Invitation to the Emancipation Day Commemoration: Documentary Screening and Panel Discussion

July 27, 2021 - Defence Stories

Date and time: Thursday, July 29, 2021

• Documentary with French subtitles: 11:00 AM - 12:10 PM EST
• Documentary with English subtitles: 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM EST
• Presentation and Panel discussion: 1:30 PM - 2:45 PM EST

Audience: Open to all Government of Canada employees and CAF members

To register: Registration form (You are now leaving the Government of Canada website)

*Zoom is not compatible with DWAN, so please view the video on your mobile device, or copy the URL and paste it into a browser on a personal device.

Event description:

The Defence Team Black Employee Network (DTBEN) would like to invite you to join us for this virtual event on Zoom to mark the first nationally recognized Emancipation Day in Canada. The webinar will raise awareness of the historical context of Emancipation Day and how the day was celebrated in the past. It will also recognize the accomplishments of Black Canadians as they continue to challenge systemic racism in today’s society. The DTBEN is working to build and service the Black Defence Team community with support from Chief, Professional Conduct and Culture (CPCC). A formal announcement/introduction to the network will take place later this summer.

Emancipation Day commemorates the Abolition of Slavery Act, which became law on August 1^st, 1834. This act freed more than 800,000 people of African descent throughout the British Empire. Since then many areas in Canada have celebrated emancipation on, or near August 1^st of each year.

The event will feature a screening of the documentary “Mr. Emancipation: The Walter Perry Story.” The documentary is an account of Windsor’s Walter Perry, whose progressive festival flourished during one of the most significant times and places in North American history. The screening will be followed by a moderated panel discussion.

Please note that the documentary is in English. There will be 2 viewings, one with English subtitles and one with French subtitles. Simultaneous interpretation, American Sign Language and Quebec Sign Language will be available for the moderated panel discussion.

Meet the panelists:

• Paige Gallette is a community organizer and educator. Paige leads workshops on anti-racism and anti-oppression and is a co-organizer and co-founder of Northern Voices Rising, a collective with varying intersections and identities (Queer, Transgender, Indigenous, Black, and racialized individuals) that uplifts and centres their voices and experiences and works towards safety, liberty, and fulfillment for their communities. She is passionately involved in political movements fighting for social justice, including the labour movement, the women's movement, the queer movement and the Black liberation movement.

• Balarama Holness is a community activist and the founder of Montreal in Action, a grassroots organization that encourages Montrealers to take action on key issues surrounding racism, diversity, equity, and inclusion in their community. He has five degrees, including a master’s in education and a double law degree. He is a former CFL player and was featured in a CTV Television Network profile in November 2020 described as "an inspirational view of a man confronting systemic racism.”

• Sgt. Craig M. Smith is a Member of the Order of Merit of the Police Forces and a 25-year veteran of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police based in Nova Scotia. He is a historian, writer and author and has written extensively on the achievements of Black Canadians. He participated in the Government of Canada’s official announcement of the national recognition of Emancipation Day, which took place during a virtual event announcing the intent to apologize for the treatment of No. 2 Construction Battalion members.

Event organizers and sponsors:

This event is organized and sponsored by the Black employee networks at Public Services and Procurement Canada, the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, the Department of National Defence; and the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada.

For more information: TPSGC.CEFN-FBEC.PWGSC@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca