but a political demonstration as well.
The celebrations became important to the African-Canadian community for various reasons and served many functions, which changed over time. There was a mix of the traditional celebration components such as historical commemoration, education for all participants, community development, and entertainment. As noted, the most central themes of these events were freedom and change, which in and of themselves would come to mean different things at different times. The “first freedom” celebrated was the emancipation from chattel slavery. Freedom, and its pursuit, was at the core of understanding the historical viewpoint of people of African descent; they had been legally held as property for over 330 years in the Caribbean, over 240 years in the United States, and over 220 years in Canada. The attainment of freedom meant new possibilities. African Canadians believed they could pursue any opportunity they wanted, travel freely within Canada, reunite with their families on free soil, legally marry, vote, and obtain an education for their children. They celebrated the ideas of equality and justice that not only were they entitled to under British law for themselves in the present, but also the same ideals that meant universal rights for all people in the future.
However, African Canadians would soon see that emancipation was just the beginning of the fight for the full rights and privileges that came along with their new-found citizenship. Over the decades, freedom remained a recurring theme and would take many forms and hold different meanings. Each new generation would engage in a liberation struggle because they felt they were still held in bondage by the daily realities of racial discrimination — the lack of job opportunities, the reality of less pay for equal work, the denial of housing and public education, their being banned from public facilities, and other injustices because of their race. Therefore, full emancipation remained a constant pursuit in their ongoing efforts to remove these barriers to equality.
On one hand, Emancipation Day commemorations were a serious time, a moment to reflect on the experience of the enslaved African in the Western world and the triumphs over slavery, and to place the history of Africans in the larger context of Canadian historical narrative. On the other hand, it was also an opportunity to strengthen the growing African-Canadian communities through shaping the social, political, racial, and economical consciousness of African Canadians needed to advance the agenda of civil rights. However, over time entertainment increasingly became a main component partially because Blacks in some areas were barred from visiting certain public attractions. The designated time, a day or weekend, provided the opportunity for leisure-time interaction for a large group of African Canadians who were not often able to socialize freely in a recreational setting. The event also became a time to promote the meaningful cultural rituals, which became key components in all Emancipation Day celebrations.
Church Attendance and Religious Services
The day began with giving thanks to God for deliverance from bondage and to express gratitude for the rights they were always entitled to under the law of the Bible. Many African Canadians held strong Christian beliefs and interpreted their experience with Biblical connections. People of African descent related their plight from enslavement in the New World to the Jews who were brought out of slavery in Egypt, and felt that they were a chosen people selected by God to make the pilgrimage to Canada. Canada was labelled as Canaan, the land promised by God to his children, also known as the land of milk and honey. In another biblical comparison, Harriet Tubman, the famous Underground Railroad conductor, was referred to as Moses because she delivered God’s people out of captivity.
Attendees of Emancipation Day church services also wanted to acknowledge that the persistent appeals to individuals’ morality, pressing the fact that slavery was an evil against Christian teachings, were rewarded with the abolition of slavery. Thanksgiving services provided an opportunity to educate the masses through sermons. Church ministers also played the role of teachers as many members of their congregation could not read or write. Sermons focused mainly on freedom and taught about the atrocities of slavery. Messages also discussed how to approach the future and how to take advantage of their free life in the north. The hymnals sung in church were equally important as a musical expression of the feelings of African Canadians, joy for their freedom from bondage and an enduring perseverance towards the difficulties of this life.
Parades became a significant civic ritual during the Victorian era and members from all facets of society were involved. On August First people took time off work, places of employment closed, and notable members of the community, such as government officials and leaders of social, religious, and political organizations, became engaged participants and observers. Emblems were displayed. Some individuals marched through the streets while others observed. Essentially, Emancipation Day parades were ceremonial processions used to express African-Canadian traditions and cultural beliefs through public demonstration. This grand official ceremony demonstrated unity within the African-Canadian community as well as the appreciation of fugitives towards their adopted country. At times however, the street marches were also used to publicly protest acts of racial discrimination committed against African Canadians.
The participation of the female members of benevolent societies and male members of fraternal orders in Emancipation Day parades showed evidence of Black Canadians helping one another to strengthen their community. These social organizations provided food, clothing, shelter, and employment assistance to escapees who were steadily pouring into the provinces. Many anti-slavery groups, with Black and White members, played an active role in the organization of Emancipation Day events, also using the celebrations to continue the push for abolition in the United States. Processions represented freedom from an array of discriminatory social structures and racism in general, a rejuvenation of the mind, body, and soul, and a moment of social cohesion.
Emancipation Day Parade Symbols
The flags, banners, ribbons, and emblems always on display at Emancipation Day parades were designed to make a strong visual impact on observers. Flags included national flags, military flags, and the flags of fraternal orders. The Union Jack was shown to represent Britain, the former enslaver and now liberator of slaves, and to acknowledge allegiance to Britain. Red, blue, and white streamers used in street marches and other events also symbolized the Union Jack. The American flag was displayed in remembrance of life in bondage and of what was left behind, and to represent the new anti-slavery battleground.
Banners were central to parades as distinctive decorations publicizing the collective identity and historical presence of a particular group, the name of the organization, its location, and particular affiliations being prominently displayed. The presence of the diverse participating groups also publicized the existence of an identifiable African-Canadian community. Additionally, banners were used to reveal relevant themes of a particular year’s celebration. In Windsor in 1852, a banner was displayed where on one side it showed a Black man, kneeling in chains looking up and asking, “Am I not a man and a brother?” On the other side of the banner stood a Black, tall and erect with broken shackles, symbolic of the condition of the slave and liberation. Another banner in Windsor, also on parade in 1852, read, “God, Humanity, the Queen and a free Country.”1 In London in 1896 a banner displays the words, “Sons of England.”2 The emblems of the Masonic lodges that were participating were displayed for similar reasons as the banners and flags.
A depiction of the “Am I not a man?” banner displayed during the Emancipation Day parade in Windsor in 1852. The banner was carried to bring public awareness to the conditions of slaves. On the back was an image of a man breaking free from shackles and chains, symbolizing the thousands of emancipated British slaves.
