Launch of the Michaëlle Jean Chair in Caribbean
and African Diasporic Studies

Toronto, Monday, March 2, 2009

Today, we are launching a new Canadian chair in Caribbean and African diasporic studies at one of Canada’s flagship institutions of higher learning, the University of Alberta, which celebrated its centennial last year.

In a country like ours, enriched every day by the diverse contributions of its citizens who have come from every corner of the world, it is important that we have spaces for reflection like this one, so that our differences can inspire new and more just ways of living together in harmony.

It was Ghandi who said, “To understand first of all and then, perhaps to love the other, as well in their shadows as in their bursts of light.”

Consider the history of Blacks on this continent.

The ancient world lauded the virtues of slavery.

Slaves were believed to be morally, intellectually and psychologically inferior.

Remember that, according to an edict of France’s King Louis XIV known as the Code noir, Black slaves were considered “personal property.” They were seen as utilitarian objects or, to put it bluntly, beasts of burden.

It was through the massive dissemination of information about the realities of the slave trade and slavery that the abolitionists waged their battle for the emancipation of Blacks.

Just look at the small newspapers published by anti-slavery societies and individuals who took up that fight, including here in Canada, where slavery was also a reality. Publications like Voice of the Fugitive by Henry Bibb and Provincial Freeman by Mary Ann Shadd Cary.

Once brought to light, the inhumanity of these despicable practices aroused the indignation of an increasingly informed public.

It is when we risk speaking out and taking action that situations and mindsets begin to change.

A movement of unparalleled magnitude paved the way for a world in which each individual could be free, beginning with the country of my birth, Haiti.

The struggle of the slaves to establish, in 1804, the first Black republic in the world inspired thousands of others who were also taking a stand against the slave trade and the bonds of slavery that tethered them to a life of servitude.

Acts of extraordinary courage and daring by people who had decided to break down the walls of injustice and tyranny began to pick up momentum.

The slave trade under the British Empire was abolished in 1807.

In Canada, a vast network of secret routes, better known as the Underground Railroad, was set up to free American slaves from brutality and oppression.

Risking their lives and their own freedom, men and women, White and Black alike, enabled countless slaves to live in freedom and to reclaim their human dignity.

Through the dissemination of enlightened information, through what today could be called education and public awareness, we finally saw an end to one of the most barbarous crimes in the history of humanity.

The path that we have travelled, difficult though it was and at times continues to be, has led us to a better and more just world.

We must always remain vigilant.

In order for our youth to follow in our footsteps, the echoes of our struggles against oppression must ring out and be heard across the generations.

In order for them to know all that Blacks have contributed to this country, to this continent, to this world, they need to know the women and men who came before us and who opened the door for us to aspire to freedom. And they need to discover the leaders of today’s Black communities.

In order for Canada to continue to be a model of democracy, interracial harmony and equality, we must continue to fight relentlessly against the anguish of exclusion by challenging the obstacles and prejudices that continue to prevent some of us from realizing our full potential.

I believe that our greatest challenge in this day and age, already marked by the mingling of cultures, will be to transform yesterday’s prejudices into tomorrow’s opportunities.

All prejudices, whatever insidious forms they might take, must not be tolerated in our society.

And I believe that the best way to achieve this is to take a clear look at the lessons of the past and reflect together on the issues of the present and the future.

It is in this spirit and with great pride that I, the great-great-granddaughter of slaves, have agreed to lend my name to this study chair.

Thank you. I wish you every success as you move forward.