Black History Month: ‘My family has been here since before Canada was a country’
Ron Nicholson is a director of the BC Black History Awareness Society. He believes it’s important to share Canadian Black History to diffuse prejudice, spread the awareness of Black contribution to Canadian history and provide positive role models for young Black people today. (Nicole Crescenzi/News Staff) Oak Bay man shares his family’s history of coming to Canada via the Underground Railroad - by NICOLE CRESCENZI In a quiet Oak Bay cafe, Ron Nicholson strummed the side of his coffee mug as he delved into his thoughts. As a director of the BC Black History Awareness Society, Nicholson’s historical knowledge intertwines with his own personal history. While there were four major migrations of Black people into Canada, and while those who came up to B.C. in 1858 were free people, his own ancestors came up in the 1800s as part of the rush coming to Ontario and Quebec to escape slavery. Most of these people travelled via a system of secret alliances and shelters known as the
