Stephen Weir articles, editorials and popular social media weir postings

  Order of Canada awards announced at year's end By Stephen Weir There was a time not long ago when the heroes of the country’s Black community were overlooked at year’s end when the Governor General of Canada announced new appointments to the Order of Canada. As of 2024, we have a new sheriff in town, and yesterday she let the country know that she sees all Canadians. Her Excellency the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada, has made 88 new appointments to the Order of Canada, including one Companion, 24 Officers, and 63 Members. Three appointments are promotions within the Order. Once again, under her leadership, Caribbean Canadians, Africans, and Canadians involved in projects impacting the Black community made the list. Yesterday, famed photographer Stan Douglas was appointed to the Order of Canada. Born and raised in Vancouver (his father is from Tobago), his multimedia works re-examine pivotal historical events and technology’s role in shaping collective m...

  DANCING IN THE DARK WITH THE QUEEN’S REPRESENTATIVE Her Excellency the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada is the closest thing to Royality in Canada except maybe for Drake. So it with some pomp and circumstance that she paid a visit to the Famous PEOPLE Players, in Etobicoke on Tuesday afternoon. Arriving at the Evans Avenue dinner theatre, she brought with her a sense of pomp and ceremony. As a piper played, the audience stood and cheered, TV cameras rolled, and the Governor General responded with a royal-like wave. Mary Simon ( left ) attended the Famous PEOPLE Players theatre to watch a dress rehearsal of the company’s new play, meet with the cast and crew, and enjoy tea with the standing-room-only audience. This visit was particularly special as the Famous PEOPLE Players are celebrating their 50th anniversary next month. The black light musical company has been a beacon of inclusion and integration for half a century, making it one of the longest-running...

Governor General Announces New Order of Canada Appointments By  STEPHEN WEIR  for  the  Caribbean Camera -  What a difference a Governor General of Canada makes. The people who decide which Canadians are to receive the Order of Canada have rediscovered the Caribbean Canadian community, albeit in a modest way. Last week her Excellency the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada, announced 99 new appointments to the Order of Canada, including four Black members. Joining this elite group are:  Angela Ella Cooper Brathwaite,   Karina Chenelle LeBlanc, Frantz Saintellemy  and  Hamlin Washington Grange. As the Caribbean Camera has noted that while  Julie Payette  was Governor General ( 2017 to 2021)   there was a dearth of Caribbean Canadian appointees.  Reporter Stephen Weir penned an editorial that pointed out that Payette’s December 2019 list of citizens who had earned the Order of Canada had a ...