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Aug. 1 has been proclaimed as Emancipation Day by the ruling federal Liberals in recognition of the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833, passed by the British government and enacted throughout the British Empire.
It is a kind-hearted thought, but it overlooks a more important Canadian event. Forty years earlier, Lt.-Gov. Lord John Graves Simcoe ended slavery in Upper Canada by passing the Act to Limit Slavery in 1793.
It should be this Canadian effort that ought to be feted, not the political acts of a colonial power.
This uniquely Canadian take on the blight of slavery needs to take precedence.
By the way, we do have a Simcoe Day. Toronto celebrates Simcoe Day on Aug. 2 of every year. Barrie and Simcoe County could celebrate this, too.
Long live Simcoe Day.
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