Rich dad game online1/15/2024 I grieve the freedom I had to run next door in my pajamas, head in rollers and slippers on, to eat breakfast with my cousin. Some of those neighbours tried to start a petition to keep us out. My family bought a home in a mostly white neighbourhood in the north end of the city not far from where Africville used to stand. Today, I grieve the loss of my community. It's been more than 60 years since that fateful day. It was a part of the second episode of a network series called Real Stories that aired in 1990. I guess you can add trauma to my list of feelings.ĭuration 8:13 An 8-minute segment looking at the history of Africville and the struggle of former residents to get justice. We did not want to see our home torn down. By this time, many of my extended family had already left Africville, so we said our goodbyes to those left behind and drove away. My memories of that day are vague, and I don't remember too much about the packing up or what we left behind. As a child, I wasn't allowed to attend but we all knew we might lose the home that made us feel special. The process dragged out for months and over many meetings between the city and the community in the 1960s. I was 15.Īctually, it wasn't one specific day. The city had decided to relocate Africville's residents. It didn't have amenities, such as running water or sewage systems, that many other Haligonians could take for granted. Ours was a close‐knit Black community in the north end of Halifax for over 120 years. Responsible for my younger brothers and sister when my mom went to work - still to this day, I boss them around. Even 'responsible' is another word I think of. Or she showed me how to work the two-ringer washing machine, so I don't get my arm caught in it. Grownup, when my mom taught me how to clean and cook. Paula Grant-Smith, is pictured as a child with her brother and dad when they lived in Africville in the north end of Halifax. I still have her knitting needles to this day. It was the same when my Aunt Dude stopped what she was doing to teach me how to knit. Loved, when my grandmother came to get me on Sunday mornings for church and I was all dressed up. Special, because the tooth fairy left me a quarter for my lost tooth and my Uncle Bunny, who owns a neighbourhood store, let me buy all the candy I wanted. Or excited, whenever I sat on my dad's lap to help steer the car home through the dirt roads of Africville, or when us kids started a ball game, and the adults came out to play. Then there's contentment - sitting on my front step and watching the glowing sun set as the boats went up and down the harbour. Safe to roam the open fields to pick berries, safe to spend the day on the shores swimming and safe to collect periwinkles. How do you describe what your home means to you? As a child, safe is one word that came to my mind. She is featured in "Claiming Space," the eighth episode of Black Life: Untold Stories. For more information about CBC's First Person stories, please see the FAQ. This First Person article is written by Paula Grant-Smith, a former resident of Africville. The eight-part series spans more than 400 years with an eye toward contemporary issues, culture, politics, music, art and sports. Black Life: Untold Stories reframes the rich and complex histories of Black people in Canada, dispelling commonly accepted myths and celebrating the contributions of both famous and lesser-known individuals.
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