The Trailblazing Life of Viola Desmond


Book Description

This illustrated nonfiction book for middle-grade readers tells the story of Viola Desmond's life, based on interviews with her sister Wanda Robson.




The Trailblazing Life of Viola Desmond


Book Description

Key Selling Points This book celebrates Canada's civil-rights struggles, a chapter of history that often goes unmentioned. This book is co-authored by and uses rare firsthand interviews with Wanda Robson, Viola Desmond's youngest sister, as well as with civil-rights expert Dr. Graham Reynolds, professor of history and Viola Desmond Chair in Social Justice at Cape Breton University. This book goes beyond Viola's pivotal moment in the movie theater to tell the story of her childhood, her career as a teacher in a segregated school and her role as a pioneering entrepreneur in Black beauty culture. It will inspire readers aged 9 to 12 and show how one ordinary person can overcome obstacles and make a positive difference in the world. Viola's legacy is commemorated on the Canadian $10 bill. She's the first woman other than Queen Elizabeth II to appear alone on a bill in Canada.




Viola Desmond Won't Be Budged


Book Description

Tells the story of Viola Desmond, an African Canadian woman who, in 1946, challenged a Nova Scotia movie theater's segregation policy by refusing to move from her seat to an upstairs section designated for use by blacks.




Meet Viola Desmond


Book Description

Meet Viola Desmond, community leader and early civil rights trailblazer! On the night of November 8th 1946, Nova Scotia businesswoman Viola Desmond stood up for her right to be in the "unofficial" whites-only section of a New Glasgow movie theatre . . . and was arrested for it. Supported by the Nova Scotia Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NSCAACP) and the black-owned newspaper The Clarion, Viola took her quest for the right to freedom from discrimination to the courts. While she ultimately did not succeed, she was a beacon to other early civil-rights activists. Her sister Wanda worked hard to promote Viola's legacy, which has been finally honoured by Viola's inclusion on the new Canadian $10 bill. This new picture book biography series features simple text and full-colour, comic-flavoured illustration with speech balloons that help bring the story alive. Historical photos and a timeline support the narrative.




Meet Tom Longboat


Book Description

Meet Tom Longboat, the Onondaga runner who broke world records . . . on his own terms! On April 19, 1907, a hundred thousand people lined up to watch the eighth running of the Boston Marathon. At the start of the race, more than one hundred runners surged forward, and at the end, Tom Longboat won it in a record-breaking 2 hours,24 minutes and 24 seconds. He became the most famous runner in the world, yet faced scrutiny and criticism of every part of his life, from his revolutionary training techniques to his Indigenous heritage. This picture book will introduce young readers to a brave and fascinating man whose legacy as Canada's foremost distance runner continues to be recognized to this day. This new biography series features accessible text, full-colour illustrations, with historical notes and timelines that provide even more information on Tom Longboat's background and incredible accomplishments.




Claudette Colvin


Book Description

"When it comes to justice, there is no easy way to get it. You can't sugarcoat it. You have to take a stand and say, 'This is not right.'" - Claudette Colvin On March 2, 1955, an impassioned teenager, fed up with the daily injustices of Jim Crow segregation, refused to give her seat to a white woman on a segregated bus in Montgomery, Alabama. Instead of being celebrated as Rosa Parks would be just nine months later, fifteen-year-old Claudette Colvin found herself shunned by her classmates and dismissed by community leaders. Undaunted, a year later she dared to challenge segregation again as a key plaintiff in Browder v. Gayle, the landmark case that struck down the segregation laws of Montgomery and swept away the legal underpinnings of the Jim Crow South. Based on extensive interviews with Claudette Colvin and many others, Phillip Hoose presents the first in-depth account of an important yet largely unknown civil rights figure, skillfully weaving her dramatic story into the fabric of the historic Montgomery bus boycott and court case that would change the course of American history. Claudette Colvin is the National Book Award Winner for Young People's Literature, a Newbery Honor Book, A YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults Finalist, and a Robert F. Sibert Honor Book.




Mayann Francis


Book Description

When Mayann Francis was named Nova Scotia's first Black lieutenant-governor, she wondered if the community would accept her. Francis was born just three months after businesswoman Viola Desmond was arrested for sitting in a whites-only section of a movie theatre in New Glasgow. Had enough changed? In this candid memoir, Francis describes her journey from humble beginnings in Whitney Pier, the daughter of immigrants, to the vice-regal office. She explains how her religious faith and her family's belief in education equipped her for life's challenges, including the loss of much of her vision. Before Francis was named lieutenant-governor, she had earned a masters degree in New York City and worked in a series of senior positions. But her time in the vice-regal office was not without challenges. Francis was unable to live in Government House for much of her term because the official residence was being renovated. As the renovations dragged on, there were rumours, she writes, that some politicians and bureaucrats did not want her to ever move in. Was it, she asks, because she was Black? Francis poses tough questions in this book, but also offers advice and encouragement to anyone faced with challenges.




Global Corruption Report: Sport


Book Description

Sport is a global phenomenon engaging billions of people and generating annual revenues of more than US$ 145 billion. Problems in the governance of sports organisations, fixing of matches and staging of major sporting events have spurred action on many fronts. Yet attempts to stop corruption in sport are still at an early stage. The Global Corruption Report (GCR) on sport is the most comprehensive analysis of sports corruption to date. It consists of more than 60 contributions from leading experts in the fields of corruption and sport, from sports organisations, governments, multilateral institutions, sponsors, athletes, supporters, academia and the wider anti-corruption movement. This GCR provides essential analysis for understanding the corruption risks in sport, focusing on sports governance, the business of sport, planning of major events, and match-fixing. It highlights the significant work that has already been done and presents new approaches to strengthening integrity in sport. In addition to measuring transparency and accountability, the GCR gives priority to participation, from sponsors to athletes to supporters an essential to restoring trust in sport.




Meet Elsie MacGill


Book Description

The story of Canadian Elsie MacGill, the first woman to earn a master's degree in aeronautical engineering.




Sister to Courage : Stories from the World of Viola Desmond, Canada's Rosa Parks


Book Description

In Sister to Courage, Wanda takes us inside the world she shared with Viola and ten other brothers and sisters. Through touching and often hilarious stories, she traces the roots of courage and ambition, good fun and dignity, of the household that produced Viola Desmond. Tough and compassionate, Viola shines through beyond the moment she was carried out of Roseland movie theatre for refusing to sit I the blacks-only section. Viola emerges as a defender of family and a successful entrepreneur whose momentum was blocked by racism. With honesty and wit, Wanda Robson tells her own brave story, giving new life to two remarkable women and the family she loved.