Honourable senators, every February, we celebrate Black History Month. The theme for 2018 is “Black Canadian Women: Stories of Strength, Courage and Vision”.

In addition to taking this opportunity to celebrate the strong Black women of vision among us, I rise to remind us that, while Canada is often presented as the historical beacon of freedom for people of African descent who are fleeing the horrors of slavery, this narrative is incomplete. It silences the experiences of the Black people enslaved in Canada during that period.

One of these people was Marie-Joseph Angélique, who was blamed for starting the Montreal fire of 1734. It was alleged she did so in order to escape from slavery. She was imprisoned and tried based on the evidence of 20 people, none of whom had witnessed the alleged crime. She was brutally tortured before she was killed.

Marie-Joseph’s tragic experience was not unique, as I was reminded when I visited the cemetery where Loyalists’ slaves were laid to rest in Saint-Armand, Quebec. For years, the Black Coalition of Quebec has been asking the government to recognize this site, which is now farmland, and thereby honour the sacrifices and contributions of black communities. Esteemed colleagues, we must preserve this reminder of Canada’s colonial past while we bear in mind the systemic discrimination still present in our institutions today.

Black Canadians are increasingly overrepresented among those who are criminalized in this country, representing about 9 per cent of those in federal prisons but only 3 per cent of Canada’s population. Last week, the Prime Minister placed this systemic racism in the context of centuries of oppression, unconscious bias and stories of Canadians still judged today by the colour of their skin. The stories and experiences of Black Canadians and their communities, he noted, “still too often go untold.”

As we celebrate Black History Month this month, we must stand against the silencing of past racial injustices and those that persist today. We must listen and learn from our friends, our colleagues and community members as we honour the strength and accomplishments of Black Canadians, and this year, the particular contributions that strong, courageous Black women of vision have made to all facets of life in this country.