CBU to Host 22nd Annual J.B. McLachlan Memorial Lecture Virtually
Date Posted: Mar 1, 2021
Dr. Claudine Bonner to present A Pier for the Pierless
On Thursday, March 4, 2021, Cape Breton University will host the 22nd Annual J.B. McLachlan Memorial Lecture titled “A Pier for the Pierless: Caribbean Immigration to Atlantic Canada, 1900-1930” with Dr. Claudine Bonner. The virtual event will take place from 12:00pm – 1:00pm via Zoom.
Dr. Claudine Bonner is a scholar of African Canadian history and education, and a member of the Sociology Department and Women’s and Gender Studies program at Acadia University. She is also a Fulbright Visiting Research Chair at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. Dr. Bonner’s talk will examine Canadian immigration policy between 1900 and 1930 and will explore the ways in which Maritime ports served as barriers to the entry of mostly Caribbean people into Canada.
“Dr. Bonner is a path-breaking researcher and a wonderful speaker. We are very happy that she will be providing this year’s McLachlan lecture,” says Dr. Andy Parnaby, Dean of the School of Arts and Social Sciences. “Her analysis of Caribbean immigration of the Maritimes – with an emphasis on Whitney Pier – provides important historical context for current debates about race, identity, and inclusion.”
Dr. Bonner’s research is grounded in history, and broadly applied in analyses of race, gender, education, and identity in contemporary Canada. Her scholarship bridges the gap between studies of the Black Canadian experience and the broader African Diaspora, and crosses generational boundaries through innovative oral histories, community-based research, and published collaborative research with leading Canadian scholars.
The annual J.B. McLachlan Memorial Lecture honours the life and legacy of one of Cape Breton’s and Canada’s finest labour leaders. J.B. McLachlan was a Scottish immigrant and coal miner who arrived in Cape Breton in 1902 and helped lead District 26 of the United Mine Workers of America until he died in 1937.
The event is sponsored by the J.B. McLachlan Commemorative Society, the School of Arts and Social Sciences, and Cape Breton University. To register to attend, please visit www.cbu.ca/mclachlan.