VIOLA DESMOND TO APPEAR ON CANADA'S $10 BILL

Canada has named the trailblazing black rights activist Viola Desmond as the face of its new $10 bill, making her the first Canadian woman in history to be featured on a banknote.

Nine years before police arrested African-American civil rights activist Rosa Parks for refusing to relinquish her seat to a white person on a segregated bus, Desmond made history in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, for a similar act of courageous defiance.

Desmond, a beautician and businesswoman, is best remembered for a prominent incident in 1946 that helped shape Canada’s modern civil rights movement. The 32-year-old was ejected from a movie theater and unjustly accused of minor tax evasion after refusing to leave the cinema’s whites-only seating area. She spent the night in jail and was later fined after a heated trial that drew angry protests from Nova Scotia’s black community.

It was not until decades after Desmond’s death in 1965 that the injustice she endured received official recognition. The province apologized and granted her a free pardon in 2010, acknowledging the case as an act of racial discrimination.

This is a historic day for the province of Nova Scotia and a chance for us to finally right the wrong done to Mrs. Desmond and her family, said Darrell Dexter, who was premier of Nova Scotia at the time. This is also an opportunity for us to acknowledge the incredibly brave actions of a woman who took a stand against racism and segregation.

Canadian Finance Minister Bill Morneau unveiled Desmond as his final selection at a press conference Thursday morning after a “very, very, very difficult” decision process. “[Desmond] reminds all of us today and future generations that moments of courage and dignity can truly change our lives forever,” he said.

To read the complete article, see:
Viola Desmond, Canada’s Civil Rights Pioneer, To Appear On $10 Bill (www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/viola-desmond-canada-banknote_us_58497119e4b0d0aa037f72a9)

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