Other Programs

Integrate Refugees

The Sylvenie Lindor Foundation is deeply committed to assisting refugees in settling into their new lives in Canada. One of the most important is to do our part to make their arrival in Canada less stressful and more manageable. There is currently a severe refugee crisis, with many good and decent people unable to return to their home country.

As a result, countries such as Canada are needed. Without this assistance, these refugees risk having nowhere to go and ending up in abject poverty or worse. Many of these refugees have no choice but to migrate elsewhere, and countries like Canada must be aware of this and do everything possible to assist these extremely vulnerable people.

Living as a refugee is a constant struggle, and as a result, the assistance that countries like Canada can provide goes a long way. It is also important to understand how good and decent newcomers to Canada make the country a better place. These people are just like us. They want to work, provide for their families, live a good life, and contribute to their community. It would be an understatement to say that welcoming refugees into Canada and assisting them in reestablishing themselves presents numerous challenges. It’s all about inclusion and integration, because we all want to be accepted by those around us and to feel like we’re part of a community.

In order to assist our refugees in their new home here in Canada, our team has already met with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Canada, Jean Nicolas Beuse, as well as the Federal Minister of Border and Crime Reduction, Bill Blair, and other branches of government to discuss issues pertaining to refugee social inclusion and economic integration.

Black History Month

Black History Heritage
Every February, Canadians across the country observe Black History Month. Throughout this month, all black communities reflect on the contributions of Canadians of African descent, an act that represents their legacy for a Canada that values diversity and equal opportunity. During this month, all Canadians are encouraged to participate in celebrations and activities that honour the heritage of black Canadians as well as those of today who have paved the way to raise awareness about the black community. Black History Month was first observed in Canada in 1970. It was called black history week or Negro history week back then. This week’s emphasis was on accomplishment as well as demonstrating the importance of black history in ensuring the physical and cultural endurance of the race within a larger society. The name was changed to Black History Month in 1976. It is observed as an annual observance in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom to remember significant events and the African diaspora. Following a motion presented by Member of Parliament Jean Augustine, the House of Commons formally recognized February as Black History Month in 1995. The Right Honourable Jean Augustine was the first black woman elected to the Canadian Parliament. In Ontario, she represented the ridings of Etobicoke and Lakeshore. The motion was unanimously approved by the House of Commons.

A Rich and Proud History
The Sylvenie Lindor Foundation is proud to recognize all black Canadians and their active role in raising awareness in black communities across the country. Keeping this in mind, we highlight the cultural diversity and richness brought by all back communities, which promotes integration and social cohesion. During Black History Month, we strive to raise awareness among black Canadian youths, encourage them to work hard for a bright future, and recognize the contributions of those who came before them.

Mathieu D’ACosta
Mathieu Da Costa is one of the most intriguing (and elusive) figures in early Canadian history. There has been very little written about him in history books. However, our knowledge allows us to confirm that he was the first black person to visit Canada. In the early 17th century, Da Costa was a free black African who worked as an interpreter for French and Dutch traders and explorers.

A Rich and Proud History
Mathieu Da Costa’s only real historical “proof” is a document revealing that he was in Holland in February 1607. It appears that the Dutch stole it from the French. The following year, in 1608, Da Costa signed a contract in Amsterdam under which he agreed to sail with or on behalf of Pierre Dugua de Mons, as well as serve as interpreter on his trips to Canada and Acadia. Mathieu Da Costa had signed a three-year contract with Dugua de Mons, and this agreement had earned him a substantial salary. As a result, we can assume Da Costa accompanied Pierre Dugua de Mons and Samuel de Champlain on one or more of their journeys to Acadia and the Saint Lawrence region. The very next piece of information is a certificate of Mathieu Da Costa’s imprisonment in December 1609 in Le Havre, France. We don’t know why Da Costa was imprisoned, but the document mentions “insolences,” implying that he was an independent spirit who didn’t speak.

CANADIAN TRAILBLAZERS

Chief Mark Saunders

Mark Saunders OOM (born 1962) is a Canadian law enforcer and is the current Chief of Police of the Toronto Police Service. He was chosen on April 17, 2015, to succeed Bill Blair following Blair’s retirement the following week. Mark Saunders is the first Black Canadian to lead Toronto’s police service and reportedly beat out deputy chief Peter Sloly for the position. He is only the second Black Canadian to head a police force in Canada, having been preceded by Devon Clunis of the Winnipeg Police Service in 2012.

Saunders was born in England to Jamaican parents. His family moved from England to Quebec, and in 1969, they settled in Milton, Ontario. He was a student council president while attending Milton District High School, and also attended W. I. Dick Middle School, J.M. Denyes School, and Martin Street Middle School.

Saunders began his policing career after graduating from high school and has served with the Toronto Police for 35 years, rising to the position of deputy chief in charge of specialized operations command, before being appointed chief in 2015. During his career, he has had assignments with professional standards, urban street gang unit, intelligence division, drug squad, community safety command, emergency task force and served as the unit commander of the homicide squad.

Violet Pauline King Henry

Violet Pauline King Henry, lawyer (born 18 October 1929 in Calgary, AB; died 30 March 1982 in New York, NY). King was the descendant of Black settlers from the United States. Her life consisted of several important milestones. She was the first Black Canadian to obtain a law degree in Alberta, the first Black person admitted to the Alberta Bar and the first Black woman to become a lawyer in Canada. She was also the first woman appointed to an executive position with the YMCA in the United States.

Her paternal grandparents moved to Keystone (now Breton), Alberta, from Oklahoma in 1911. They were drawn to Canada after discovering the federal government’s campaign to entice American farmers to immigrate to the country. However, the Canadian government didn’t expect Black farmers to also answer this call. The government quickly moved towards discouraging Black immigration and thus limited the total number of Black immigrants to the Canadian Prairies to only about 1,000 by 1912 (see Order-in-Council P.C. 1911-1324 — the Proposed Ban on Black Immigration to Canada).King’s parents, John and Stella, moved to Calgary in 1919 and lived in the community of Hillhurst-Sunnyside. John worked as a sleeping car porter with the Canadian Pacific Railway and Stella worked as a seamstress. They had four children together, Violet, Vern, Lucille and Ted, who launched a legal challenge against a Calgary motel’s discriminatory policy in 1959.Violet King attended Crescent Heights High School and became president of the Girls’ Association in Grade 12. At a young age, King knew she wanted to pursue a legal career. Her Grade 12 yearbook caption read: “Violet wants to be a criminal lawyer.”

Viola Irene 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.

HodanNalayeh

HodanNalayeh was born in Somali in 1976. She was a media executive, marketing consultant, social activist and entrepreneur. She was the President of the Cultural Integration Agency and the Vice President of Sales & Programming Development of Cameraworks Productions International. Nalayeh has over thirteen years of experience in client management, sales and production in radio and television. She had been served as a producer on a number of TV shows, including American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance.

Additionally, Nalayeh had provided marketing and writing consultancy to burgeoning companies. Her work in this area was centered on video marketing combined with online branding. In September 2013, Nalayeh was appointed Vice President of Sales & Programming Development of Cameraworks Productions International’s Canadian operation based in Vaughan, Ontario. The company is a global, full-service and comprehensively-equipped video and television production facility focusing on pre- to post-production of business-to-business video assets. Nalayeh also served as the President of the Cultural Integration Agency, a full-service media firm specializing in the development, production, marketing and distribution of multicultural programs. HodanNalayeh was killed during a terrorist attack at Hotel Asasey in Kismayo, Somalia, on July 12, 2019.

The Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean

Michaelle Jean is a Canadian stateswoman and journalist who served as the 27th governor general of Canada from 2005 to 2010. Currently she is the Secretary-General of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie, the first woman to hold the position. She has worked as a journalist, presenter and news anchor for the Canadian public broadcasting corporation for years and is also actively involved in charity works.

A highly ambitious and brilliant woman, she has reached the pinnacles of professional success rising from very humble and difficult beginnings. Born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, she immigrated to Canada as one of the thousands of refugees fleeing the dictatorial regime in her own land. The initial years in Canada were very difficult for her though she bravely faced the challenges to eventually establish herself as a successful reporter and broadcaster.

As the product of an abusive home, she felt deeply for the female and young victims of domestic violence and played an active role in the establishment of a network of emergency shelters throughout Quebec and elsewhere in Canada. Progressing in her career through the years, she was appointed Governor General and Commander-in-Chief of Canada in 2005 and in this position too she proved to be a very capable leader. Married to the filmmaker Jean-Daniel Lafond, she has also appeared in some of his movies and documentary

The Honourable Emmanuel Dubourg MP

Emmanuel Dubourg (born December 26, 1958) is a Canadian politician, chartered accountant and teacher from Quebec. He was the Member of National Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Viau from 2007 until 2013. Dubourg is the third black MNA to be a member of the Quebec Liberal Party. Quebec’s first black MNA was Jean Alfred, as a member of the Parti Québécois, elected in 1976. On November 25, 2013 he was elected to the House of Commons of Canada in a by-election to become the Liberal Member of Parliament for the Montreal riding of Bourassa.

Born in Saint-Marc, Haiti, he emigrated to Canada in 1974. Dubourg obtained a Master of Business Administration at Université du Québec à Montréal and has been a member of the Ordre des comptables agréés du Québec since 1987.

He was a teacher at Université du Québec à Montréal, Université du Québec en Outaouais and CEGEP Montmorency. Dubourg has been honoured with several awards and citations for his work over the years, including the Governor General’s Medal, the Innovation and Excellence prize from Revenue Canada in 1992 and the Black History Month Award in 2006 for his work in the Black Community.

Dubourg won his seat in the 2007 Quebec Provincial Election, succeeding former Liberal MNA William Cusano. After the election, was named the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Employment and Social Solidarity, a portfolio held by Sam Hamad. He was re-elected in the 2008 and 2012 general elections.

Dre Rosemary Sadlier.
Writer-Consultant-Historian-Speaker

Rosemary Sadlier Oont, award-winning author, speaker, consultant, and community activist, She is founder and president of the Black Canadian Network, Chair at the Royal Commonwealth Society – Toronto Branch; and former President of the Ontario Black History Society – an unpaid position she held for over 23 years.

An Order of Ontario recipient and recognized expert on the history of Black Canadians, she also worked with Honourable Jean Augustine on the national declaration of February as Black History Month.

Moreover, her work as a tireless advocate for recognition of Black Canadian history included the initiation of the process to commemorate August 1st as Emancipation Day in 1995. Sadlier’s profile as a global defender of human rights is featured in the Speak Truth to Power resource, a part of the resource used by educators across the country. An anti-racist consultant, she continues to address systemic racism through speaking, workshops, and advocacy. Rosemary Sadlier

The Honourable Jean Augustine

In 1993, Canadian politician Jean Augustine became the first Black woman elected to the Parliament of Canada. An energetic advocate of social justice, she worked as the principal of an elementary school before entering federal politics. Among her accomplishments as an MP was the introduction of a motion, passed unanimously, to have February proclaimed as Black History Month in Canada. The city of Toronto had been celebrating Black History Month, working with organizations such as the Ontario Black History Society, since 1979. Born in St. George’s, Grenada, Jean Augustine was a qualified teacher when she arrived in Canada in 1959, but had to work as a domestic and shoe clerk before earning an Ontario Teacher’s Certificate. After completing a Master of Education degree, Ms. Augustine became a school principal and supported many social causes through her involvement in boards such as that of The Hospital for Sick Children. She also served as the National President of the Congress of Black Women of Canada. She holds an honourary doctorate of law from the University of Toronto.

During her years as a federal member of parliament, The Honourable Jean Augustine served as the Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister of Canada, Chair of the National Liberal Women’s Caucus, Secretary of State for Multiculturalism and the Status of Women, Chair of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and Deputy Speaker. In March 2007 she became the first Fairness Commissioner for the province of Ontario. The mother of two daughters, Jean Augustine is the recipient of numerous awards–including the 1994 Canadian Black Achievement Award, the YWCA Woman of Distinction and the Kaye Livingstone Award for support of issues relating to Black women. Ms. Augustine has worked on many initiatives related to youth, noting that “racism is the most significant barrier to the successful integration of newcomer black youths to Canada

Watch More

25th ANNIVERSARY oF BLACK HISTORY MONTH IN CANADA

Legacy and Contribution in remembrance of

75th anniversary of Desmond’s resistance to social injustice and racial inequity.
25th anniversary of national declaration of Black History Month in Canada.
10th anniversary of Foundation Sylevenie Lindor Existence.

Other Programs

Integrate Refugees

Black History Month