Nova Scotia is a racist anti black place. My Jamaican friend ask for directions while driving threw the province. A white man told him that he doesn't speak to Nig--rs.

Were one to make broad unfounded statements on isolated incidents, then perhaps every square foot of land in any country can be considered a place with racist and anti-black sentiments.

One of the numerous articles and references on Nova Scotia.

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An exploration of black communities around Nova Scotia

Kings County, Digby County, Guysborough County and Cape Breton all have connections

Geraldine Browning lives in Gibson Woods, named after George Gibson, who was a Black Loyalist. (Submitted by Tony Colaiacovo)

CBC Radio's Information Morning explored the history and makeup of African Nova Scotian communities outside Halifax. 

• Black refugee graveyard rediscovery may shed light on early settlers
• Black Loyalists Heritage Centre chronicles turbulent history

Tony Colaiacovo, a writer and publishing consultant working with the Delmore "Buddy" Daye Learning Institute, was consulted for the project. 

Here are four communities that were highlighted:

Pine Woods and Gibson Woods

Gibson Woods Church is a black Baptist church. (Submitted by Tony Colaiacovo)

Pine Woods and Gibson Woods are north of Kentville in Kings County. Gibson Woods was founded by George Gibson, a Black Loyalist. In 1802 or 1803, he paid £40 for 40 acres of land, an "enormous sum" for the time, notes Colaiacovo.

Dinah Powell and Chloe Landsey founded Pine Woods at the turn of the 19th century. The sisters had been slaves of Benjamin Belcher, a planter from New England.

The planter slaves actually pre-date the Black Loyalists in Nova Scotia. When Belcher died in 1804, it's unclear if the sisters were set free or if they walked away.

"Walking away from slavery was endemic at the turn of the 19th century in Nova Scotia because Britain had gone from being the largest slave-trading nation on earth 20 years prior to enforcing anti-slave laws," said Colaiacovo.

There is some evidence of the history of Pine Woods, where Camp Aldershot is now, including Lanzy road named after Chloe Landsey.

The two communities were closely connected, according to Geraldine Browning, who lives in Gibson Woods, is a community historian in Centreville and director of the Valley African Nova Scotian Development Association,

"There used to be a little bridge, called Gentleman's bridge, that divided them," she said. "When I first moved to the area in the 1960s it was gone, but that's where they say the people used to meet for dates on Gentleman's Bridge."

Jordantown, Conway and Acaciaville, Digby County

This newspaper clipping is from The Times of African Nova Scotians, Volume Two, printed by the Delmore "Buddy" Daye Learning Institute.

When the Black Loyalists first settled in the area their community was called Brindley Town. Most noteworthy of them was Thomas Peters, who eventually led many Black Loyalists to Sierra Leone.

While grants were being handed out to whites in other parts of the province, far fewer were going to blacks in places like Brindley Town. Peters got so fed up waiting for their land grants, he traveled to England and petitioned the King directly.

As a result, Peters led a third of the Black Loyalists out of Nova Scotia, and that significantly depopulated Brindley Town. But there were waves of subsequent black immigration, especially in the Annapolis Valley.

Brad Barton, a retired educator who was appointed to the Order of Canada, was born and raised in Jordantown. 

"The thing I remember growing up in the Digby-area is the resilience of our community," he said. "A number of people, even though they have left the area to go for employment elsewhere, most of them come back to Digby for various events throughout the year.

"We went through a lot of things while growing up: segregation, being isolated. But we were still proud of who we were and in our small communities we did a lot of things together, directed by the parents and the community, so we were a unit.

"The challenge came as we students moved from a segregated school environment to an integrated school environment. The positive thing about a segregated school environment was we had everyone from our small community, all the same.

"We felt together and relaxed. And then I remember going in from Grade 6 to Grade 7, we had to write exams at the integrated junior high school, and I remember going into the room and only seeing a sea of white faces. And it was hard for a lot of our learners to make that transition.

"To make a long story short, there were many situations that happened in the school system in Digby, and in our community we were very persistent and sure that we should move forward to make sure all our students had opportunities to reach their full potential."

Louisbourg, slavery on Cape Breton

There are outdoor interpretive panels commemorating the black experience at Louisbourg. (DBDLI.ca)

Approximately 277 black slaves were brought in during the French regime at Louisbourg, and at any one point no more than three percent of the population would have been enslaved, according to Ken Donovan, a retired Parks Canada historian.

One of the most notable black residents at the time was Marie Margurite Rose.

Rose was bought by Louisbourg naval officer Jean Loppinot in 1736 and worked for his family for 19 years, bringing up his 12 children. After she was freed, she married a Mi'kmaq hunter. The couple ran a tavern.

"Piecing together Marie Margurite Rose's life meant digging through the documents," Donovan said. "There were almost a million pages of documents from that time, so you just keep picking away."

There are outdoor, interpretive panels commemorating the black experience at Louisbourg.

"The people bringing up black slaves from the West Indies are merchants, the local elite," said Colaiacovo. "One point about these enslaved Africans ... these were multilingual individuals capable of carrying on all of the trades and skills to keep Louisbourg going.

"And if it wasn't for these enslaved Africans then Louisbourg wouldn't have thrived the way it did. These were people of agency and skills that were essential to the colony." 

Meadowbrook Hill, Monastery, Upper Big Tracadie, Lincolnville and Sunnyville, Guysborough County

The church at Tracadie is one of the oldest black churches in Nova Scotia.

The first black residents in Guysborough County were originally Black Loyalists who arrived from New York in 1783, according to Colaiacovo.

About 600 were at first settled in Port Mouton in Queens County. The following year the settlement in Port Mouton burned down and all the Black Loyalists were relocated to Guysborough County.

There they established Tracadie, Lincolnville, Sunnyville, Boylston, Mulgrave and other spots. They started to petition for their land.

A few years later 73 Guysborough black families received 3,000 acres of land from the government. Essentially, they each received 40 acres and a sheep, said Colaiacovo. In 1799, the government re-granted those original grants, mostly to white settlers.

"I grew up in Meadowbrook Hill, just outside of Mulgrave," said Sylvia Parris, CEO of the Delmore "Buddy" Daye Learning Institute. 

"Lots of family and relatives and kinship, lots of good memories growing up there in that neighbourhood. There was definitely a sense of a community of black communities in Guysborough in multiple aspects.

"While it would have been a bit challenging to get around in those days in terms of travel, there definitely was this larger thinking that we're not just this geographically a black community, we're culturally a black community." 

The No. 2 Construction Battalion was an African-Nova Scotia unit in the Canadian Army that was largely made up of black men from Guysborough County. They were not welcomed in the armed forces and had to battle to be included in the World War 1 effort.

Demerara Guy, you should feature the North Prescott Finest Pimps those are a gang of pimps in North Prescott Nova Scotia who are descendants of Nova Scotia blacks. Pimping should not be a career opportunity. 

Demerara_Guy posted:

Were one to make broad unfounded statements on isolated incidents, then perhaps every square foot of land in any country can be considered a place with racist and anti-black sentiments.

Unfounded? I have a few experiences dating back to the early 90's in Halifax and Winnipeg that proves otherwise.

A girl from the Caribbean was in Brandon Manitoba and she was surprised that some people there had never seen a black person before in person.

Prashad posted:

A girl from the Caribbean was in Brandon Manitoba and she was surprised that some people there had never seen a black person before in person.

I accidentally became a part of an all white (exception ... me)bridal party in a club in downtown Halifax. It was an interesting experience.

Many people have indicated that Halifax and Winnipeg are racist cities when it comes to visible minorities.

‘We love them and we love you’: Funeral held for all 7 children killed in Halifax house fire

By Graeme Benjamin Online Producer/Reporter, Global News, February 23, 2019 6:38 am, Updated:February 23, 2019 1:05 pm

Following an unthinkable and heartbreaking tragedy that saw seven children lose their lives in an overnight house fire, hundreds of mourners of all backgrounds gathered in Halifax on Saturday for an emotional afternoon of healing, prayer and grieving.

The funeral for the Barho children — Ahmad, 15; Rola, 12; Mohamad, 9; Ola, 8; Hala, 3; Rana, 2 and four-month-old Abdullah — was being held at the Cunard Centre on Marginal Road.

All seven children perished when fire swept through their Spryfield home just after midnight Tuesday. The cause of the fire remains unclear.

Their father, Ebraheim, remains in hospital after receiving serious burns. He is in stable but critical condition.

READ MORE: Public funeral to take place Saturday for 7 children killed in Halifax house fire

The Imam Council of Nova Scotia officiated the funeral. Though it was a traditional Muslim service, all were welcome to attend.

“They understand it’s not just the community of Spryfield or the Syrian community or the Muslim community is feeling the pain, it’s the entire municipality,” said HRM Deputy Mayor Tony Mancini.

The funeral was originally going to be held at a local mosque, but the Cunard Centre was chosen to accommodate more people. The facility had an open prayer space, seating for 1,800 people, as well as a standing room.

A burial service will follow at the Halifax cemetery in Hammonds Plains. That portion of the ceremony will also be open to the public and the municipality has arranged for shuttle buses to transport people from the Cunard Centre to the cemetery.

Group prayer for 7 children killed in a Halifax house fire

Saturday fundraisers for the Barho family 

As of Saturday morning, the GoFundMe page for the Barho family has raised over $550,000. Several fundraisers are in the works across Halifax for Saturday to help add to that total.

A pancake breakfast was held at the Spryfield Sobeys in the morning, with all proceeds going to the crowdfunding campaign. As well, over 50 businesses have committed to donating part of their weekend sales to the Barho family.

To see a full list of fundraisers, click here.

— With files from Rebecca Lau and Alicia Draus.

Barho relatives arriving in Canada today to support grieving parents

Kawthar Barho had hoped members of her family could travel here to be by her side

Seven children in the Barho family died in a Halifax house fire on Feb. 19. (Submitted)

Several relatives of Kawthar Barho have obtained visitor visas and are arriving in Nova Scotia today to support her and her husband after their seven children died in a Halifax house fire last week. 

Fire swept through the Barho family's rented home in the Spryfield neighbourhood Feb. 19, killing Abdullah, 3 months; Rana, 2; Hala, 3; Ola, 8; Mohamad, 9; Rola, 12; and Ahmed, 14.

Ebraheim Barho, Kawthar's husband, was in a medically induced coma late last week. He was severely injured after going back into the burning home to try to save the children. 

Kawthar Barho had no other family members in Canada. She had requested that her mother and brother travel from Lebanon to be with her. 

Halifax MP Andy Fillmore has not said who specifically or even how many are travelling to Canada. He said he won't be releasing any further information about the relatives as they have asked that their privacy be respected. 

"When I spoke to Kawthar Barho last week, she was feeling the support of the community around her and was very grateful for that," Fillmore said Monday afternoon. "But she was clear that the support she really needs is family around her in a difficult time like this. And I think we all agree with that."

Fillmore said people and private organizations have come forward to pay for family members' flights and help with the logistics.

Kawthar Barho and four of her children (from left to right; Rola, Rana, Ola and Ahmed) after they arrived at the Halifax airport in September 2017. (Enfield Weekly Press)

The Barho relatives have not been approved to immigrate to Canada. 

Fillmore said he has been working with Ahmed Hussen, the federal immigration minister, to file and process visitor applications. He said the paperwork can take longer depending on the circumstances, for instance, if an applicant doesn't have a passport and the country of origin.

Work is underway to ensure other family members can travel here as well, he said. 

"The most expeditious thing we're doing right now is getting people visitor visas to get into the country. From there we'll see what people's, what the family members' wishes are for sort of a longer-term situation," Fillmore told CBC Monday. 

Members of the Halifax Fire and Police honour guard prepare to receive the caskets of the seven Barho siblings during the funeral for the Syrian refugees in Halifax on Saturday. (Darren Calabrese/The Canadian Press)

The Hants East Assisting Refugees Team Society sponsored the Barho family when they arrived in Nova Scotia in 2017 as Syrian refugees.  

Natalie Horne, a member of the HEART society, has been spending time with Kawthar Barho in hospital. She said "one family unit" will be flying into the Halifax airport and arrangements have been made for them to be reunited with Kawthar. 

"We're continuing to hope for Ebraheim's recovery and we're supporting Kawthar as best we can as she processes … everything she's going through," Horne said.

"I hope that this will bring her some much-needed comfort in this difficult time." 

The Barho family is originally from the war-torn Syrian city of Raqqa and lived briefly in Damascus before moving to Beirut.

A GoFundMe campaign for the Barho family has raised more than $640,000. 

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With files from Jack Julian