BCRC is a growing, resource-based organization that strengthens community capacity by providing professional support to organizations and individuals in need.
I first came across mention of this tragedy in Archive Box HA 04224 of the NCC Fonds, the archive of the Negro Community Centre. The NCC was dissolved in the early 1990s. In 1998, the archive was transferred to Concordia University’s Special Collections for safekeeping and in 2017, it became available for research. This past winter, Prof. Steven High, who is passionate about oral history, guided 35 students through an exploration of 35 of the archive boxes.
The mention of the drowning in the box I was assigned was in an NCC ledger for 1949–1960. The entry said: “Donations to parents of the drowning tragedy.” Further inquiries about this shocking event led me to Archive Box HA 04160, which contained two files dedicated to the events that began with the NCC summer camp outing to Île Bizard on July 13, 1954.
The tragedy that occurred that day is little known outside of the Black community, where people are familiar with the event, but only its headline: Twelve Black Children Drown in Lake of Two Mountains. What actually happened had been locked away in the NCC files for 65 years. I had the privilege and humbling responsibility of visiting July 13, 1954 and its aftermath. It is a story that should be known as part of Montreal history, and the 12 children who died that day should be recognized and celebrated.
The Kiwanis Club provided the funds for the picnic at Pointe-aux-Callières beach on Lake of Two Mountains. Stanley Clyke, Executive Director of the NCC, made all the arrangements. He selected Frances Palmas to be the supervisor, and she put together a group of leaders that included Owen Rowe, Phyllis Blackwood, Joe Braithwaite, Dorothy Tagieff and Philip Harrison, a qualified lifeguard.
Palmas arrived at Union United Church (where the NCC was based until it moved to Coursol Street in 1955) early on July 13, to find several children already there. When the staff arrived, they were fully briefed by Palmas. Each leader was responsible for a group of children in addition to specific assigned tasks. The children too were given instructions by Palmas. They were to stay with their leaders at all times. If they went swimming, they were to come out of the water immediately upon being told, and there was to be no swimming after lunch. They left the church at 10:15 on an Uncle Harry’s schoolbus and arrived at the beach an hour later. The children sang all the way there.
The morning activities passed without incident. Forty of the children went swimming, while others gathered firewood. At lunchtime, a man, Jack Seligman, approached Palmas and offered to take some children out in his boat for a little ride on the lake. He thought they might enjoy that. The staff discussed his proposal and concluded that it was a good idea. He was to return at 1:30, allowing time for the children to digest lunch. Palmas laid down the rules: no children under nine could go, and only children wearing bathing suits.
Seligman came back promptly at 1:30 and the first group of eight set off on their ride to a platform 200 yards from shore and back. It all took five minutes. Another group of eight, again chosen by Owen Rowe and Phil Harrison, was waiting when the boat returned. They too went out and were back in five minutes. Meanwhile, the two rides had created interest on shore, and many children were now milling about at the landing. Rowe tried to hold them back, but by the time he turned around, the boat had left. Harrison, who was on board with Seligman, did not think the boat was actually overloaded. “The children looked so small,” he said.
As they rounded the platform, the engine stalled. Just then, a wave flooded the boat. The children panicked, stood up and jumped in the water. Harrison grabbed one girl and threw her into the boat. He then took hold of two more children, as did Seligman, and they clung to the boat together. Two men, Arthur Robichon and Gordon Hendron, rushed to the site in their boats and brought those four children back to shore. Harrison then gave the girl in the boat artificial respiration. Altogether, 12 children drowned—eight of them between the ages of six and eight—and five were saved. It took several days of dredging to recover all the bodies.
Stanley Clyke worked into the night visiting every family that lost a child, either at Union United or in their homes. Organizing the funerals was paramount to Clyke. He wanted to make the process as easy as possible for the grieving families. Within two days, arrangements were made to pay for the funerals and provide flowers.
On the first day, one funeral was held in the morning, and another, for two sisters (one of three pairs of siblings that died in the tragedy), in the afternoon. Both services were held at Union United and were officiated by Rev. Charles E. Este. The next day, Rev. Este conducted a service for two cousins in the morning at Union United, and in the afternoon, for a brother and sister at St. Jude’s on Vinet Street. Both churches were filled to capacity. The NCC received letters of condolences from Montrealers and from across Canada, and many of these were read at the funerals.
Donations in honour of the children poured in to the NCC. Donors included the various NCC clubs, Montreal individuals and businesses, the Montreal Ladies Softball League, which held a benefit game, and a man in Saint John, New Brunswick, who had lost his mother on July 14. He sent a $10 cheque and said it was “to honour their common loss.” It was Clyde’s desire to use the donations as “the nucleus of a fund toward a memorial building as a new headquarters for our centre.” In the following weeks, Clyde wrote thank-you notes to every letter and telegram he received. The archive also contains the thank-you letters the parents who lost children wrote to Clyke expressing their appreciation for the compassion he showed them during their time of deepest grief.
On July 28, 1954, the inquest into the tragedy opened. The coroner’s jury ruled that the drownings were accidental, and the Chief Coroner of Montreal, R.L. Duckett, was quoted as saying, “such terrible tragedies as this one must never be allowed to happen again.” He forwarded to the Quebec Attorney General new safety regulations developed by the jury that would make swimming and boating safer for all.
The story as it pertains to the archive ends here, but it lives on in the hearts of parents and siblings, nieces and nephews. It is also present for people who were directly involved in the tragedy and for their families, as well as for anyone to comes to know about the tragic deaths of these 12 small children.
Oliver Jones and Aayah Amir after an interview for the Living History project
DO YOU HAVE MEMORIES TO SHARE?
No memory is too small or too large; we want to hear from you!
Please contact the Living History: 100 Years of Black History, Culture and Heritage team to set up an interview:
livinghistory@bcrcmontreal.com
Shania Bramble interviews Michael Farkas for the Living History project
Deneille Guiseppe familiarizes herself with Youth in Motion's recording studio
INTRODUCTION TO AUDIO PRODUCTION WORKSHOP Written by the Living History Team
As the weather warms up, the Living History: 100 Years of Black History, Culture and Heritage team is preparing for the recording of our 15 memoryscapes. Michael Farkas, Director of Youth in Motion and President of Montreal's Black History Month, gave BCRC research interns a workshop introducing them to audio production and familiarizing them with Youth in Motion's recording studio. Youth in Motion is a key partner in the Living History project and is responsible for recording, editing, and producing the final memoryscapes.
The workshop began with a brief history of Little Burgundy and the role that Youth in Motion has played in the community. Youth in Motion is a grassroots community organization that strives to empower its youth to become successful learners, make positive informed life choices and reach their full potential. Little Burgundy is not only the home of Montreal's first Black community, but has also provided working class families of all backgrounds with accessible and affordable housing; therefore, Youth in Motion serves a variety of groups in its role as a youth centre in Little Burgundy.
The basement of Youth in Motion hosts an impressive recording studio with high-tech equipment for audio mixing. BCRC research interns got the chance to practice recording in the studio and hear their voices played back. Throughout the summer, the research interns will be visiting Youth in Motion to record narration for their memoryscapes. The Living History team thanks both Michael and Youth in Motion for their ongoing support and look forward to hearing our final products!
MINBIBLIOplus
Written by Raeanne Francis
BCRC is happy to announce its partnership with The Fraser-Hickson institute on our new
MINBIBLIOplus program. The program is designed to promote literacy and consists of free
MINIBIBLIOs (mini libraries) provided by Fraser Hickson.
The program facilitates access to books, encourages reading and fosters literacy development at all ages. At BCRC we believethat literacy should be part of any comprehensive strategy geared to meeting the needs of individuals and strengthening a community’s capacity. Our MINBIBLIOplus program is a welcomed addition to the services offered by BCRC and reinforces our efforts to adequately serve the English speaking Black Community.
Lateef Martin (second from the left) at his Storyboarding Workshop
STORYBOARDING WORKSHOP REVIEW Written by Dana Isaac
On May 1st, the Living History project held a storyboarding workshop with Sur Place and Lateef Martin, a comic book illustrator. The workshop was held at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts at their New Studio 2 space, an open art studio meant to promote inclusivity and provide members of the community a space to create with access to free artistic materials.
As we approach the later months of the Living History project, we have begun to focus on how we will be constructing the memoryscapes that are meant to serve as an interactive experience, serving as a physical representation of our chosen historical topics. While the prospect of organizing this multimedia experience seems daunting, there are many ways to help plan and prepare the different parts of the memoryscape. This workshop was meant to help us plan our memoryscape through storyboarding, so that we can better envision and write/draw every step.
When I arrived at the space, it was open and inviting - there were art materials all around the room, and the organizers had even provided us material to create something while we had the workshop. Lateef Martin started by introducing himself and his work - he is an illustrator, mostly known for his post-apocalyptic comic book series involving a dystopian Montreal infested with zombies. The comics follow several characters as they attempt to navigate this new world, and his illustrations show several references to landmarks and the Montreal landscape, such as the metro. Lateef explained how he uses storyboards to help guide his illustration process, and showed us an animation he created through the use of a storyboard, and after watching the animation he explained how he had planned every scene, which showed the importance of detail - every angle and action had to be considered if it were to be part of the final product.
The main points I took away from Lateef’s presentation is the importance of planning every single step of the process, no matter how short or how long the final product is expected to be - it is important to take into account all the different aspects and shots of a scene. I admit, I had figured that the planning stage of the memoryscape would be fairly simple, as they are only meant to be 5 minutes long, however, this workshop has shown me that we are still dealing with an important piece of history, and the content needs to planned out accordingly in order to be engaging for individuals who listen to our work.
OPEN LETTER TO OUR LEADERS Written by Jerry Alexandre
Montreal, Quebec
Tuesday, June 4th, 2019
Honorable Prime Minister of Canada, Mr. Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Quebec, Mr. Francois Legault, Mayor of Montreal, Mrs. Valerie Plante
Today, of all days, I am unequivocally appealing to your humanity and consciousness as leaders of this great country, Canada, to stand with those who have been grieving and are still suffering deeply from within. Slavery was a human genocide, and racial profiling is a terrifying crime. I am certain you do not condone these bigoted practices, yet I implore you to reject and abolish them plainly in your midst. The time is now.
The treatment is horrible, and its effect on every black youth is harsh. You all know injustice is a scourge in this country, and we all must recognize its consequences besides the mental damages that generations have been enduring until today. We need your courage to pronounce your views and to put an end to a system of racial abuse that has been affecting far too many in negative ways. At the same time, that is notwithstanding the many who died for countless senseless reasons that only the culprits could explain as a means to shed light on the unfortunate events where it is always crucial to be clear and steadfast in the court of public opinion. Why lie to make the insensible appear logical where reason is simply a means to support the unacceptable? Human beings are not objects to destroy at will. During the time of slavery, silence could define what was at stake. Now, there is no reason to turn a blind eye when police officers continue to treat black youths as games to murder in the streets. Look in the eyes of a black mother to justice the unnecessary killings. Tell her how just the system is, and how perhaps her only child deserves to die.
The community no longer has the strength to recount terrifying stories to the youths and to put faces on murdered corpses as a means to justify why police officers continue to slaughter black children for no valid reasons. For ages, we have been facing this level of racial injustice and the unacceptable process of exclusion in society. We mourned, cried, and swallowed our pride to move on, yet the pain has become unbearable. Racial profiling must end. Now, we beseech you to hear our voices. We hope the voices of reason in your heads are our last resort. Violence is not always the path to a better morrow, though we are tired of the inhuman treatment and racial abuse. After the lawyers representing the system have shown there was no legal reason to uphold racial profiling, we became even more convinced that the illegal practice must come to an end, and the burden is on you to illustrate the spirit of the law speaks louder than hatred, that commonsense surpasses bigotry every time in a true democracy. You all know the degree of the injustice. The piercing pain is excruciating. Where are your leaderships and compassion? Do not deny yourselves your humanity as a means to ascertain the extinction of ours. We deserve better from you.
Keep in mind that we have been doing our best to live life with respect and dignity even though our rights have been trampled upon. We held our breath to breathe deeply when we could explode with rage. We trust in the spirit of the law, and we implore you to apply its principles to the best of your abilities. Injustice can never be justified in a true system of law. Canada is better than the land of injustice that we have become quite too familiar with. So, this form of oppression needs to be rectified. Blacks in Canada need more than a simple apology. Racial profiling is a human rights issue. Its effect is colossal and devastating. The scars are all over our bodies. How do you expect the youths to grow health and happy with shredded spirit and dreaded hope?Honorable Prime Ministers and Mayor, we do not doubt your concern and sensitivity. In fact, we are all humans, and for that reason we seek your attention to honor our rights and humanity. We deserve to receive better treatments, and we put our faith in your abilities to hear our pleas and to act upon our requests. Change is indispensable. We do not shun your desire to change our fate and to make the sun shine brighter in our eyes. Our children deserve a better environment and a more welcoming country that they can feel proud and honored to represent and to contribute to as reasonable human beings. The law is in your hands. You hold the power to sway mountains and to move rivers in order to make ways for a more prosperous future to sparkle from our eyes. We simply think you are moving at a pace that will make no difference to the current generation, and we cannot afford to bury more of our children either today, tomorrow, or later on. One more is undoubtedly one too many to bury too early. We just bring our agony to your attention before we stand with wreaths in our hands to honor the dead as it is always essential to utter our proper farewell. Anyway, let’s be clear. Being different does not provide the reason to ignore the hurt and suffering of our community. More than four hundred years of tumult are enough.
Now, we need a break. There will never be ample prisons to cage all of us. Some may choose death over the lonely cells. Oppression exists only until the oppressed concede to be subjugated. Once the tide has changed, be assured your cages will be too small and inadequate to hold a handful of black youths. Humans always demand their freedom when injustice has gone beyond their level of tolerance. We all have the right to life. Our self-determination is not even recognized within your institutions since exclusion is what we have been facing at the door. Discrimination defines our fate. We are not even permitted to cross the threshold of opportunity in order to compete for a better morrow. This is heart-wrenching in this day and age. Countless are grieving each day about a beating one, a murdered one, and an abused one. The numbers multiply each year while our protests are ignored, treated like the chants of enemy combatants in a war zone. Montreal-North is the Gaza Strip in the eyes of our youths. We need to feel deserving of the flag we represent abroad and the one we carry at home. It is not a small venture to be Canadian and to hold the banner of the land with dignity and gratitude. Do we also need to a knee in order for our torment to be recognized and addressed properly? No one can be either partially patriotic or somewhat traitorous. The heart must be whole at all times, and we prove to be loyal to our cause incessantly. Make it possible to be a part of something that is bigger than the self. Every child needs a sense of belonging, and you all have the power to make this far fetched dream become a reality. As you stand before the whole nation to open your hearts and to deliver your promises, allow the world to become fully acquainted with what it means to be Canadian. We all belong unquestionably under the same roof, and we have to manage our destiny in unity. Though we have been absent from the history books, we never turn our backs on this nation. Our contributions from music, sports, arts, science, and medicine are countless. Heed our great past, and honor the promises of a future that can enrich the land and bring multitude together as the Toronto Raptors is able to demonstrate with talents and dedication to the game.
Do not forget while Islamophobia is unacceptable in every eye, negro phobia has been ingrained in the mainstream culture as if our exclusion was something utterly normal to establish in every institution whether it is public or private. We are denied the right to grow and to prosper in the system every time we get up to make more efforts to rise above the fray. Our best is always banned at the entrance. Sadly, we have to remain far while watching opportunities going by. Still, we continue to strive harder in order to seize every chance that we get in order to make it to the top. We are not afraid to endeavor and to sacrifice our all for a more brilliant time or future in society. We came from far. We broke the physical chains of slavery, and we are here today to ask for one single thing, our freedom. That proves the quality of our characters and the radiance of our humanity. Have the courage to look in the eyes of a black child and tell that infant all the reasons you believe the police are right for killing their brothers and sisters. Why their fathers are in prisons for nothing and mothers are crawling in the fierce lines of poverty? Tell that innocent entity all the reasons you think racial profiling is legal, and police officers are simply upholding the law while applying its principles in the interest of the whole nation. Explain on what ground our humanity has been denied us for over five centuries. We do not hold the rights to speak on your behalf. You said it once. Again, we hope to see you correct the wrong. Racial profiling is inhuman. If all men are created equal, equality has evaded us from the moment the chapters in our constitution have been placed on shelves that have been collecting dust for more than fifteen score years. Why these laws do not apply to us? By nature, they are all inalienable rights to life and the pursuit of happiness. We want them to be relevant to us as well. We are all humans, aren’t we? Remember our honorable leaders. Slaves were not happy in their abject conditions, although some are still claiming the inexplicable to justify the unjustified in the public. In addition, we are not happy in this current state. Imagine your ancestors, raped grandmothers, mothers and fathers, you and your children facing the same racial violence, police abuse, and social hostility while simply going to earn a better life for your family and to obtain enough to pay taxes as all respectable citizens in the land. Imagine your children waking up everyday with guns drawn in their faces to confront the officers who are hired to protect them and to safeguard their rights in society. At the same time, you come to realize the violence is free and intended to destroy your home and to decimate your roots from the land. How would you feel if your blood is facing extinction simply because of your color? Extremism ought to be outlawed regardless who is propagating bigotry to disrupt the system. The overseers’ approach to terrify black people was terminated when slavery, chattel slavery, was abolished in the Southern United States. The imprisonment process is the unrecognized form of social genocide that has to be noticed and corrected as soon as possible. The worse is police brutality is based on no other reason than the youths’ skin color. Imagine you, your children, and community are obliged to endure hardship under these conditions. Please tell me one reason out of every logical perspective that racial profiling and systemic racism are justified and must be upheld to maintain order and to assure the concept of good governance is held to its strictest aspect. If you all can prove the contrary to our grief and the agony that are the cause of our pain and distress, do not hold back. We deserve our punishment. No law shall be disregarded without any probable cause, and the police never have a sustainable reason to harass, abuse, and arrest our youths in the streets. The process to dehumanize a person does not make the same individual a criminal. In truth, the police criminalize the community in order to justify the decriminalization stages as racial profiling becomes more and more a routine to perpetrate the same injustice endlessly. We are tired. Simply, beware! Do not criminalize our children in the process to deprive them of their rights. Without a doubt, I will willfully bow to accept the current state as my fate until collectively we decide to change our behavior. If we are what the police claim, we must be punished and expelled from society. I will obediently obey your order, and I will follow the rules to ascertain everyone that peace is the norm. There is nothing wrong with following the rules of the land. Only together, we can grow. Otherwise, life is not even worthy of my grandeur and capacity as a man to live among you. Imagine I am not the only one who feels just like this within. Many are feeling just the same in their hearts at this moment. We do not want to see another black youth lying motionless on the ground, and the only reason for his murder is his skin color. Imagine the torment for a family and the suffering for a community. I do not deserve to live in such a state. I was not born on my knees, and I refuse to die on my knees. It makes no sense to bear my inhumanity until I am put six feet under. The grave might be a better refuge than the comfort this land can afford me at this moment. Peace is not possible until my people are free and racial profiling is outlawed completely from the system. I understand there is a price for everything. To be free has a cost, and I am willing to pay the price on behalf of my race. I want nothing less than their humanity, color, and existence to be recognized and respected. I want the same level of peace and unity that we all deserve to cherish until the last of our day.
Dear leaders, I do not think this is impossible for you to do. You have the authority of the people to act in a rational way. Be the peace makers. Never say, “I regret, and it’s too late to change the hands of time.” The key to liberty, meaning living free of persecution and racial abuse, is in your hands. The cost of inaction is worse than to throw away the key. I concede. How would you all feel in that moment, Honorable Prime Ministers and Mayor? Imagine your sons and daughters never returned home simply because they are a color that is not accepted and appreciated in society. In 2016, Mr. Trudeau had unambiguously stated Canadian prisons were over-populated with black youths, and that indicates he understood the over-representation of black youths in prisons was the result of racial profiling and systemic racism. Young black men are targeted as criminals more than any other ethnic groups in Canada. In fact, the problem is in the approach of policing, and it cannot be explained otherwise. Every black youth that is racially profiled and abused is a slap in the face to every colored person in this land, and that also indicates the deniable of all black contributions to the foundation of this country and the evolution of its cultures and economic prosperity. How may you all remain silent while a segment of society is being denied of its humanity and the right to life? You all stand here with the authority to act since you vowed to embody justice and to represent the beauty of the constitution and the splendor of the law. Where have you all found the courage to look at a black child with such indifference and the audacity to deny that same innocent person a brighter future? I demand you all to step back and to consider your implicit consent to centuries of exclusion, slavery, cultural genocide, and human rights abuses. Though you may not do more, understand by putting an end to racial profiling that you have done enough to rise on the pedestal of history. The urgency of time has called upon you to answer the bell of history. There is a time for each individual to transcend the self, and my honorable leaders, Prime Ministers and Mayor, this time is your time. History is waiting impatiently on you.
Thank you for your kindness and unconditional attention, Prime Ministers and Mayor. With honor, gratitude, and great respect, I wrote these words to appeal to your rationality and commonsense. Nothing should be used to justify the unjustifiable. Racial profiling is absurd, and it must be viewed as the most despicable approach to policing in society. May your efforts and undertaking be fruitful and beneficial to all! Thank you from the bottom of my heart and on behalf of every black child that deserves a better future in this country.
Yours sincerely Jerry Alexandre
SOON IT WILL BE COOL TO GRADUATE FROM CANNABIS SCHOOL Written by Yvonne Sam
Sequential to Canada’s legalization of cannabis in October 2018, the industry has been steadily burgeoning. Statistics Canada claims that $5.7 billion has been spent on cannabis alone, making it a bigger sector than alcohol or tobacco. The majority of Canada’s 115 licensed weed producers reside in Ontario and British Colombia —with an additional 588+ applicants awaiting approval.
However, the challenge now being faced is that of finding experienced workers and cultivators in this relatively new industry. On a well-known job posting site Indeed.ca., there are more than 500 full time jobs which run the gamut from basic entry level positions such as bud trimmer, to retail-store workers to executive roles, including director of international expansion and construction for Canada’s largest cannabis company, Canopy Growth. https://ca.indeed.com/Marijuana-jobs
The Director of Cannabis Council of Canada (C3), Allan Rewak, pointed out that the most crucial position to fill is that of master grower, to oversee all aspects of cultivation. The industry could add up to 150,000 jobs over the next several years, as reported by an estimate from Deloitte one of the Big Four accounting firms and largest professional services networks by revenue and number of professionals. According to an expert the number of jobs available is “legion” and that “it’s a great time to come into this new marketplace”. https://www.ctvnews.ca/business/pot-jobs-are-legion-but-canadian-cannabis-companies-struggling-to-find-workers-1.4087035.
There is also a litany of jobs that require even more specialized training, including attorneys, botanists, marketing professionals and electricians, to handle the unusual demands of the industry. Then, there are the jobs exclusive to cannabis, from grow masters and bud trimmers to master extractors. Two of the most in-demand jobs are dispensary manager and bud tender, roles that require extensive knowledge of the industry.
It is now blatantly apparent that the Canadian government carefully considered their plan to legalize cannabis in the land. They were certainly not joking about the fiscal benefits of legalized weed smoking, but while the preaching had been done, the same could not be said about the teaching. Plainly put a curriculum had to be designed on short order. From where would reputable teachers be found, seeing that marijuana had not been legal prior to October 1, hence experts would have gained their wisdom/experience while dealing with an illegal substance.
Training would be needed for the workers– growers, sellers, store managers; retail clerks etc. So, in response to the industry demands, Canada’s post-secondary institutions have introduced cannabis-centric education programs to train the next generation of industry leaders. “We haven’t built the perfect cannabis worker yet and we’re doing that together,” Rewak said. https://www.theloop.ca/ctvnews/pot-jobs-are-legion-but-canadian-cannabis-companies-struggling-to-find-workers
In September 2018, Niagara College Canada launched what is now the country’s first post- secondary credential in cannabis production, preparing successful students for careers in Canada’s rapidly expanding industry. The program is organized around three core fundamentals: large-scale crop cultivation, legal issues, and business fundamentals. Twenty four students (including PhD candidates, scientists and engineers) who made up the first batch selected from 300 applicants will receive hands-on training in the biology and cultural practices of cannabis production including plant nutrition, environment, lighting, climate control, pest control, and cultivar selection.
At least 11 post-secondary institutions in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Nova Scotia and Montreal, have followed suit and added cannabis programs to their curriculae. More than six colleges offer diplomas in cannabis cultivation, and a few universities have introduced courses in cannabis business and law. These include Niagara College, Durham College, Vancouver’s Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Community College of New Brunswick, Loyalist College in Belleville, Ontario, University of Ottawa, St. Francis Xavier University, Ryerson, College of the Rockies in Cranbrook, British Colombia, Olds College, Alberta, and prestigious McGill University in Montreal, Quebec. Currently Mc Gill University is developing a degree in cannabis, which it will unveil in 2020. The Canadian program will prepare graduates to work at the master grower or management level of the industry. Students will learn about cannabis genetics and the legalities of the industry, along with how to optimize growing conditions for the plant.
In the period prior to graduation, companies are looking for workers who have dealt with other highly regulated industries such as tobacco or alcohol. “Weed is safer but we need those people with skill sets and cautious points to come onto our teams,” C3 director Rewak said, adding that demand is high for anyone with marketing or pharmaceutical experience.
Interest in cannabis is also waxing among our U. S neighbors. According to Leafly, the largest cannabis information resource in the world, as of March 2019 legal cannabis has created 211,000 fulltime jobs in America. The Bureau of Labour Statistics ignores all jobs related to the industry, as cannabis remains federally illegal. https://www.leafly.ca/news/industry/legal-cannabis-jobs-report-2019. In fact according to Leafly.com, by 2020, cannabis will have a job creation rate of 110%. By whom are these jobs being filled? They are being filled more and more by graduates from colleges cropping up all across the U.S. Legal cannabis is currently the greatest job creation machine in America. https://www.leafly.ca/news/industry/most-in-demand-jobs-careers-in-cannabis-industry-by-city.
Students from around the country can now enroll in a cannabis-centric medicinal chemistry program at Northern Michigan University which has grown to 230 students in just two years. The program provides a background in botany and analytical chemistry, following which students choose either an entrepreneurial or bioanalytical track. Graduates are expected, in part, to staff testing labs as part of the state’s newly legal cannabis market. Last fall, the University of California, debuted a graduate- level course, “Cannabis sativa: The Plant and its Impact on People.” The plant sciences class examines the health effects, risks and medical benefits of cannabis. https://www.marketwatch.com/story/northern-michigan-university-is-now-offering-a-degree-in-marijuana-2019-03-04. The nursing field has also caught fire (all puns intended) in so much that the term cannabis nursing is now a recognized discipline.
It can be clearly seen that Canada’s legalization of the green has taken learning and earning to a totally new level. It should not be forgotten that despite the seeming booming economy, the momentous step is still in its embryonic stage, with some areas requiring further ironing out.
The trajectory may soon change, for coming up on the sidelines are a slew of large licensed producers that have already began investing in synthetic and biosynthetic cannabinoid companies. The idea is relatively simple — instead of extracting cannabinoids from a cannabis plant to be put into oils, drinks, food, medicines and beauty products, compounds like CBD and THC can be created in a lab using either organic hosts like yeast and sugar (to create biosynthetic cannabinoids), or petroleum-based industrial chemicals that mimic the chemical structure of a cannabinoid (synthetic cannabinoids). https://business.financialpost.com/cannabis/scientists-racing-to-create-lab-grown-synthetic-cannabinoids-but-cannabis-plant-not-obsolete
So as Canadians caught in the green rush head back to school, the industry must be carefully monitored as innovation in education may just be the catalyst for national ruination. In this boom there is lots of room, remember however that in every boom there are winners and losers and extra learning is no guarantee for increased earning. In the Klondike Gold Rush of 1896 and the California Gold Rush of the mid 1800’s, the smaller man implicitly maintained the upper hand.
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