The role of slavery and the historical presence of a Black population in Newfoundland and Labrador is revealed in this groundbreaking book by Jamaican-Canadian writer Xaiver Campbell and journalist Heather Barrett.
It has been widely assumed that Black people are only recent settlers in Newfoundland and Labrador. In fact, the history of enslaved Black people within the British colony - and the role of Newfoundland merchant families in promoting the trade in human beings - has been denied, obscured, and forgotten.
With contributors from historians, archaeologists, artists, folklorists, and other experts, Xavier Michael Campbell and Heather Barrett ask questions, connect some dots - and show that a Black population was in fact present in early Newfoundland and Labrador, and that some of this history is rooted in the horrors of the transatlantic slave trade.
Part personal commentary, part documentary, Black Harbour is an illuminating, important, and sometimes uncomfortable exploration of Newfoundland and Labrador's colonial history - and what it means to those who live in the province today.
