The Father's Growth of Joy & Responsibility Nikolay Yelizarov

By Ryan Andrew Mitchell The Afro News Vancouver

Nikolay Yelizarov and his wife started off with a daughter that changed their lives forever, but little did they know that a surprise was brewing years later when they had twins, one boy and one girl.

“Two is better than one.” Nikolay exclaimed.

Even though the twins, Alex and Cat, were born during a time when the family was moving between countries, he mentions they could have not come at a better time. He came to Canada to further pursue in the medical field.

“He treats us like lab experiments” Alex jokes, who is now a twenty-two year, specializing in photography career.

Nikolay believes that big families have the best opportunities to gain support. He grew up with an extended family, and notes the abundance of love that went into the family. He puts it into perspective, “One of the worse things that can happen for someone is to be lonely, so the more love you have around, the better your life will be and the more grateful you will be; The bigger the family the more fun.”

Nikolay emphasizes how critical it is for someone to endure obstacles in life, in order for them to truly understand the high points. “Life isn’t just a journey of joy it is also a, it is also a long journey of instability; One can only acknowledge joy when they have seen the down times.” He also states, “If Fatherhood doesn’t kill you, it will make you stronger.”

He noted the challenges in Fatherhood and how one has to face up to them, “In life, when you see a challenge, you always adapt but when you do, make sure that it is positive change not a negative one. “

Nikolay warns about the idea of a ‘perfect child,’ not only from a medical perspective, but from the child’s point of view. Throughout sports leagues and musical pursuits, the parent can’t lose the young child’s interest, and too much pressure on the child can put a burden on the parent to child relationship.

Yelizarov notes the advantages for twins, “I believe two children are always better than one, it’s important for children to have friends close to their age. When I look at Cat and Alex, and can see that they are close, and have more to relate to each other.”

Recently, Elena had a child, which turned Nikolay into a Grandfather. He mentions this gave him great joy, but he states the consistency that a Father has to understand and work towards, “You are not just working for joy, you are working for responsibility, and one can only mature when he receives more responsibility.”

Commercial Property rentals

By Josiah Dimbo in Harare :The major challenge to the Zimbabwean government since independence has been to remove the barriers and limitations inhibiting the participation of indigenous Zimbabweans in the mainstream economy said a cabinet minister when officially opening the Affirmative Action Group Indaba on Commercial Property rentals recently.

The Minister of Youth Development, Indigenization and Empowerment, Cde Saviour Kasukuwere, said , despite successes achieved, notably in the social sectors and some professions entrenched inequities continue to characterize the economy and act as a deterrent to growth, economic development, employment creation and poverty eradication.

“Thirty years since independence, vast racial inequalities in the distribution and access to resources , health, income skills and employment opportunities still persist.” said Hon. Kasukuwere.

He added that societies characterized by entrenched racial or ethically defined wealth patterns of disparities are not likely to be socially and politically stable.

“It is imperative that racial inequalities are eliminated as this is a prerequisite for sustainable growth.” added Kasukuwere.

Recent studies on the levels of indigenization of the economy were achieved in land, the social sectors and some professions such as accounting, management and lawyers.

Kasukuwere lamented little progress achieved in terms of significant ownership by indigenous people in other key sectors of the economy like the real estate sector, and in particular the commercial property subsector.

The Minister further castigated property owners who abuse tenants by increasing rentals without justification. “We have observed willy-nilly increases in rentals since the introduction of the United States Dollar as an official medium of exchange in the country.” said Kasukuwere.

Kasukuwere challenged the property owners to justify the increase yet there is a rapid reduction of inflation to below the 10% levels.

Rentals in Zimbabwe have been increased regularly and in some cases on a monthly basis.

 Speaking at the same occasion the Permanent Secretary of Small and Medium Enterprises and Community Cooperation Development, Madam Ndlovu on behalf of the Minister, said the SME’s face a considerable number of challenges which are diverse and relate to policy, regulatory, institutional and capacity among others.

“High cost of rentals for commercial premises and unfair business practices by large corporations are inhibiting the growth of SME’s.” said Ndlovu.

 Ndlovu noted that lack of growth in the construction industry has lead to over commercialization of properties. Turning to exorbitant electricity and water charges, Ndlovu noted that these utilities have been also commercialized.

“The problem with the commercialization of electricity and water emanates from the billing system which is based on estimates resulting in atrocious if not appalling charges.” noted Ndlovu.

She further challenged the AAG and other affirmative action groups to be proactive, to intervene and correct the situation. The Indaba was attended by property owners, tenants and journalists.

Parenting Simplified

Four thousand six hundred thirty. That’s the number of matches that came up when I searched “parenting” on the Chapters online site. A few titles: Healthy Sleep Habits/ Happy Child, Connected Parenting, and Keys to Parenting Your Anxious Child.
I can give parents the first key to parenting their anxious child right now: your kids are picking up on your parenting anxiety. Lay off the parenting books.
The first step toward wresting parenting from the clutches of pop psychology and reclaiming it as a common sense part of family life is to identify two basic lessons parents need to teach their children. Effective parents, those who raise children to be confident, resourceful, self-regulating adults, teach their children two things: 1. You are loved unconditionally and 2. You can’t always get what you want. That’s it. Everything else is elaboration.
You are loved unconditionally. Some children are loved unconditionally and some are not; it’s entirely up to the parents. Unconditional love, “love given to another person without expecting anything in return,” to use the words of author David Kuhl, is not a new concept but it is rare in human relationships because we usually expect a return from our emotional and financial investment in the life of another person. In societies where the family is the basic economic unit children are valued for their contribution to family income. That doesn’t mean that parents in such societies cannot love their children unconditionally but when a child is primarily a family asset it is difficult to distinguish a child’s innate human value from its economic value. In societies that have moved beyond a family based economy, valuing children’s earning power has often been replaced by judging their worth according to achievements which bring honour to the family and reflect well on the parents, an approach which engenders anxious striving rather than confidence and self-control. Confidence is nurtured by unconditional love and children will need it to learn the second lesson.
You can’t always get what you want. This law of life, as universal and immutable as gravity, is not invented by parents to exercise control over their children. It is a statement of truth and any child raised to think otherwise is poorly prepared to deal with life’s challenges. Yet many parents dedicate themselves to shielding their children from problems and discomfort to the detriment of their growth. Hyper Parents & Coddled Kids, a documentary that aired on CBC in February, takes a look at over protective parenting and notes, “there are indications that all of the attention parents bestow on their children may not have the outcome they had hoped for. In fact, it appears to be having the opposite effect. As the first batch of hyper-parented kids (Generation Y) emerges into adulthood, they do not seem to be quite ready for the real world. University psychologists report today’s students experience higher levels of anxiety than any generation before them. And employers are pulling their hair out as Gen Y employees show up at work with an unprecedented sense of entitlement – ‘Paying your dues’ is not part of their vernacular. They require a lot of supervision and they challenge everything from dress code to office hierarchy.”
Loving parents let their children deal with challenges that are within their competence even if the child at first experiences failure. It takes a discerning parent to identify problems a child is ready to face. Infants need to be fed when hungry, changed when soiled and cuddled as much as possible. They need to be settled by swaddling, gentle rocking, or a lullaby. Babies’ first challenges arise from learning they are not the centre of the universe but members of a pre-existing community, their family, with traditions and values that provide a framework for their growth. You can’t always get what you want starts with sleeping and eating.
Falling asleep is the first task that is the child’s and hers alone; no parent can fall asleep for his child. Parents are responsible for encouraging exercise to induce healthy fatigue and providing a warm comfortable place to sleep along with a structured and comforting bedtime routine. Parents help their child learn that they can master their go-to-sleep task by expressing complete confidence that he can handle it and then giving him time and space to go to sleep on his own.
Unless force-fed like foie gras geese, eating is the child’s responsibility. Nobody can swallow for her. Parents are responsible for preparing nutritious food and establishing mealtime routines that build a reassuring framework for the child’s emerging self-confidence. Once the family has been called together for the meal and the food placed before the children the parents have done their duty and can concentrate on enjoying their own meals, providing help with spoon skills as required. What and how much the child eats is up to her. If she chooses not to eat she will be hungry. Life’s like that. If she does not eat at mealtime and asks for a snack later on it’s time to remind her that her parents have lives. Parents are not short-order cooks and snacks are treats that supplement regular meals.
Jack Toronto’s two lessons that parents must teach and children must learn form the basis for all parenting practices but elaborating them all would fill a book or two. Perhaps I should write those books and sell them to anxious parents.
jacktoronto@telus.net

Passenger and goods transport Damongo N Ghana

Traveling cheap in Ghana is an adventure I’d recommend to anybody who loves intimate contact with fellow travelers and the excitement that comes with never being sure if or when you’ll arrive. It wasn’t for everyone in the mid ‘60s but it worked for me and for Ghanaians making the average wage of seventy-five cents a day. The most reliable, most comfortable mass transit was State Transport’s fleet of Mercedes Benz buses with jump seats that lowered into the aisle to accommodate seven to a row. They ran on time and made rest stops along the road so passengers could wander off, find a relatively secluded spot and relieve themselves. Disadvantages? They ran only between major centres such as Tamale and Kumasi and if the coach was full there were no backup buses to take the overflow. That’s where the Peugeot 404 station wagons came in, lurking on the outskirts of State Transport depots waiting to charge a higher fee to desperate travelers unable to get the bus out of town.

The heart of low cost transportation between towns were the lorries, Bedford chassis imported from Britain and completed by made-in-Ghana teak wood cargo/passenger boxes. Passengers sat on wooden planks and there was always room for one or ten more. A lorry never left until enough fares had been collected to cover the cost of fuel and departure time could become a battle of wits between the driver and prospective passengers as seasoned travelers often sat in the shade rather than roast in the back of the lorry waiting for critical mass to be reached to start the trip. One day as I sat in the shade in Bolgatanga a man suddenly leapt into the driver’s seat proclaiming loudly that the lorry was about to depart. Time to get on board and pay up! Once the money had been collected and we were planked the lorry was driven once around the lorry park then shut down as the “driver” dashed off to turn the cash over to the owner. Wait, wait, wait until enough people had paid and climbed in to make the trip profitable and then the real driver appeared and we were off to Bawku.

Memory call: being stranded west of Tamale with no buses, Peugeots or lorries and a blue open-back goods lorry carrying a load of corrugated roofing and people wheezing to a stop to let passengers climb down while others clambered on. I was looking forward to riding high up on the load but the driver’s mate ushered me into the almost upholstered seat of honour in the cab by the driver and tied the door shut with a piece of rope. I realized the lorry had no starter when the driver released the brakes so it rolled down a slight grade and he popped the clutch to start the engine. I realized that the radiator leaked, a lot, when we stopped at each stream so the mate could get water in a plastic jug to refill the radiator before the lorry, always stopped at the top of the hill above the creek, could be rolled to start again. The best ride of my life but it was dark when we got to Sawla where I hoped to catch something heading north to Wa. Something was a city transit bus let out to pasture on northern gravel roads after a lifetime of dedicated service in the south. Everything seemed fine until the driver announced we were almost out of fuel but not to worry because we would probably make it to a Public Works Yard where he could get some diesel. The driver stopped at the top of a dip in the road and disappeared into the night with a jerry can. Vehicles without starters were the order of the day. Refueled, the engine refused to turn over going downhill but the bus did roll part way up the slope on the other side. Time for the passengers to get out and push the bus from the front to see if it would start in reverse. It did! But my glasses fell out of my shirt pocket onto the road. Time for me to cry, “My glasses fell out of my shirt pocket onto the road!” Time for us all to search on our hands and knees. Glasses found! Time for all to get back on the bus and roll on to Wa. I forget what happened in Wa but I’ll never forget the ride, the best of my life.

I didn’t realize I was learning one of life’s great lessons. Destinations are never guaranteed; the journey is all that is certain. May the road rise to meet you.

Correction: Louis Poirier contacted me to note that I failed to mention black Olympian Neville Wright, who was on Canada’s second 4-man bobsleigh team, last month in “Black Olympians in Vancouver.” My thanks to Louis and my apology to Neville Wright.

jacktoronto@telus.net

HIV & AIDS in the Black Canadian population

Joy Walcott-Francis PhD Student SFU , The Afro News Burnaby

HIV & AIDS in the Black Canadian population  Recent statistics have indicated that HIV is at a crisis level in black communities in Canada. Black people are seen to be over-represented in the new HIV infections and AIDS cases. If one should put this into perspective with regard to immigration to Canada, it could be reasoned that the greater proportion of immigration applications to be affected by the inadmissible clause rests largely with the Black population. PHAC reported that tests reports from 1985 to 2007 indicate that the Black population represented 10.3% of the total reported HIV cases in the country. And whereas the virus has been seen to be on the decline in the White population (down from 75.7% to 58.4%), it has been on the increase in the Aboriginal and the Black populations. What is even more frightening is that Black Canadian women are over-represented among the persons living with the virus. PHAC noted that between the said period, Black Canadian females represented 16.3% of all the reported cases in the country. The number of confirmed perinatally HIV-exposed Black Canadian infants is also alarmingly high with about 23.1% affected by the disease. Of the total reported AIDS cases between 1979 and 2007, the Black population represented 9.4% of the cases, again with females overrepresented at 35.2%.

HIV & AIDS in the Black Canadian population Chart

Taken from the PHAC HIV and AIDS in Canada Surveillance Report to December 31, 2007

Although these numbers already represent a significant proportion of the Black population, it must also be bourne in mind that they are most likely understated due to factors such as under-reporting and the lack of ethnicity data from some provinces. This disproportionate number of Black people living with HIV and AIDS is one which does not and cannot be allowed to go unnoticed. Already red flags are being sent through the media questioning the government’s immigration policy with respect to people of African descent. It is irritating to read and to listen to some of these discussions but it is even more heart-rending to read reports indicating that a high percentage of HIV cases among Black Canadian females have been contracted since their arrival in Canada. How could this be, one might be inclined to ask, in light of the vast number of awareness and prevention campaigns? Is it really ignorance? Do we really not understand the implications of unprotected sex? What more could and should be done? I guess like a number of other communities, the mere mention of HIV or AIDS in many Black communities attracts intense stigmatization and scrutiny as immediately people begin to question the person’s behaviour, as HIV is oftentimes characterized as primarily an issue of moral impropriety rather than one of community health. Issues take on a moral outlook as they become intricately linked to moral or inappropriate or untoward sexual behaviour. For many people, affliction of the disease is not perceived so much as a health issue but more-so as being connected with illicit behaviour. Thus anyone who attracts such labeling, females in particular, is prone to much scorn and contempt. It is therefore little wonder why persons are unwilling or afraid to get tested.

Studies have indicated that some of the problems lie with what is referred to as cultural disconnections: a mismatch between predominant HIV prevention discourse (language, practices, technologies, and media representations) and people’s cultural contexts and life experiences. Many cultural values and practices were reported as being in conflict with the perceived demands of HIV prevention. Cultural disconnections were also attributed to what was seen as the prevailing discourse around risk groups for HIV/AIDS, such as gay men and drug users. Lack of engagement of Black churches was also described as reinforcing a cultural and institutional divide between HIV prevention and stood as a major social and cultural bulwark in many Black women’s lives. Respondents to the study indicated that the church doctrine influenced daily lives and practices in ways that might create vulnerability to HIV, as a number of women tend to practice what their religion tells them to practice, because religion determines…prescribes how women should behave. Accordingly, some women may not practice safer sex (condom use) because it goes against their religious beliefs for God’s seed to be thrown to the ground. Furthermore, since sex between unmarried couples is a sin and so too is adultery, of what purpose is the use of condoms among members of the church populace? It is time that our churches stop skirting around the issue, everyday living in denial and instead work towards more pragmatic solutions in an attempt at combating the disease, for we know full-well that the reality of people’s lives does not always coincide with our biblical teachings.

Whereas it is obvious that there are a number of factors at play as it relates to the disease’s prevalence among Canada’s growing Black population, it is pertinent that any attempt at addressing it must be done through a number of culturally sensitive lenses. For while we are all regarded as people of African descent, cultural nuances attributable to where we are from, whether the continent of Africa, countries of the Caribbean, the Middle East, or anywhere for that matter, make us and our lived experiences unique. I am now starting to sound like a broken record as I keep preaching that as a community, we need to realize that we have to create change in ourselves. No one knows the problems that we have more than we do, so why not start from there? Why are we so afraid to deal with the issue of HIV/AIDS when it is so real to us? Many of us act as though it doesn’t exist. We say to ourselves that such a dreadful thing can’t happen to us. I fear for the younger generation whose knowledge of the disease is left to sources outside our families and communities because our lips are sealed shut. It is time that we ‘wise-up’ and begin the process of real change.

Federation of African Journalists, FAJ, Congress

By Wallace Mawire Harare  : All is set for the Second Federation of African Journalists, FAJ, Congress to be held on March 27 and 28, 2010 in Harare, Zimbabwe. Journalism trade unions and associations from Africa are expected to start arriving in Zimbabwe this week for the Second Congress. Senior officials from the inclusive government will play key roles, including officiating or attending some of the sessions of the two day congress hosted by The Zimbabwe Union of Journalists, according to ZUJ Secretary General Foster Dongozi. Delegates have been drawn from the African continent’s sub regional groups of Southern Africa, East Africa, Central Africa, West Africa and North Africa.

The President of the International Federation of Journalists, IFJ, Jim Boumelha and the General Secretary, Aidan White have confirmed their participation at the congress as have some sister trade unions from other parts of the world.

Some of the key figures at the Second Federation of African Journalists, FAJ, congress will include Madam Habiba Mejri- Cheikh from the African Union, AU,Madam Pansy Tlakula, the African Commission’s Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression and representatives from UNESCO.

FAJ’s observer status within the African Union is being finalised at the continental body’s headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Representatives from the diplomatic and donor communities, together with Press Freedom and Freedom of Expression and media advocacy partners will be in attendance. The inaugural FAJ congress was held in Nairobi, Kenya, 2008 and was officially opened by Prime Minister Raila Odinga. The body was formed after extensive consultations among African journalists on the need to form a Pan African continental federation for trade unions and associations for journalists.

Under the International Federation of Journalists, IFJ, family, other regions have continental federations for their unions and associations. Consultations were held in Moscow, Russia, Morrocco’s Rabat and Abuja in Nigeria with the last meeting agreeing on the formation of FAJ. The Harare congress will be running under the theme: Beyond 2010: Shaping Our Future- Stronger Unions, Decent Work and Quality Journalism in Africa.

Panel discussions will cover, ethical journalism, media accountability and climate change, Press Freedom and Media Development, safety for journalists, Gender Mainstreaming and equity in unions and media organisations.

Union organising and fighting for better working conditions for journalists in Africa will also be discussed.

The FAJ congress is being held ahead of the International Federation of Journalists, IFJ, congress which will be held in May, Spain.

The ‘AIDS Highway’ Africa WINS when You prevent HIV

By  Wallace  Mawire  Harare  :For the first time that the World Cup is being played in Africa, the ‘AIDS Highway’ will witness a spectacular combination of the screening of the matches in conjunction with the screening of HIV and AIDS information videos from June 11th to 11th July 2010. The long journey will start along the AIDS Highway (From Kenya, to Johannesburg), where increased mobility and migration in conjunction with rising disposable incomes and the associated escalation of transactional sex are major contributors to the spread of HIV through the region.

The theme is:Africa WINS when You prevent HIV.It is a partnership project between Africa Goal and SAFAIDS.

Dubbed the Africa Goal Campaign, the initiative will witness a team of volunteers driving from Nairobi, Kenya down to Johannesburg South Africa, projecting live World Cup football games on a retractable screen along the journey. The Africa Goal team will target the most disadvantaged and hard to reach villages. These are communities that would never have known about the world cup and very little about HIV.

The project will give them an opportunity to actually watch games as they are happening, touch and blow the vuvuzela bringing the game spirit right into the village. Every afternoon or evening throughout the duration of the tournament, with the help of Digital Satellite Television and a projector, speakers, and a DC/AC inverter, the team will screen the live 2010 World Cup games. Before every live game, the team shall screen HIV and AIDS awareness media supplied by SAfAIDS – the centre for excellence in HIV prevention based in Pretoria, UNAIDS and, when possible, by local NGOs. HIV prevention kits with a vuvuzela bearing a key HIV message will be distributed in the villages to reach close to 20 000 people along the way. While the educational videos will be watched by all the football fans, the largest sector of the football audience is people aged between 15 and 49, correlating with the age sector most severely affected by HIV and AIDS.

In the spirit of the World Cup, the Africa Goal and SAfAIDS vision is to harness the energy and passion of the games to promote increased awareness about the HIV epidemic which has impacted upon the region so dramatically. The main focus will be mainly on HIV prevention, taking a holistic definition of prevention to include the promotion of knowing one’s HIV status; safer sex practices; positive prevention and acknowledging ART as a component of prevention.

With the majority of the audience not having seen live World Cup matches on a big screen before, the occasion will be a highly memorable one and HIV information disseminated at the games will, therefore, imprint on the memories of the viewers and serve as a vital reminder as to how each and every person must play their part in reducing HIV prevalence in the region. On the 11th of July the tired team is expected to arrive in Johannesburg in time for the final match in which we all hope Africa will win.

Indeed Africa WINS when we all prevent HIV says the collaborating partners.

Canada’s Ice Sledge Hockey Team

Ice Sledge Hockey (ISH) requires extreme atheletic abilities and is very exciting to watch live.  The best website to go to is http://www.paralympics.ca where it is possible to download PODCASTS of interviews and LIVE FEED of various sports by going to the News and Events and go to Paralympic Sports TV AND go to Canada’s National Sledge Team and the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games site:  www.hockeycanada.ca.

The GOLD metal game is on March 20^th at UBC Thunderbird Stadium.  It is a fast paced high-energy game that requires immense coordination and balance as the Paralympian is sitting on a double bladed sharp skate, has two sticks in each hand to use for both throwing the puck that they in fact can pass under their sledge AND on the ends of the sticks is a spike they can dig into the ice to move forward.  Each period of the game is 15 minutes long rather than 20 minutes. Up at Whistler Village there is a demonstration booth where you can sit in a Sledge and try to score a goal.  Not so easy!

VIVIAN FOREST WINS ANOTHER METAL FOR CANADA WITH GUIDE LINDSAY DEBOU– FINISHING WITH A BRONZE IN THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED GIANT SLALOM COMPETITION.  After this race Vivian required medical attention due to an earlier groin injury but this amazing athlete powered through pain which she describes on scale of 1 to 10; an 8! Forest said: “Going through all that pain was very difficult”  As far as she is concerned this third place finish is GOLDEN to her.  Jean-Francois Rapatel, the alpine team leader characterized Forest as “one tough cookie”.

Every evening up at Whistler at the Dubh Linn Gate – Irish Pub – in the Pan Pacific Hotel Mountain Side is the official Paralympian Hang-Out that gives you a chance to meet Athletes and individuals that make it all happen. Beyond 2010 Games Whistler Adaptive Sports Program http://www.whistleradaptive.com is an non-for-profit organization with a mandate is to provide year-around Alpine recreational programs for people of all ages with disabilities locally with a global reach.  So far, the Dubh Line Gate has raised over $3,000.00.  St. Patrick’s Day yesterday the place was really hopping.  The Steak and Guiness Pie was hardy, tasty and filling.!

LAUREN WOOLSTENCROFT wins her SECOND WOMEN’S GOLD on Canadian soil in the Alpine Skiing – GIANT Slalom – Standing.

Remember there is a METAL CEREMONY FOR EVERY METAL WINNER OF THE DAY IN WHISLER WHICH IS FREE AND IS FOLLOWED WITH LIVE MUSIC.  CTV HAS FINALLY AGREED TO BROADCAST THE CLOSING CEREMONIES ACROSS CANADA.

TAN One on One Interview with Senator Donald Oliver Photo By Honore Gbedze

The Afro News: In preparation for today, I had a chance to review some of the published articles on you and was amazed by all your accomplishments and now ask can you describe your life experience as a Nova Scotian, Canadian citizen and a Senator?

Honourable Senator Oliver: Yes I can. I was born in a very small town in Nova Scotia and we were basically the only Black family in this university town and my father was a janitor and from the earliest days we learned that because of the colour of our skin being black that we were different and we were treated differently and the expectations were higher than for the ordinary while people with the same status and so from a very early stage, I learnt that in Canada, the colour of your skin made a difference. And there had been a number of people in my family before me, like my grandfather and my aunt and my half brother and others who said that the colour of your skin and your African heritage should not hold you back and make a life experience for you any different from your white counter-part. So they set about in many different ways to find ways to equalize all Canadians irrespective of the colour and the pigmentation of their skin or country of origin, particularly if they were from Africa, and so they broke down over many many generations and over many decades many of the barriers that prevented equality for African Canadians such as letting African Canadian sit anywhere in a movie theatre, such as letting African Canadian girls go to hospitals to train to become registered nurses, such as letting Black men and women go into a barber shop that was owned and operated by white people, such as letting Afro-Canadian families, such as mine go into restaurants in Halifax, Nova Scotia and be served, notwithstanding the colour of their skin. These barriers were broken down by members of my family and so I have a long-long history through my life experience and not only in Nova Scotia but through-out Canada of having worked to break down these suspended barriers. As a senator, I have attempted to carry on the same thing. I have done extensive work in what we call diversity, which is trying to make people see that a difference of straight or curly hair, of flat nose or another nose or the texture of your skin should not make a difference and we have to accept difference or diversity in order to make it in the world today in the 21st century, because diversity is a reality.

The Afro News: In your time as a politician, what changes have you seen in our society?

Honourable Senator Oliver: I became a senator in 1990, and since that time, there have been enormous changes in our Canadian society and Canadians have been forced to recognize the fact that White people don’t own and run a country of 33 million people anymore. In the early days, apart from the Aboriginal who were here before, Canada was founded by people from France, from England, from Wales, from Scotland, from Ireland, and they were white and there were some United Empire loyalists who came to Canada from the United States and they were white. Through the Underground Railroad, Blacks came to Canada, and Blacks came as Maroon from Jamaica, some came from Sierra Leone and other parts of Africa but the black people were never included in the history books, they were never included in anything that was Canadian and so, as a senator, I said that I’m going to devote my time as a senator to try and equalize these opportunities so that people of African descent can be fitted into the fabric of society, just like a white person, so that they will be equal.

The Afro News: With respect to our diversified communities in Canada what is your overview of what needs to be done for the future development of minority communities?

Honourable Senator Oliver: I think that the first thing that we have to do is that we have to make education available to all Canadians as though they were equal. We cannot have ghettos where the schools, the teachers, the training and the opportunity are poor or less in one region than they are in another. It has to be universal. High quality education has to be universally applied – so education is the first pre-requisite. Secondly, I feel strongly that there has to be an opportunity to encourage entrepreneurship among our ethnic communities and to that end, I’ve been working with a group of African Canadians from across Canada; from Nova Scotia to British Columbia to set up an organization based upon the Black Business Initiative in Nova Scotia, whereby young creative entrepreneurial African Canadians can be given assistance through money, through advice, through managerial training, through writing of business plans, reading of financial statements, to go and start their business and be provided with assistance in making it viable, so they could hire their own and show that black people can also run highly successful business in this country.

The Afro News: Do you think that the Afric communities in Canada have made a positive difference to society; and do you believe that they have received the recognition historically needed?

Honourable Senator Oliver: Well, they have certainly made a positive difference to Canadian society in many many ways and all you have to do is look at any of the professions. Some of the leading surgeons are African in Canada. Some of the leading scientists/inventors and creators today and in the past have been African Canadians. Some of the leading professors, scientists, thinkers and writers are African Canadian, and so have they made a difference and any contribution? Of course they have! Now, is it known? Of course it is not! And even in the world of sports, Africans have played a major role; in our football teams, in our hockey teams and all of the teams that are a part of national significance in Canada. One of the things that February, Black History Month does is make all Canadians, particularly school children, aware of the fact that they should go to the internet, go to the book and start learning about these great Afro-Canadians who have made an incredible contribution to growing this country.

The Afro News: Senator Oliver, we have just learned from Roger Jones that the Chief of the Defence Staff has approved the awarding of the Canadian Forces Medallion for Distinguished Service, posthumously, to his grandfather, Jeremiah Jones, in recognition of his outstanding service during World War I at Vimy Ridge. Jeremiah was a lifelong resident of Truro, N.S. and we understand that details of an awards presentation in Nova Scotia are forthcoming. This acknowledgment of the contribution of an African Canadian soldier has taken over 90 years. What do you think is the significance of this award to all African Canadians?

Honourable Senator Oliver: Well, 90 years is too long, but that is an indication of what racism, prejudice and discrimination have meant to our Afro-Canadian people since Canada was founded. However, I’m absolutely delighted that this Canadian Forces medal is going to be awarded posthumously to the Jones’ family, because it is long overdue, and I should say that William Hall who also was the first Black Canadian to receive the Victoria Cross has been finally recognized. He was buried in an unmarked grave, but he’s now being recognized in Canada, not only with special ceremonies and special clauses and special plays, but a Canadian stamp has now in February of this year, been announced in his honour, and so William Hall, Jeremiah Jones and many other Black Canadians who fought for Canada, because they believed in this country are being recognized for their valour, for their perseverance and for what they have done to make Canada the great country that it is today.

The Afro News: What wish do you have for the communities of Canada; what advice would you pass onto our youth and future leaders and how do you want to be remembered?

Honourable Senator Oliver: Well, three big questions. I feel that I would like to see the day, as Martin Luther King dreamed, that all of us would be judged not by the colour of our skin but by what is in our hearts and what is in our minds and what we can contribute to the country, and when that day arrives and is achieved, that would be happiness for me. What advice do I have? The advice I have for all Afro-Canadians is forget about drugs, forget about alcohol, forget about trying to make a quick buck and start first of all with education and stay in school, keep your nose clean, make good grades and don’t just stop at grade 11, grade 12 but ho on and get a post secondary education and then go on and get some post education beyond that. Become professionals; become engineers, doctors, lawyers and get the education so you can get the good job so you can afford to have your family, send your family to get an education, because education is the key to everything; certainly the key to my family’s success. And my vision of Canada is that diversity will reign, diversity is here now, and until Canadians begin to accept and acknowledge the enormous contributions that African Canadians have made, Canada will never be the great country that it can and should be, as a leader in the world.

The Afro News: Thank you for your time and service to our nation. The Afro News is honoured to have shared these moments with you as we celebrate Black History Month 2010!

In Unity we stand and continue to serve society.

Transcribed by Joy Walcott- Francis 

Jennifer Lee-Owe on the Tenor Saxophone

The ProArts Society a non-profit organization with a mandate that brings together Artists and audiences in an Historic Venue in the Heart of Downtown Calgary. Every Wednesday at noon from 12.10-12.50 there is a free concert and by donations that entertain the downtown lunch time crowd. Held at Cathedral Church opposite the Downtown C-Train Platform and across from Olympic Plaza for the Month of Feb. the Society will be celebrating Black History Awareness Month. The Church was built in 1905 is also a Historic Site. By having free noon hour concerts allows the downtown workers a place to enjoy the variations of Cultural Performers from all walks of life and Skills and be back at work on time at 1pm

During the Month of Feb. for Black History performers include Juno Award Winning Singer Youssou Seck of Senegal, Trinidad Steel Drum Band,Dramatic Readings by Nigerian Authors and Tenor Saxophone. On Feb, 10 Jennifer Lee-Owe treated the crowd with the sounds of the Tenor Saxophone. Calgary born Jennifer’s Heritage is from Trinidad & Guyana and has performed at many events in the Caribbean Community. One does not get to hear the Saxophone often as most instruments used are the Drum,Guitar,Piano and Keyboard Instruments and Jennifer wowed the Crowd and also a better appreciation and understanding of what the Saxophone is all about. This was also Jennifer’s First Performance at a Black History Event and perhaps more in the future.

The Artistic Director for ProArts Society is Damon Johnston and for any visitors coming to Calgary why not enjoy a free concert at Cathedral Church every Wed. at Noon. www.proartssociety.ca. Johnston also mentioned that since the Mandate is to Promote Cultural Awareness it was a Logical Choice during this special Month to be part of Black History Month

photo Jennifer Lee-Owe on the Tenor Saxophone