Notable facts: Date of birth: Mar. 1, 1923; date of death: Dec. 30, 1993; Eva Smith was a tireless campaigner on behalf of not only the youth within Toronto's Caribbean population, but mainstream society as well. Her selfless commitment to others has been recognized by the youth group Ujamaathrough the annual Eva Smith Bursary and in North York byEva's Place, a 30-bed wheelchair-accessible residence for homeless young people ages sixteen to twenty-one.
Known for: Graduate student in social anthropology
Notable facts: Lisa was awarded a Society for American Archaeology (SAA) scholarship to participate in a Barbados field school studying enslaved labour on Mar. 3, 2016. She is the first University of Toronto student to receive this prestigious award.
Notable facts: Date of birth: Mar. 4, 1903; date of death: Jul. 24, 2001; founded the Kay Livingstone Visible Minority Women's Society of Nova Scotia in 1975; founded The Clarion, the first Black-owned and published Nova Scotia newspaper in 1946.
Notable facts: Black parents in Chatham, Ontario submitted a petition to the Superintendent of Education, Egerton Ryerson to ask him to intervene. Black parents had to pay taxes for schools their children were not allowed to attend because of their race.
Notable facts: Date of birth: Nov. 8, 1919; date of death: Mar. 9, 2012; inducted into the Canada Sports Hall of Fame in 2001; recipient of the Order of Canada (2004), Order of Ontario (1996), the Queen's Golden (2002) and Silver (1977) Jubilee medals.
Notable facts: Date of birth: Mar. 12, 1876; date of death: Mar. 3, 1915; James was the first Black Nova Scotian to graduate from university when he graduated in 1898 from the Dalhousie University Law School; became the first Black lawyer in Nova Scotia and advocated for Black rights.
Notable facts: On Mar. 14, 1783, she was sold, sparking the 1793 Act to Limit Slavery, the first law in the British colonies to restrict the slave trade.
Notable facts: Sherwood's debut novel, Music in the Dark, was released on Mar. 15, 2015. Sherwood has acted on the stage, on television and on the movie screen during his long career. He has produced several documentaries on African Canadian history. Anthony has won many awards including the Urban Alliance on Race Relations Award in 2000.
Notable facts: Date of birth: Mar. 16, 1922; founded the Sickle Cell Association of Ontario (SCAO) in 1981; the first Black director of public health; recipient of the Order of Ontario in 2011; received the Legacy Award at the 2014 Black Health Alliance Awards.
Notable facts: Measha launched the first concert of Songs of Freedom, based on the four-part television special on her search for her ancestors, which aired in Feb. 2016. The New Brunswick native performed in Moncton and Miramichi with the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra.
Known for:Educator; lawyer; human rights activist
Notable facts: Date of birth: Mar. 20, 1929; date of death: Feb. 24, 2007; founder of the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission; awarded the Canadian Centennial Medal of Honour; recipient of a Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee medal; president of the Nova Scotia Association for the Advancement of Coloured People.
Notable facts: Sherylee's first book was released on Mar. 21, 2017. The book, I Am Sheriauna, is about her daughter, who was born as a congenital amputee. It teaches children to accept difference.
Notable facts: Date of birth: Mar. 22, 1956; founder of the Vision of Science Learning Network; curator of the International African Inventors Museum and the Canadian Multicultural Inventors Museum.
March 25- The International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade
Known for: Day of observance
Notable facts: Mar. 25 was designated the International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade by the United Nations in 2007. On Mar. 25, 1807, the slave trade was abolished throughout the British Empire, including Canada, making it illegal to buy or sell human beings across the Atlantic Ocean and ending the transatlantic trade. It did not end domestic slave trades or abolish slavery. The unveiling of a memorial, named the Ark of Return, was erected at United Nations Headquarters in New York and unveiled on Mar. 25, 2015.
Notable facts: Black Lives Matter held a protest at the Toronto Police Services headquarters on Mar. 26, 2016 with support from allies like CUPE to protest racial profiling by the police.
Known for: President of Halton Black History Awareness Society
Notable facts: Date of birth: Mar. 27, 1950; recognized by the Ontario Heritage Trust Community Recognition Program for his work in promoting cultural heritage.
Notable facts: Date of birth: Mar. 30, 1858; date of death: Nov. 23, 1950; First World War soldier; posthumously awarded the Canadian Forces Medallion for Distinguished Servicein 2010.
