CITYnews halifax: Ceremony celebrating first all-Black battalion on Saturday in Pictou

CITYnews halifax / By Steve Gow

An annual parade and ceremony remembering Canada’s only all-Black battalion is scheduled for this weekend in Nova Scotia.

The parade to commemorate the historic No. 2 Construction Battalion is marked to begin at 10:30 a.m. in Pictou.

The first all-Black battalion in Canadian military history, it was formed in Pictou during the First World War — but only after hundreds of Black men had first been turned away from military service due to systemic racism, often being told the conflict was “a white man’s war.”

According to the Black Cultural Centre for Nova Scotia, which hosts the annual ceremony, the No. 2 Construction Battalion was “authorized on July 5, 1916 and recruiting began in the Maritimes on July 19, and by August 30, the battalion became one of the few units that was allowed to recruit across the country.”

In July of 2022, the federal government formally apologized to family members for the battalion’s mistreatment before, during and after the war.

Ottawa has since followed with recommendations developed in conjunction with community consultations.

Among the guests on Saturday will be Defence Minister David McGuinty, who is scheduled to make remarks at the 11 a.m. ceremony at Pictou’s St. Andrews Presbyterian Church following the parade.

No details were provided about McGuinty’s remarks or if any other recommendations or further measures will be announced during his visit.