Editor's Note - Mayor JOHN TORY and CELINA CAESAR-CHAVANNES
Member of Parliament, Whitby will be attending the Freedom Train Ride event on Monday evening - sweir
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| Drummers on the 2016 Train Ride |
Emancipation Day
Fifth Annual Freedom Train Ride to Downsview
10.45 pm Start
Zanana Akande honourary conductor
Underground Freedom Train Monday July 31st Toronto
Please join the community on Monday, July 31st at 10:45pm at Toronto’s Union subway station as we celebrate Emancipation Day. We will be boarding the Underground Freedom Train at 11:30pm and travelling straight to Sheppard West subway station (previously Downsview station), arriving there at 12:15am on August 1st, which is internationally acclaimed as Emancipation Day.
This year’s fifth annual Freedom Train ride will be an incredible journey and experience about the Underground Railroad and the history of Emancipation Day as Canada celebrates 150 years since independence. Opening ceremonies will begin at 10:45pm at Union subway station. People will gather by the Brookfield Rotunda TTC entrance on the main floor. Opening ceremonies will be completed by 11:15pm and we will then prepare to start boarding the Freedom Train which will depart Union Station at 11:45pm.
The train ride will include a moment of silence as we board the train, drumming, spoken word and songs, along with a tribute to the resilience of the many who travelled along the Underground Railway, seeking freedom in Canada.
Zanana Akande, community matriarch and advocate, who was the first Black woman elected to the Ontario legislative assembly and also serve as a cabinet minister in Canada, will be honoured as this year’s train conductor. Also featured this year, will be Meridian Ashamock, a young Cree high school student and visual artist, Baro Dununba and Friends African drumming ensemble and the Ubuntu drumming and dance ensemble.
We will also be unveiling a commemorative plaque that will recognize the work of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters that will be mounted at Union Station, once the renovations are completed. The plaque is being sponsored by the Coalition of Black Trade Unions that has been a leading supporter of the Underground Freedom Train Ride series, since inception.
Everyone is welcome to join us on this Underground Freedom Train Ride to celebrate Emancipation Day. People will need a TTC ticket/token/transfer for admission and come prepared for quite the ride. Fifth annual Underground Freedom Train Ride t-shirts are available for purchase at A Different Booklist store, prior to the ride. Further information - available at A Different Booklist 416-538-0889 or by following us on twitter @FreedomTrainTOR.
This year’s fifth annual Freedom Train ride will be an incredible journey and experience about the Underground Railroad and the history of Emancipation Day as Canada celebrates 150 years since independence. Opening ceremonies will begin at 10:45pm at Union subway station. People will gather by the Brookfield Rotunda TTC entrance on the main floor. Opening ceremonies will be completed by 11:15pm and we will then prepare to start boarding the Freedom Train which will depart Union Station at 11:45pm.
The train ride will include a moment of silence as we board the train, drumming, spoken word and songs, along with a tribute to the resilience of the many who travelled along the Underground Railway, seeking freedom in Canada.
Zanana Akande, community matriarch and advocate, who was the first Black woman elected to the Ontario legislative assembly and also serve as a cabinet minister in Canada, will be honoured as this year’s train conductor. Also featured this year, will be Meridian Ashamock, a young Cree high school student and visual artist, Baro Dununba and Friends African drumming ensemble and the Ubuntu drumming and dance ensemble.
We will also be unveiling a commemorative plaque that will recognize the work of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters that will be mounted at Union Station, once the renovations are completed. The plaque is being sponsored by the Coalition of Black Trade Unions that has been a leading supporter of the Underground Freedom Train Ride series, since inception.
Everyone is welcome to join us on this Underground Freedom Train Ride to celebrate Emancipation Day. People will need a TTC ticket/token/transfer for admission and come prepared for quite the ride. Fifth annual Underground Freedom Train Ride t-shirts are available for purchase at A Different Booklist store, prior to the ride. Further information - available at A Different Booklist 416-538-0889 or by following us on twitter @FreedomTrainTOR.
photo - drummers on the train, 2016
For further info Media contact
Organizer Itah Sadu
A Different Booklist
itahsadu@rogers.com
416-538-0889
or me at:
STEPHEN WEIR
Stephen Weir & Associates | stephen@stephenweir.com
109 Castlefield Avenue, Toronto, ON
CANADA. M4R 1G5
Tel: 416-489-5868 | cell: 416-801-3101
www.stephenweir.com twitter: sweirsweir
Stephen Weir & Associates | stephen@stephenweir.com
109 Castlefield Avenue, Toronto, ON
CANADA. M4R 1G5
Tel: 416-489-5868 | cell: 416-801-3101
www.stephenweir.com twitter: sweirsweir
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