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Reflections, impacts of slavery shared at Manitoba’s first official Emancipation Day event | CBC News

Reflections, impacts of slavery shared at Manitoba's first official Emancipation Day event | CBC News

Winnipeggers gathered at the St. Norbert Arts Centre on Monday to mark the creation of legislation that abolished slavery in Canada 188 years ago, and reflect on the ongoing hardships Black people face. 

Co-host Uche Nwankwo said the anniversary is an opportunity to discuss Black history and discuss the work that needs to happen to end the ongoing effects of slavery.

“History is important. It’s a way of remembering what had happened and then finding a way to prevent a future occurrence of such ugly history,” he said on Monday.

In addition to addressing ongoing anti-Black racism in Canada, Nwankwo said the local Emancipation Day programming also looked at the similar treatment of Indigenous peoples in Canada. The event included speeches from community advocates and politicians, and finished with a sacred fire outside the arts centre.

Co-host of the Emancipation Day event Uche Nwankwo said it’s an opportunity to discuss Black history and the ongoing impacts of slavery and racism. (Joanne Roberts/CBC)

Former CFL and NFL player and current Winnipeg resident Willard Reaves, who also co-hosted the event, says marking Emancipation Day is important.

“We’re still feeling the impacts because racism is still alive and well in both the United States and in Canada. If we just put it on the back burner, it will never, ever go away.” he said.

Reaves said he hopes marking the anniversary of Emancipation Day will encourage people to put aside their differences and engage in more respect for one another. 

“It’s for people to remember a very dark, dark time … it’s a stark reminder of just how cruel human beings can actually be. And this will be a stepping stones to make sure that we never repeat history again, especially as hideous as slavery is.”

Emancipation Day event co-host Willard Reaves said the time of slavery was a dark time for humanity. He said actively acknowledging and fighting racism is important to prevent history from repeating itself. (Joanne Roberts/CBC)

Traditional knowledge keeper Michael Pierre sits on the board of directors for the St. Norbert Art Centre. He held a sacred fire at the end of the event and said the arts centre has been recognized as a sacred site by many traditional people.

Pierre said marking the anniversary of Emancipation Day was also important to the Indigenous community.

“Recognizing that as an Indigenous person and seeing my relatives in the Black community … We have a shared history and common experiences,” he said. “But again, all of us as human beings are impacted by all of these types of injustices that we do toward each other.”

Pierre said he was pleased to see many young people at the event, as well as community and political leaders who recognized the importance of recognizing Emancipation Day. 

“This is a day to acknowledge and say thank you for all the sacrifices that our ancestors have been through. The strength that they had to keep going,” he said.

Knowledge keeper Michael Pierre is originally from Thunder Bay but has called Winnipeg home since the 1970s. He says Emancipation Day is a time to reflect on the sacrifice and strength of ancestors. (Megan Goddard/Radio Canada)

It’s the first year that Manitoba has officially recognized Emancipation Day, which marks the day the Slavery Abolition Act took effect in the British Empire (including Canada) in 1834. Two years ago, Ottawa named Aug. 1 as Emancipation Day, but the province didn’t officially adopt the legislation to name it a holiday until October of that year.

Around 30 people attended the event Monday.

For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community — check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of. You can read more stories here.

Being Black in Canada highlights stories about Black Canadians. (CBC)
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‘Stand together’: Event highlights refugees and Indigenous shared experiences

'Stand together': Event highlights refugees and Indigenous shared experiences


Newcomers to Edmonton and Indigenous people shared cultures in a unique way to learn from each other and grow understanding.


A celebration at city hall brought together refugees from around the world and Indigenous people to recognize National Indigenous Peoples Day, World Refugee Day, and the start of Indigenous History Month.


Razia Saramad, who was forced to leave her home in Afghanistan after the Taliban took control last year, had no idea where she would end up.


“We tried so many countries, and finally, we succeeded to have Canada,” Saramad said.


Now six months into her new life in Edmonton, Saramad was excited to learn about the local history and share her own experiences.


“The Indigenous is the historical people of this city, and the refugees or the newcomers are just coming here, and I think they need to know each other and be together,” Saramad said.


“To learn from each other and know the value of each other and respect it,” she added.


Trent Daley, Alberta Hate Crimes Committee member, said events like this help build awareness of differences and similarities.


“I think it’s incredibly important to have a space to really root newcomers on Indigenous land,” Daley said.


Organizers hoped the event would combine the shared lived experiences of both groups to focus on the inequities they face.


“It’s important to show that we’re always going to stand together, and a way that we’re standing together is by hearing what people have to say,” said Aaima Azhar, an organizer with Roots on 6. 

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Karnataka: Tension in Aland over events at shared dargah, 167 arrested

Karnataka news, Aland tension, Kalaburagi tension, Shared dargah tensions, Karnataka Hindu muslims, Indian express

As many as 167 people have been arrested and five First Information Reports (FIRs) registered in Aland town of Karnataka’s Kalaburagi district following communal tension over programmes scheduled for March 1 at a local shrine by Hindu and Muslim groups, the police have said.

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All the cases have been registered against Muslims for allegedly throwing stones and displaying weapons during attempts by both groups to gain access to the Ladle Mashak Dargah on Monday—despite the imposition of prohibitory orders from February 27 to March 3 in the region—the Aland police said.

The police said the tension was triggered after the Sree Rama Sene, the right-wing group, proposed the purification of the Raghava Chaitanya Shivalinga at the Ladle Mashak Dargah on March 1 to mark Maha Shivaratri and to “cleanse” a purported insult that occurred in November 2021. This was planned even as Muslims planned a procession to mark Shabab-e-Barat to pay respects to the dead at the shared dargah on the same day.

Anticipating trouble, the Kalaburagi district administration imposed prohibitory orders in Aland and restricted access to the dargah to all communities on Tuesday. Sree Rama Sena leader Pramod Muthalik and a few others, known to make inflammatory speeches, were barred from the district.

However, Bharatiya Janata Party leaders including Union minister Bhagwanth Khuba and local BJP MLAs, took out a march to the dargah on Tuesday. Muslims also gathered near the dargah after hearing of the attempt by right-wing groups led by politicians to gain access to the dargah.

“The tensions occurred due to the insistence of some right-wing groups on holding a purification. We called for a peace meeting and it was agreed to allow small groups from both communities to access the dargah,” said Aland deputy superintendent of police Veeraya Hiremath. Although leaders agreed to the holding of a ritual the decision was not welcomed by all, officials said. “The vehicles of the IGP, the DC and many other police officials were stoned in the tension on Tuesday,” the DSP said.

Former Congress MLA from Aland B R Patil said on Wednesday that local authorities in Aland failed to enforce the prohibitory orders and allowed BJP leaders to take out a march causing tensions.

The police registered five cases of alleged preparation for violence by Muslims for collecting stones and weapons in anticipation of violence. “The Muslims were ready to react in case of violence. They had gathered weapons and displayed them in public. Cases were registered for stone-throwing and preparation for an attack as a result,” said an official.

Reports of the death of two people during the tension were denied by the Aland police. “There is some false propaganda happening around deaths that occurred due to natural causes,” DSP Hiremath said.