Black History Month: Our past informs our present
OTTAWA, ON, Feb. 2, 2026 /CNW/ - In honour of Black History Month, Charlotte-Anne Malischewski, serving as Chief Commissioner of the Canadian Human Rights Commission, issues the following statement:
Black History Month is an opportunity to celebrate the leadership, creativity, and influence Black people in Canada continue to bring to the country.
This history extends more than 400 years, to the early 1600s, when multilingual interpreter Mathieu Da Costa became the first recorded Black individual to live and work in Canada, marking the beginning of the long-standing roots of Black communities in the country.
From these origins, Black communities have continued to define Canada's social, cultural, political and economic life. Across generations, Black Canadians have built strong connections with one another, sharing knowledge, culture, and collective action that have influenced public life, freedoms, and equality throughout the nation.
Black History Month also calls attention to the advocacy that has shaped the country that we know today. Black people have been at the forefront of significant human rights milestones in Canada's history. From Harriet Tubman leading enslaved people to freedom in 1850 to St. Catharines, Ontario, to Viola Desmond taking a civil rights stand against a segregated movie theatre in 1946, to Jean Augustine's role in Parliament's recognition of Black History Month in 1995, and to the activism that continues to echo the Black Lives Matter movement of the 2010s.
Black History Month is also a time to acknowledge the ongoing fight against systemic racism and discrimination that Black communities continue to face. It calls us to consider how anti-Black racism persists across our systems and institutions, and our everyday behaviours and practices. And, it is a commitment to address it through awareness, accountability, and action.
In the spirit of the Second United Nations Decade for People of African Descent, we continue to advocate for concrete actions to confront the legacies of enslavement and colonialism, deliver reparatory justice, and secure the full human rights and freedoms of people of African descent.
As Canada's National Human Rights Institution, we reaffirm our commitment to advancing equity, dignity, and justice for all. We stand in solidarity with Black communities and pledge to continue working toward a Canada where human rights are respected and upheld.
As we celebrate this month, let us reflect on our own roles in fostering inclusive and equitable spaces in our communities. This calls for intentionally listening, learning from our past, and taking deliberate steps to shape a more equitable future, rooted in justice and human rights.
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SOURCE Canadian Human Rights Commission
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