I immigrated to Canada from Nigeria when I was 6 year old. Both countries are my home. I've never felt like I've had to pick and choose; who I am is an amalgamation of the two. I believe that this is exactly the reason that Canada is so beautifully diverse: it is a country that accepts where you came from, instead of rejecting it, or discouraging it. I am aware that I would not be able to appreciate such freedoms if it were not for the likes of those who were not afraid to speak up for their rights—those such as Chloe Cooley.

In 1793, Chloe Cooley was an enslaved Black Canadian that was shipped across the river by her 'owner' to be sold to a new 'owner'. She did not embark upon her ocean journey silently—she vehemently refused her proposed fate, screaming and kicking. In fact, this event was not incongruous—Cooley regularly refused to be silent about her enslavement, often stealing the property of her owner and committing truancy on a regular basis. It was her screams on the boat, however, that changed the way Canadian legislation saw slavery. Cooley's screams were heard by a neighbor who told the incident to Lieutenant Governor Simcoe, who used Cooley's story as a means to introducing legislation that would eventually lead to the abolition of slavery in Canada.

It is stories like this that need to be remembered. Over the summer, I read Night by Elie Wiesel, a Holocaust survivor, who wrote: "To forget the dead would be akin to killing them a second time". I live by these words, and understand that the past must be remembered in order to ensure that the same mistakes are not made again. Growing up in Canada, rarely would I hear stories about slavery in Canada—I heard the short biography of Martin Luther King, the summary of the actions taken by Rosa Parks(both awe-inspiring leaders of change), but I never heard the stories about Chloe Cooley, Viola Desmond, or Marie-Joseph Angélique. Canadians must celebrate the struggles that African Canadians faced because our world would not be the same had they not fought for equality and tolerance.

Another individual that I would like to talk about is Victoria Nzekwu. Vicki Nzekwu, or Aunty Vicki, to many, immigrated to Canada from Nigeria in 1979. She dedicated her entire life to promoting selflessness and acceptance. Aunty Vicki was one of the original founders of the Nigerian Canadian Association of Calgary, of which my parents are a part of. The Association promotes "aspects of Nigerian culture that would contribute positively to the Canadian Cultural Mosaic". She was also an adamant member of many church groups, raised funds for UNICEF, and, as a financial advisor, built numerous clients through seminars, radio shows, and her beautiful personality. As a highly educated woman, Aunty Vicki was an advocate for higher education. How did she define Canada's diverse heritage and identity? In a world where being a minority and a woman can, still, mean being subject to lower wages and other forms of discrimination, Aunty Vicki refused to let any of these things affect her. She exceled in every way, and, her house was always full of people she was helping. My mother told me that the greatest lesson that Aunty Vicki ever taught her was about the 'immediacy of now': Aunty Vicki believed in following your dreams now, in promoting your community now. She believed in now, because she knew that, at times, there may not be any time past now, that life is unpredictable.

When she passed away, there was an outpouring of grief in not only the Nigerian Canadian community, but amongst of the many lives that she touched. . Maybe Aunt Vicki isn't a famous hero. Or a national warrior. Maybe her name isn't written in textbooks…but she's my hero, and she's my warrior. And she deserves to be remembered and not just remembered but lived up to because her door was always open. Always.

I am inspired by the stories of Chloe Cooley and Aunty Vicki. They are two amongst many strong, black Canadians that have contribute to the greatness that is Canada: a country that celebrates differences and promotes multiplicity in every aspect of the word.

Bibliography

"Chloe Cooley and the Act to Limit Slavery in Upper Canada." The Canadian Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2014.

"Home." The Nigerian Canadian Association of Calgary. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Dec. 2014.

Wiesel, Elie, and Marion Wiesel. Night. New York, NY: Hill and Wang, a Division of Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2006. Print.

Victoria NZEKWU's Obituary on Calgary Herald." Calgary Herald. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Dec. 2014.

"Visible Minority Women." Visible Minority Women. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2014.