Black Canadian

The term Black Canadian refers to Canadian citizens who are of African descent. Black Canadians for the most part have recent origins in the Caribbean region, and to a lesser extent Africa and even Latin America. Some Black Canadians, like those in Nova Scotia, trace their ancestry to freed black American slaves who fled to Canada seeking refuge from American slavery and institutional racism.

Black immigration

Black people arrived in Canada in several waves of immigration. The first of these was a large group who came to Nova Scotia after the American War of Independence. About 2000 of these were the slaves of white United Empire Loyalists. A larger group, about 3500, were freemen, many just recently freed by British authorities.

Related Topics:
Nova Scotia - American War of Independence - United Empire Loyalists

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Canada was not suited to the large-scale agricultural slavery practiced in the United States and slavery became increasingly uncommon. In 1793, in one of the first acts of the new Upper Canada colonial parliament, slavery was abolished. It was all but abolished throughout the other British North American colonies by 1800, and was completely illegal throughout the British Empire after 1834. This made Canada an attractive destination for those fleeing slavery in the United States. From the 1830s until the American Civil War began in 1861 the Underground Railroad brought tens of thousands of fleeing slaves to Canada, while many of these returned to the United States after emancipation a significant population remained, largely in Southern Ontario. A wave of black immigration to British Columbia coincided with that colony's gold rush of 1858, when half of the black population of San Francisco migrated to and settled in Victoria.

Related Topics:
1793 - Upper Canada - British North America - British Empire - American Civil War - 1861 - Underground Railroad - Ontario - British Columbia - Gold rush - 1858 - San Francisco - Victoria

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The next important period of migration was part of a general movement of Americans into the Canadian west in the early twentieth century. This included a significant number of blacks known as the Exodusters. At this point in Canada there were strong concerns about non-white immigration and the government attempted to limit black migration.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Restrictions on immigration remained until 1962 when racial rules were eliminated from the immigration laws. This coincided with the dissolution of the British Empire in the Caribbean, and over the next decades several hundred thousand blacks came from that region to Canada.

Related Topics:
1962 - British Empire

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In the last couple of decades an increasing number of immigrants from Africa have been coming to Canada, as is the case with the U.S and Europe. This includes large numbers of refugees, but also many skilled workers pursuing better economic conditions. Today's black Canadians are largely of Caribbean origin, some of African origin (especially Somalia) and smaller numbers from Latin American countries, but a sizable number of black Canadians descended from freed American slaves can still be found in the province of Nova Scotia.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Where Canadian blacks come from:

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

• Jamaica: 250,000 or 37.7%
• Haiti: 154,000 or 22.9%
• other Caribbean: 150,000 or 22.6%
• African: 108,000 or 16.8%

Canada's blacks are diverse in religious belief. The vast majority of them are Christian, mostly Baptist, Methodist, and Roman Catholic.

Related Topics:
Baptist - Methodist - Roman Catholic

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~