Parks Canada plaque recognizes Viola Desmond's national historic significance

September 18, 2022

Parks Canada has unveiled a plaque commemorating the national historic significance of Viola Desmond.

The ceremony took place on August 12 in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia.

Deciding to expand her beauty care business, the teacher-turned-entrepreneur was on her way on November 8, 1946 to Sydney in Cape Breton when her car developed mechanical issues.

While waiting to get it repaired, Desmond went to see a movie at the Roseland Theatre.

Sitting in the Whites-only section, she was arrested and thrown into jail. Found guilty of not paying the one-cent difference in tax between the balcony and main floor tickets, she was fined $20 and ordered to pay $6 in court costs.

When efforts to overturn the conviction at higher levels of court failed, Desmond closed the business, moved to Montreal and enrolled in a business college. She eventually settled in New York where she died in 1965 at age 51.

Former Nova Scotia Lieutenant Governor Mayann Francis said the trailblazer was the catalyst for tearing down written and unwritten segregation, discrimination and racism policies in Canada.

“She was unique because she was a successful Black businesswoman during a time when race relations in this province was abysmal,” Nova Scotia’s first female Ombudsperson said. “Her determination, intelligence and business acumen matched by her drive to succeed in the face of racism and discrimination is a testament to the type of person Viola was. She understood the value of hard work and empowerment. Her parents gave her a solid foundation and the support she needed to keep her dream alive.

“Unfortunately, we will never know what heights Viola would have taken her business to. Did that cruel act and its aftermath break her spirit and crush her dreams? There is sufficient research that points to the negative impact of racism on one’s mental and physical health. Viola was attempting to grow her business in 1946. Imagine for a moment the empire she could have built by continuing to do that. Imagine how her successful business could have contributed to the economy and cultural fabric of our province and our country. Imagine the number of girls, especially Black girls and yes, Black boys, she could have inspired to become entrepreneurs.”

During her tenure as Lieutenant Governor, Francis -- on the recommendation of the Attorney General and the provincial government executive council -- exercised the Royal Prerogative of Mercy in 2010 to grant a free pardon to Desmond which is based on innocence and recognizes that a conviction was an error.

It is the only free pardon to be granted posthumously in Canada.

“It represented the unwavering recognition of her innocence and wrongful conviction in 1946 and rights a wrong that never should have happened,” said Francis. “I said that it is impossible for the stroke of a pen and the granting of a free pardon to erase history and wipe the proverbial slate clean. The very moment in the Viola Desmond story would ensure that her legacy lives on in legal journals, newspapers, human rights research, political science debates and in race relations studies.”

Sean Fraser, Canada’s Minister of Immigration, Refugees & Citizenship, said Desmond’s courage and unwavering commitment to equal rights helped shape the country.

“Through acts like this, we can advance equality and recognize the shameful chapters of our history,” the Central Nova Member of Parliament since 2015 said. “I think one of the things that make Canada a unique place is we can acknowledge those shameful chapters and commit to do better going forward. This plaque may be affixed to the side of the building where Viola took her courageous stand in defence of racial equality, but it is also going to be part of a national inventory.”

The plaque to honour Viola Desmond national historic significance was unveiled in New Glasgow on August 12 (Photo contributed)

New Glasgow Mayor Nancy Dicks noted that Desmond’s courage and dignity on that November night 76 years ago changed the course of history.

“Her actions, determination and spirit would go on to help create awareness of segregation, human rights locally, provincially, nationally and internationally,” she added. “Let today’s unveiling be an opportunity to discuss the continuing story of social justice as well as a chance for everyone to learn about Viola’s story as a pioneering female entrepreneur.”

World-renowned scholar Dr. Peter Paris, who was born and raised in New Glasgow, said the ceremony publicly acknowledges ‘our shared humanity which unfortunately has not always been affirmed’.

“For example, when I was growing up, there were few places here in our downtown district where my people were welcomed,” the former Harvard University Divinity School Visiting Professor said. “Yet after many years of accommodating through racial exclusion, we gradually inched our way into public acceptance.”

Paris was 13 years old when Desmond was evicted from the balcony section she sat in because of shortsightedness.

“I clearly remember hearing my parents and others discussing the incident and lamenting the injustice inflicted on such a fine young businesswoman,” the academic leader said. “While not knowing her personally, we here in Nova Scotia – particularly those in the Black community – have always loved Viola Desmond because she became a visible public symbol of the wrongful actions of racial discrimination that was once pervasive in our town and throughout our province.”

Parks Canada Chief Executive Officer Ron Hallman said designations like the one for Viola Desmond seek to tell the nation’s authentic stories.

“One of our central responsibilities and one that we are very proud of is to protect, share and provide opportunities for Canadians to learn about our amazing and diverse natural and cultural heritage,” he said. “Through our national program of historical commemoration, we work with partners across the country to share Canada’s history, including the most difficult moments in our collective past.”

In the last century, more than 2,200 designations of national significance have been made across Canada.

Historian, poet and literary critic Dr. George Elliott Clarke penned a poem, ‘On Political Economy; or, The Ballad of Viola Desmond’, that was read at the ceremony.

Designated a National Historic Person in 2017, Desmond’s image is on the $10 Canadian banknote, a Canada Post stamp, a Halifax Harbour Ferry , a Toronto park, streets in Montreal and New Glasgow and three public schools bear her name.