Robert Sutherland Visitorship
The Robert Sutherland Visitorship was established by the John Deutsch University Centre Council in 1997 on the recommendation of the Robert Sutherland Task Force. The Task Force recommended:"That the John Deutsch University Centre establish the Robert Sutherland Visitorship, with the express purpose of bringing to campus a noted speaker each year with expertise in the areas of equity, community diversity and race relations. The visitorship would receive seed funding from the JDUC programs budget. There also exists the possibility that the speaker could deliver his/her keynote address in the Robert Sutherland space." (Source: Task Force Submission to the John Deutsch University Centre Council, 28 August 1997).Currently funded through the JDUC, the Visitorship Committee has brought a number of distinguished visitors to the campus since 1998.Visitors
The Committee is currently working on a shortlist potential visitors for 2009. Past visitors have included:
1998 - Dr. Esmeralda Thornhill
Faculty of Law, Dalhousie University. Inaugural Public Lecture: "Lessons for Now: Life and Times of Robert Sutherland"2000 - Enid Lee
International consultant - public speaker, facilitator, writer and community builder - on language, culture and race as they relate to equity in education and organization development. Public Lecture: "Fanning the Flames for Equity in Hard Times: A Conversation for Black History Month"2001 - Ken Wiwa
Journalist and Author, In the Shadow of a Saint. Public Lecture: "In the Shadow of a Saint: Memory, Community and the Quest for Social Justice"2002 - Dr. Patricia McFadden
Sociologist, activist, writer and publisher and recipient of the Hellman/Hammet Human Rights Prize in 1999. Public Lecture: "Becoming Post Colonial: African Women Change the Meaning of Citizenship"2003 - Faith Nolan
Singer, songwriter and activist. Public Lecture: "Talking and Singing 'bout the Jailhouse Blues: Challenging the Growth of the Prison Industrial Complex"2004 - William Commanda and Romola Trebilcock
William Commanda, Elder, Romola Trebilcock, Co-ordinator, Circle of All Nations. Public Lecture: "A Circle of All Nations - A Culture of Peace"2005 - Dr. George Elliott Clarke
Poet, playwright, screenwriter, author. Public Lecture: "Towards a Pedagogy of African-Canadian Literature"2006 - Dr. Afua Cooper
Dub poet, sociologist, and historian. Dr. Cooper holds a Ph.D. in African-Canadian history with specialties in slavery and abolition. Her book, The Hanging of Angélique: The Untold Story of Canadian Slavery and the Burning of Old Montréal, was short-listed for the 2006 Governor General's Literary Awards (Nonfiction). Public Lecture: "Acts of Rebellions: Black Women and Men Engage Slavery in Upper Canada"2008 - Lawrence Hill
Lawrence Hill is the bestselling author of seven books, including two published in Canada and internationally in 2007: The Book of Negroes (a novel) and The Deserter's Tale: the Story of an Ordinary Soldier Who Walked Away from the War in Iraq.Questions regarding the Robert Sutherland Visitorship should be referred to the JDUC General Office or any member of the Visitorship Committee.
About Robert Sutherland
An outstanding scholar and citizen, the first person of African heritage to graduate from the University, and its first major benefactor upon his death in 1878, Robert Sutherland's indomitable spirit continues to inspire all who come to know of his legacy.Profile written by Greg Frankson (Con-Ed '97), who was AMS President in 1996-97 and the chair of the Robert Sutherland Task Force, published in Diatribe Magazine, Volume 1, 2001:
In 1852 a young man of considerable import to the history of this institution graduated from Queen's College. His name was Robert Sutherland, a native of Jamaica and the first known university graduate of African descent in Canada.In an age when slavery was still prevalent in the American South, Mr. Sutherland came to Canada and excelled at Queen's. During his time here, he earned 14 academic prizes, including an award in Latin voted upon by his peers. He also was an excellent debater and served as treasurer of the Dialectic Society, now known as the Queen's Debating Union.
After graduation, he went on to Osgoode and a distinguished career as the first Black person called to the bar of the Law Society of Upper Canada.
His practice would take him to Berlin (now Kitchener) and eventually to Walkerton, where he was a respected member of the community and even served briefly as reeve of the town.
Upon his untimely death in 1878, he left his entire net worth, approximately $12,000, to the University. As this was a significant sum in those days, his bequeath made him Queen's first major benefactor. The university used the gift to begin a fundraising campaign that helped it to maintain its independence. The University of Toronto was threatening to annex Queen's at that time.
In appreciation, Principal Grant had a headstone placed on Mr. Sutherland's grave in Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Toronto at the university's expense. Despite his remarkable life and generous bequeath, Robert Sutherland soon faded from the consciousness of our institutional memory.
Much later, in the 1980s, a group of student activists rediscovered the story of Robert Sutherland and began to agitate for the University to recognize his contributions on our campus.
Until 1998 there was nothing named on this campus after Mr. Sutherland, nor was there a plaque of remembrance mounted anywhere on campus at the University's expense. A plaque paid for by the city in Grant Hall was the only hint to his significance in Queen's history.
The students began to see movement from the University in the 1990s, when I was fortunate enough to be elected AMS President and raise the issue directly with the administration. In the winter of 1996, the Robert Sutherland Task Force began a two-year negotiation with the University on behalf of the students of Queen's. After a series of recommendations and discussions, the Board of Trustees agreed to name the former Billiards Rooms in the JDUC in Sutherland's honour.
Principal Leggett officially dedicated the room in March of 1998. The guest speaker was the first Sutherland Visitor, Dr. Esmerelda Thornhill, the James Robinson Johnston Chair in Black Canadian Studies at Dalhousie University.
Some of the work of the Task Force is not yet complete. The Sutherland Room is intended to be a cultural space for the benefit of the entire Queen's community. It is meant to have a display mounted that will showcase the achievements of ethnic and racial minorities in the history of Queen's. It is to be decorated in a fashion that speaks to its cultural purpose.
Finally, it was intended to be a place where people could come together and appreciate the accomplishments of such an important figure in the history of our school and our country. During the 150th anniversary of his graduation from Queen's, let us not forget the accomplishments of Robert Sutherland. May the students of Queen's ensure his legacy lives on and that the contributions of people of colour are never again forgotten.
Additional tributes to Robert Sutherland include:
The Robert Sutherland Memorial Entrance Bursary
Established by the Afro-Caribe Community Foundation of Kingston and District with donations from friends and colleagues of the Foundation. Awarded to a student entering any undergraduate program at Queen's University on the basis of financial need, good academic standing, and involvement in and/or contribution to the African or Caribbean communities in Canada. Applicants must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada. For more information, please contact Queen's University Student Awards.The Robert Sutherland Prize
In addition to the Visitorship, a prize was established in honour of Robert Sutherland. The citation reads:Presented annually by the Alma Mater Society to a graduating and self-defined student of colour who has shown leadership and initiative at Queen's, most specifically in the area of encouraging and fostering diversity on campus.Recipients of the prize:1997-98 - Donna Wallen
1998-99 - Cherilyn Scobie
1999-00 - Ray Dziet
2001-02 - Amma Bonsu
2002-03 - Jonathan Daly
2005-06 - Jacqueline Kiggundu
2006-07 - Tka Pinnock
For more information, please contact Queen's University Alma Mater Society.
The Robert Sutherland Room
In October, 1997, the Queen's University Board of Trustees confirmed the John Deutsch University Council recommendation to name:Room 240, John Deutsch University Centre, in memory of Robert Sutherland, in recognition of his generous support of Queen’s through a large estate gift, the first major bequest received by the University.The room is available for meetings, lectures, performances and the like, and houses a dedication plaque along with the Robert Sutherland Prize award board.
Links
The Legacy of Slavery in Canada Conference - Embracing our Past - Envisioning our Future, November 2007, Queen's University.
Need help???Looking for someone who isn't listed here? Try using the Queen's Website People search. found on the Queen's main page.