Our assignment in class was to research 4 historical figures. This poem is about making Black History heritage more defined to not only Canadians but others who are unfamiliar with it. it is as if the author is making a metaphor to how the pages of history are being lost like the pages of a poem. The 3 people i decided to write about are:Stanley grizzle, Viola Desmond, Henry Bibb and Domestic Workers (not a person). I used the 5 W's to further my research and make it more clear.
Who: STANLEY GRIZZLE
What: After serving in Europe during WW2 Grizzle started to be involved in the Union more. He opened management to black people and he was also one of the leaders of the Civil Rights in 1950. Grizzle worked with the Labor Committee to Combat Racial Intolerance.
When: (Birth year) 1918
Where: (Birth place) Toronto, Ontario
Why: Grizzle wanted society to be more opened to diversity.
Who: VIOLA DESMOND
What:Viola Desmond refused to sit in the assigned area in which black people were supposed to sit which was the balcony of the theatre. The theatre had been segregated this means the black people had to sit in a different area that the whites and this caused a separation of colour between the two.Desmond decided to sit in the floor seats where the white people did.She was removed with force and arrested.
When:July 6 1914- February 7 1965
Where: Nova Scotia
Why: Viola wanted to change the way things were and also to make a stand for what she believed in.
Who: HENRY BIBB
What: Henry Bibb was a slave who served a white woman in a Kentucky Plantation. Henry was born into slavery and throughout his life he had encountered many memorable things.Bibb published his autobiography called : Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Henry Bibb, an American Slave, Written by Himself. Henry was later known as " One of the best slave narratives." After writing his autobiography he felt that his life would be in danger so to ensure the safety of himself he migrated to Canada and lived in Windsor Ontario.
When:1815-1854
Where:Kentucky
Why: Henry wrote his biography in order to show people not only what he had to live through but what other slaves experienced on a daily basis.
Who: DOMESTIC WORKERS
What: Domestic workers worked within a household of their employers, this is another term for a servant. They provide childcare, cleaning, food preparations, shopping, laundry and other errands.Woman were typically known as domestic workers but they were also reffered to as "Woman-Mistresses"
When: Domestic workers were most commonly recognized in the 1800's and 1900's. Slavery also started before the 1800's and it also still occurs in various countries today.
Where: South America and some parts of Canada in the past.
Why: Domestic workers/slavery were used for trading. They traded slaves usually for cotton, tobacco and sugar.The British had captured African tribes and put them on slave ships with about 400 and more people being sent to the West Indies,America and Canada. They were sold to owners with plantations.
