Journey to Justice is a documentary film which premiered in the year 2000.
The topic is Canadian history from ca. 1900 to ca. 1960 with special focus on racial segregation of Black people and the struggle for civil rights in Canada.
Here is some basic information about this film:
** Director: Roger McTair
** Writers: Laine Drewery, Roger McTair, and Alan Mendelson
** Narrator: Datejie Green
** Historical consultants: Sheldon Taylor and James W. St. G. Walker
** Production and distribution: The National Film Board of Canada (NFB)
** Run time: 47 minutes
In this film, the topic is covered by focusing on six persons who refused to accept inequality.
Here are the names of the six persons whose struggles for civil rights are covered in the film:
# 1. Stanley G. Grizzly (1918-2016)
# 2. Fred Christie (1902-1985)
# 3. Viola Desmond (1914-1965)
# 4. Hugh Burnett (1918-1991)
# 5. Daniel “Danny” Braithwaite (1919-2002)
# 6. Donald Willard Moore (1891-1994)
I am not going to say more about them here. I do not wish to spoil the viewing for anyone.
If you are Canadian, you may know these six names. You may even know something about them.
If you do not live in Canada, it is likely that you have never seen these six names before. It is likely that you do not know anything about them.
Watch this film to discover who they were and to learn about the role they played in the struggle for civil rights in Canada.
Several persons are interviewed in the film. Here are the names of the participants (listed in the order of appearance):
** James W. St. G. Walker (born 1940) – PhD, historian
** Ray Lewis (1910-2003) – an Olympic athlete (1932)
** John White – editor, The Canadian Negro Newspaper
** Donald Carty – a World War II veteran
** Sheldon Taylor – PhD, historian
** Gus Wedderburn (1929-2007) – The Nova Scotia
Association for the Advancement of Colored People in Canada (NSAACP)
** Emily Clyke (1913-2018) – Viola Desmond’s older sister
** Wanda Robson (1926-2022) – Viola Desmond’s younger sister
** Stanley G. Grizzle (1918-2016) – Brotherhood of the Sleeping Car Porters – From 1977, a Citizen Court Judge
** Bromley Armstrong (1926-2018) – a civil rights activist
** Ben Kayfetz (1916-2002) – a civil rights activist
** Ruth Lor Malloy – a journalist
** Cheryl Burnett – daughter of Hugh Burnett
** Daniel “Danny” Braithwaite (1919-2002) – a civil rights activist
Archive footage (old clips and old photographs) is used between the talking heads.
Archive footage is used to support and supplement the statements made by the participants.
Archive footage is used when the narrator is talking.
We hear a lot about racial segregation of black people and the struggle for civil rights in the US, especially in the deep south.
We almost never hear anything about racial segregation of black people and the struggle for civil rights in Canada.
We may get the impression that segregation never happened or that it was a minor problem in Canada. But this impression is wrong. It did happen. In fact, it was widespread. But all cases are not known, because they were not documented.
The cases presented in this film are not only significant; they are also well-documented. They cannot be denied.
It is obvious to compare the struggle for civil rights in the US with the struggle for civil rights in Canada. The two situations are similar but not identical.
In the US, segregation of African Americans was obligatory. It was mandated by law. Jim Crow laws in the deep south stated that a black person must do this or that a black person must not to do that.
In Canada, segregation of black Canadians was not obligatory. It was not mandated by law. It was more polite. It was almost invisible, but still very real.
The owner of a business had the right to decide on a policy for his business. The owner might allow any person to enter the premises or he might discriminate in any way he wanted.
He might say: “No blacks in my business!” And the law would support his right to say and do so. Segregation was legal, if the owner of the business wanted to have it.
In Canada, this rule applied to every business: a bar, a restaurant, a movie theatre, a hotel, a swimming pool or a night club. In most cases, the policy was not stated with large posters (as in the US). You had to ask or you had to know where to go and where not to go.
The cases presented in this film illustrate how segregation could be practiced in Canada. In different ways and in different areas.
The people presented in this film refused to accept inequality. They fought for their civil rights. In some cases, they won, but in many cases they lost.
Segregation of black Canadians was built into the system, into the structure of society. It was difficult to defeat the system.
For many years, the system supported and rewarded owners who practiced segregation. For many years, the system, refused to listen to the victims and support their struggle for equality and justice.
The persons presented in this film were pioneers who paved the way for others. Even when they lost, they still made an important contribution to the struggle for civil rights.
In 1954, the law regarding public places was changed. In the past, the law had supported the owner of a business who wanted to practice segregation. When the law was changed, racial segregation was banned. The new law supported the principle of equal justice for all.
In 1962, the law regarding immigration to Canada was changed. In the past, white people had been accepted before black people. When the law was changed, racial discrimination was banned. The new law regarding immigration was based on merits and not on race.
What do reviewers say about this film? This question is difficult to answer.
The film is listed on IMDb, but there is no rating. There are no reviews.
The film is listed on Amazon, but there is no rating. There are no reviews.
As stated above, we hear a lot about segregation of black people and the struggle for civil rights in the US.
We almost never hear about segregation of black people and the struggle for civil rights in Canada.
We may get the impression that conditions were much better in Canada than in the US. When we watch this film, we can see that this impression is wrong. We can see that conditions in Canada were not as good as we might think.
The cases presented in this film are not only well-chosen; they are also well-documented. The stories of the pioneers are important and deserve to be told. In this film, it is done very well.
I want to go all the way to the top with this product. I think it deserves a rating of five stars (100 percent).
If you are interested in modern history – in particular the struggle for civil rights – this film is definitely something for you. It is highly recommended.
REFERENCES
# 1. Books
** Blacks in Canada: A History by Robin W. Winks (1997)
** Colour-Coded: A Legal History of Racism in Canada, 1900-1950 by Constance Backhouse (1999)
** My Name’s Not George: The Story of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters by Stanley Grizzle (with John Cooper) (1998)
** Black Canadians: History, Experience, Social Conditions by Joseph Mensah (2002) (second edition 2010)
** Righting the Wrongs: Gus Wedderburn’s Quest for Social Justice in Nova Scotia by Marie Riley (2011)
** Viola Desmond’s Canada: A History of Blacks and Racial Segregation in the Promised Land by Graham Reynolds (with Wanda Robson) (2016)
** Viola Desmond: Her Life and Times by Graham Reynolds (with Wanda Robson) (2018)
# 2. Film and video
Long Road to Justice: The Viola Desmond Story
(2011) (run time = 44 minutes)
One Woman’s Resistance: Viola Desmond’s Story
Canadian Museum of Human Rights
(2012) (run time = 5 minutes)
Black Life: Untold Stories
A miniseries with eight episodes
(2023)
# 3. Articles available online
The Canadian Encyclopedia
** Racial Segregation of Black People in Canada
** Prejudice and Discrimination in Canada
** Racism
** Black History in Canada until 1900
** Black History in Canada: 1900-1960
** Black History in Canada: 1960 to Present
** Bromley Armstrong (1926-2018)
Neil Parmar, “Canada – Not as nice as you think,” OZY – A Modern Media Company (No date listed – probably 2017)
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Journey to Justice
The National Film Board of Canada
(2000)
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Journey to Justice
A special screening of the film
(2019)
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Roger McTair
Canadian filmmaker
(born 1944)
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