Canadian Black History
A former Black Nova Scotian community surrounded by stories of resilience and injustice
Africville
This island is home to the Kaieteur Falls, one of the world's tallest single-drop waterfalls. This island is part of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) despite being on the South American mainland.
This is a character in Akan religion and folklore associated with stories, wisdom, knowledge, wit, mischievousness, cunning, and trickery, most commonly depicted as a spider
Anansi
This Jamaican reggae icon used his music to spread messages of peace, social justice, and African unity, becoming a global symbol of resistance and the Rastafari movement.
Bob Marley
She was a Canadian contralto and educator celebrated as the first Black Canadian concert singer to achieve international fame. Emerging from humble beginnings in Nova Scotia, she broke racial barriers in classical music and inspired generations of artists and civil rights advocates across Canada.
Portia White (1911–1968)
This Black Canadian woman was a civil and women’s right activist. She challenged racial segregation at a movie theater by refusing to leave the white only area. Her face is now on the $10 bill for her actions.
Viola Desmond
In 1977 Janelle Penny Commissiong became the first Black woman to be crowned Miss Universe. Her victory shattered racial barriers. What island is she from?
Trinidad and Tobago
This is a wandering spirit or ghost of the dead, often mischievous or malevolent.
Jumbie/Duppy
Dubbed the “Queen of Soul,” she used her powerful voice to dominate R&B and gospel music while also becoming an icon for civil rights and women’s empowerment.
Aretha Franklin
She was a Jamaican revolutionary and leader of the Jamaican Maroons. She led a community of formerly-enslaved escapees, the majority of them West African in descent, called the Windward Maroons
Nanny of the Maroons
She is a Jamaican-born Canadian historian. She has taught Caribbean studies, history, women's studies and Black History at Ryerson, York, University of Toronto and Dalhousie University. In 2006 she published The Hanging of Angelique
Afua Cooper
This island is the only place in the Caribbean where you can hike the summit of an active volcano, La Soufriere
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
A beautiful woman with a hidden cloven hoof who lures men to their doom.
La Diablesse
Known as the “Queen of Gospel,” she used her powerful voice to inspire millions and became a prominent figure in the civil rights movement, often performing at rallies alongside leaders like Martin Luther King Jr.
Mahalia Jackson
He was an American civil rights activist, politician, and ordained Baptist minister. A protégé of Martin Luther King Jr. and James Bevel during the civil rights movement, he became one of the most prominent civil rights leaders of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Jesse Jackson
A lawyer and Black Canadian activist born in Truro , NS. He spent much of his life fighting for social justice for Black and Indigenous people in Canada; his was a strong voice in the areas of human rights , race and poverty . As a lawyer, he focused his attention in these areas, also advocating for prisoners’ rights.
Rocky Jones
This island is known for this motto "Out of Many, One People"
Jamaica
She was an enslaved Black woman of Portuguese origin who lived in Montréal, New France. Accused of setting a fire that destroyed much of the city in 1734,
Marie-Joseph Angélique
This Trinidadian soca legend, known as the “King of Soca,” has spent decades energizing Carnival, winning multiple monarch titles and pushing Caribbean music onto the global stage through high‑energy performances and cultural advocacy.
Machel Montano
This African American bass singer and actor, renowned for his rendition of “Ol’ Man River,” also used his fame to fight racial injustice, support labor rights, and oppose colonialism, often facing government scrutiny for his outspoken activism.
Paul Robeson
Mary Ann Camberton Shadd Cary was an American-Canadian anti-slavery activist, journalist, teacher, and lawyer. She was the first black woman <blank> in North America and the first woman <blank> in Canada.
Publisher
This island is known as ‘The Island of Spice’ due to it’s abundance of spice plantations
Grenada
Legendary African American folk hero and spiritual figure rooted in the oral traditions of enslaved Africans in the United States. Known as a clever trickster and symbol of resistance, he embodies the endurance, humor, and spiritual strength that helped enslaved people cope with oppression
High John the Conqueror
Born in Tobago, she became a pioneering calypso singer, breaking gender barriers in a male-dominated genre, and used her music to address social issues, women’s rights, and Caribbean identity.
Calypso Rose
He was a Jamaican political activist. He was the founder and first President-General of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League.
Marcus Garvey