Book Review: North of the Color Line : Migration and Black

Resistance in Canada, 1870-1955

In chronological order Mathieu dives deep into the exploration of African Americans and

West Indians that made their way into Canada more specifically the birth of the Canadian

Railway and how their policies in government and how it directly impacted the lives of these
specific groups of people. During the migration, they came from all over, reaching from St. Kitts,

Jamaica to all the way to Detroit Michigan in the United States. Also depending on where they

came from a reason for moving was also important such as many moved for extra income, some

wanted to break the generational stigma and family long traditions and concepts of farming and

wanted something different.

         Mathieu throughout the novel discusses at the beginning the issue of race and the Canadian

immigration policy. Many black people who migrated to Canada to find a safer place for

themselves and their families however during Reconstruction that was going on in the United

States black people were forced to many of the same injustices and with Canada believing they

were not on the same level as the US. They soon realize that Negrophobia was all too common

amongst white citizens in Canada. Therefore, doing this time African Americans found solace

and working on real cars which became the major source of employment during 1870 and 1919.

Next to follow in the book was a discussion on how Jim Crow in segregation played a major role

and the Canadian workforce, although blacks were afforded more employment then in the US

many of them were only offered low paying service jobs by World War 1. Especially with the

Jim Crow labor laws been adopted in the country. Due to all of the racial Injustice is black

Canadians begin to soon protest on the realities of immigration and the workplace. Black people

in Canada fought hard on the issues of equality especially when it came to Armed Services, even

when volunteering their services they were still finding themselves at the bottom of the barrel by

being amongst only those who are black and doing horrid work such as moving waste and the

remaining body parts of people from the battlefields. This was placed on the black people

because of the Canadian federal government whose policy was surrounded by white supremacy
felt as though that black people in Canada were not on the same level as the white citizens of the

country.

            Throughout migrating during uncertain times segregation and immigration black people

sought out and found refuge in Canada. And the black Canadians that faced all the indiscretions

and begin to build especially their own. Mathieu discusses how black people with both economic

and rights for citizenship. The work ends with how all the topics discussed lead to the time

during the Great Depression for African Canadians in which there was even a bigger this made

for black people that push the black people to come together and their communities and take

their issue to the Supreme Court regarding Jim Crow. Some black Canadians and blacks in

America were very much so linked together and soon begin to come together to form alliances

amongst each other. Unions were formed and black activist was soon to get involved such as A.

Philip Randolph and Arthur Robertson Blanchette. These men were among the many who has

brought about the largest black Union in the world. All in all, Mathieu and many different

sources credited to his work which included the library and archives of Canada to documents,

Reports, autobiographies, Memoirs including interviews were taken into consideration when

discussing or going into much detail for her work. Even more the author set out to link the what

was going on in the United States, through the railway to Canada.