Mr. Speaker, it is my honour to present e-petition 2764, signed by over 1,500 Canadians from all 10 provinces and the north. Initiated by the African Nova Scotian Decade for People of African Descent Coalition, the petition calls upon the House of Commons to pass a resolution for the Government of Canada to apologize for Canada's role in the enslavement of African people and their descendants; publicly acknowledge Black Canadians as a distinct people; recognize August 1 annually as emancipation day; and renew Canada's commitment to addressing the general effects of enslavement, segregation and systemic anti-Black racism.
The petitioners note that the United Nations has called for nations to acknowledge and apologize for the suffering and evils of the enslavement of African people and, as such, they urge the government, as do I, to take action.