to do construction, labour-style work. A typical day in the life of a student at the Shubenacadie Residential School is as follows - Attend mass, complete chores before breakfast, eat breakfast,
attend school, continue chores, eat lunch, attend class, finish chores, eat supper, bedtime prayer, and then bedtime.

What I found interesting here was that, the typical daily schedule at these schools involved students having to complete their chores prior to eating their scarce meals, as if their small, minimal-nutrition focused ‘meals’ were a type of reward for completing their chores to the schools satisfaction. The low quality food and small meals lead to
malnourishment, which made these students vulnerable to illness and disease. Many students suffered from tuberculosis and influenza, to name a few of the many illnesses that circulated within the walls of these schools.

Though there is no specific number of students who lost their lives at the Shubenacadie Residential School specifically, 3,200 children have been recorded to have died at these Schools throughout the country (though due to poor record-keeping, it is thought that this number actually exceeds 6,000 children). [2] And it doesn’t stop here -
Illness and malnourishment were not the only causes of harm at the schools. Many children experienced both physical and sexual abuse as well.

In the 1940’s, the government began to realize that their plan of ‘taking the Indian out of the indigenous people’ was not entirely working. [1] This was largely due to protests from families and parents, but also protests from students within the schools sending a strong message by disobeying, vandalizing, and running away. Finally, in 1969, the
Shubenacadie Indian Residential School closed its doors, and in 1996, the last residential school in Canada closed.

This part of history is so important to continue teaching in schools. Not only because it teaches us of our past Canadian history, but it also shows extreme strength. It demonstrates the power in standing up for what you believe - In standing up for your culture, for your family, and for your spirit and traditions. Though pressured for over a century (and still to this day), the indigenous people did not give in. They continued to fight for their rights and freedom that they fully deserved as righteous pupils of these lands and continue to this day to demonstrate resilience, loyalty, and unity amongst a divided country.

Future Readings:
Stories: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/abuse-residential-schools-nuns-survivorsnative-
children-1.4171588

Research: https://www.thecoast.ca/RealityBites/archives/2013/07/25/children-at-shubenacadieresidential-
school-were-used-as-guinea-pigs-by-government-nutritionists

Bio:

Ashley Mooney is a 24 year old student at the University of New Brunswick in the Bachelor of Education program class of 2020. She is in the elementary stream, in the process of completing her French Second Language Certificate.

The Mirabal sisters (Patria, Minerva, and María Teresa Mirabal) from Ojo de Agua in Salcedo Province, Dominican Republic were advocates for women's rights and spoke out against Generalissimo Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina, who was the dictator of the Dominican Republic for nearly three decades. One of our sources states that “his (Trujillo’s) rule included instances of bribery, murder, the disappearances of anything or anyone who challenged him, sexual advances towards a number of unwilling women, along with a number of other injustices” . The sisters decided they were unwilling to live in this unjust political situation. They (along with their husbands) started to rebel. The sisters became well known (as ‘las mariposas/the butterflies’) because it was uncommon for women to rebel and speak out at this time. The sisters were jailed with their husbands because of their involvement in the rebellion against Trujillo. Tragically, this opposition to Trujillo cost them their lives. The three women were leaving the jail where their husbands were imprisoned in Puerto Plata, Mexico. After their release, they were attacked by Trujillo’s secret police, thrown from the car, strangled, and beaten to death. The sisters and their opposition to Trujillo was a very important part of his ultimate downfall. Many people in the Dominican Republic came to regard them as heroines. They also have become symbols for women's rights nationally and internationally.

Further Reading

https://www.rejectedprincesses.com/princesses/the-mirabal-sisters

https://www.thevintagenews.com/2017/04/19/the-mirabal-sisters-the-three-butterflies-who-were-killed-because-of-their-activities-against-the-dictatorship-of-rafael-trujillo/

Brazen: Rebel Ladies Who Rocked the World by Penelope Bagieu

Bios

Grace Nickerson and Maegan Moore are students and pre-service teachers at UNB’s Bachelor of Education program, located on unceded and un-surrendered Wolastoqiyik territory. Grace is part of an artist collective called The Craft & Design Shop, that sells arts and crafts in the downtown Fredericton area. Maegan has always loved doing art and hopes to get into doing more!

The current NB elementary curriculum omits historical and present-day divisions between females and males. In Grade 3, the curriculum includes ‘how people make a living in their province’ (Places 3.1.3). Later in Grade 5, students learn about social structures and ‘My Society’. Discrimination against women, and especially Indigenous women, inside and outside of New Brunswick is widespread, and the issues we highlight represent only a fraction of the challenges that Indigenous women have and continue to endure in New Brunswick.

Women in New Brunswick have been marginalized since before the Canadian Constitution in 1867, and they have been continually fighting for equality since the late 1800s. In 1894, the Women’s Enfranchisement Association (WEA) was formed in Atlantic Canada. This group fought primarily for women’s suffrage and was largely responsible for the fact that women were finally given the right to vote in New Brunswick in 1919. After years of petitioning and multiple failed bills, this win was significant for New Brunswick women, however, it was not felt by all of them. Indigenous women living on reserves were not given the right to vote until the 1960s1. This is a consistent theme across many different rights.

Worldwide, the gender pay gap contributes to women’s poverty, health concerns and often serves as a barrier to leaving abusive relationships. In 2018, Canadian women made 13% less than their male counterparts for performing the same jobs2. In Canada, the gender pay gap disportionately affects low-income women, racialized women, and Indigenous women2. In 2006, 17% of non-Indigenous Canadian women were living in poverty. While 36% of Indigenous women were living in poverty2. The bills on our poster represent both the money that women lose out on due to gender unequal pay and are symbolic of worth. The disintegration of the female figure represents the disintegration of her cultural identity due to colonial initiatives designed to force Indigenous people to assimilate into Euro-Canadian culture3.

This history is significant and relevant because gender and racial inequalities affect all the students in the classroom, and it will require wide-spread, quality education to challenge these injustices. In order to change history, we need to empower our students to be feminists, and this means making issues surrounding marginalized groups a priority in the New Brunswick social studies curriculum.

Further Reading

1. New Brunswick women bore jeers and insults to get the vote 100 years ago today. CBC News. April 17, 2019 https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/100thanniversary-womens-suffrage-1.5097773
2. The Facts about the Gender Pay Gap in Canada. Canadian Women’s Foundation. https://canadianwomen.org/the-facts/the-gender-pay-gap/
3. Miller, J. R. Residential Schools in Canada. October 10, 2012
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/residential-schools

4. National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls https://www.mmiwg-ffada.ca/final-report/
5. “Explained” Why Women are Paid Less - Video, Netflix
6. Women’s Equality. https://www2.gnb.ca/content/gnb/en/departments/women.html

Bios

Thea Froehlich: I am a lover of the outdoors and a woman immersed in the male dominated world of whitewater kayaking. I spent most of my life pursuing slalom kayaking- one of the last gender-inequal sports to remain on the Olympic program. I gave up my own dream because I lost faith in a system entrenched with inequality. I am a feminist. I am an Indigenous ally.

Lynette Manuel: I am an athlete and environmentalist. I love STEM. I have been underpaid and struggled to stay afloat. I have been told “I am just a woman doing nothing”, while trying to promote sustainable agriculture practices. I am feminist. I am an Indigenous ally.