Search for "viola desmond"

Viola Irene Desmond (née Davis), businesswoman, civil rights activist (born 6 July 1914 in Halifax, NS; died 7 February 1965 in New York, NY). Viola Desmond built a career and business as a beautician and was a mentor to young Black women in Nova Scotia through her Desmond School of Beauty Culture. In 1946, Viola Desmond challenged racial discrimination when she refused to leave the segregated Whites-only section of the Roseland Theatre in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia. Viola Desmond was arrested, jailed overnight and convicted without legal representation for an obscure tax offence as a result. Despite the efforts of the Nova Scotian Black community to assist her appeal, Viola Desmond was unable to remove the charges against her and went unpardoned in her lifetime. Desmond’s courageous refusal to accept an act of racial discrimination provided inspiration to later generations of Black persons in Nova Scotia and in the rest of Canada. In 2010, Lieutenant-Governor Mayann Francis issued Desmond a free pardon. In December 2016, the Bank of Canada announced that Viola Desmond would be the first Canadian woman to be featured by herself on the face of a banknote — the $10 note released on 19 November 2018. Viola Desmond was named a National Historic Person by the Canadian government in 2018.

Carrie Mae Best (née Prevoe), OC, ONS, LLD, human rights activist, author, journalist, publisher and broadcaster (born 4 March 1903 in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia; died 24 July 2001 in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia). Sparked by incidents of racial discrimination, Carrie Best became a civil rights activist. Co-founder of The Clarion, one of the first newspapers in Nova Scotia owned and published by Black Canadians, she used the platform to advocate for Black rights. As editor, she publicly supported Viola Desmond in her case against the Roseland Theatre. Best used her voice in radio and print to bring positive change to society in Nova Scotia and Canada.

Located in Cherry Brook, near Dartmouth (Halifax Regional Municipality), the Black Cultural Centre for Nova Scotia has been open to the public since 1983. It is run by the Black Cultural Society, created in 1977. The centre is both a museum and a gathering place where people can explore the history and heritage of Black communities in Nova Scotia.

Eckhardt-Gramatté National Music Competition for the Performance of Canadian Music/Concours national de musique Eckhardt-Gramatté. Held annually beginning in 1976 on the campus of Brandon University, this competition rotates between piano, strings (violin, viola, and cello) and voice.

Lulu Jane Anderson, civil rights activist (born around 1885–86 in Atlantic City, New Jersey; date of death unknown). Lulu Anderson was a Black woman who sued the Metropolitan Theatre in Edmonton for refusing her entry to the theatre. Her court case gained widespread interest at the time with her trial covered by many newspapers. Lulu’s case is notable in that it was an early example of Black civil rights activism in Alberta. Her actions alongside those of other Black activists show that resistance to segregation was common across Canada throughout the 1900s.

Steven (David) Gellman. Composer, pianist, teacher, b Toronto 16 Sep 1947; premiere prix analysis (Paris Conservatory) 1975, premiere prix composition (Paris Conservatory) 1976.

The Esprit Orchestra. Toronto orchestra dedicated to the performance and commissioning of contemporary music, established in 1983 by Alex Pauk (it was known as Esprit Contemporain until 1986).

Mi’kmaq Grand Chief Gabriel Sylliboy is believed to be the first to use the 1752 Peace and Friendship Treaty to fight for Canada’s recognition of treaty rights. In his court case, R. v. Sylliboy (1928), he argued that the 1752 treaty protected his rights to hunt and fish, but he lost the case and was subsequently convicted. In 1985, when the Supreme Court of Canada ruled in R. v. Simon — another case concerning Mi’kmaq hunting rights — it found that the 1752 treaty did in fact give Mi’kmaq people the right to hunt on traditional territories. This judgment vindicated both Sylliboy and James Simon of the 1985 case. In 2017, almost 90 years after his conviction, Sylliboy received a posthumous pardon and apology from the Government of Nova Scotia.

Formed during the Great Depression, the Chatham Colored All-Stars (1932–39) was the first all-Black organized baseball team in Ontario. Comprised primarily of men from the town of Chatham in Southwestern Ontario, the All-Stars became the first all-Black team to win a Provincial Ontario Baseball Amateur Association (OBAA) championship in 1934. 

The Heritage Minutes collection is a bilingual series of history-focused public service announcements. Each 60-second short film depicts a significant person, event or story in Canadian history. They are produced by Historica Canada, the not-for-profit organization that also publishes this encyclopedia. First released in 1991, the Heritage Minutes have been shown on television, in cinemas and online. They have become a recognizable part of Canadian culture. The collection currently includes 99 episodes.

William Pearly Oliver, CM, minister, army chaplain and community organizer (born 11 February 1912 in Wolfville, Nova Scotia; died 26 May 1989 in Lucasville). Oliver was a social activist, educator and minister. He cofounded the Nova Scotia Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NSAACP) and the Black United Front (BUF). He was also instrumental in the creation of the Black Cultural Society and the Black Cultural Centre for Nova Scotia.

The CPC, under the Canada Post Corporation Act, has a broad mandate to operate a postal service for the transmission of messages, information, funds and goods and to provide other related services.

Orford String Quartet. Distinguished Canadian string quartet founded at the Jeunesses Musicales of Canada's Orford Arts Centre in June 1965 and active until July 1991.

Norma Lee Bisha was principal viola 1956-66 in the CBC Halifax Orchestra, a member of the Canadian Viola Society, and taught at Brandon University 1966-8 and at the University of Saskatchewan in 1970. She was second violin, then viola, of the Amati String Quartet. Her pupils included Neal Gripp.

Idola Saint-Jean, feminist and pioneer in the fight for women’s suffrage (born 19 May 1880 in Montreal, QC; died 6 April 1945 in Montreal). The first woman from Quebec to run as a candidate in a federal election, she devoted over 20 years of her life to active efforts to improve women’s legal rights.

Herbert (Benjamin) Barrow. B London 22 Sep 1875, d Toronto 31 Dec 1955. The son of a musician, Barrow studied viola and French horn at the GSM, winning the school prize for viola in 1898.