Mr. Speaker, every February, we celebrate Black History Month by acknowledging the contributions that Canadians of African and Caribbean descent have made to Canada. I recently participated in a Black History Month event at the Meadowvale East Apostolic Church, where Pastor Melvin McGann and his congregation opened their doors to the Scarborough community.
We celebrated individuals like Viola Desmond, a prominent Black woman whose bravery and courage changed the course of Canadian history by refusing to leave a whites-only area of a movie theatre. I am proud that Desmond is featured on the new 10-dollar bill.
One of the speakers was ltah Sadu, owner of the A Different Booklist bookstore. Noting this is Canada's first vertical bill, Sadu said that this was important because “We have to stand up”.
Let us all stand up and recognize the contributions of Canadians of African and Caribbean descent this month, and every month.