In 1993, Jean Augustine was the first Black Canadian woman elected to Canada’s parliament.
She was born in Grenada where she excelled as a student and became a teacher. But the pay was low and she started looking for opportunities in Canada. In 1960 she arrived in Canada as a nanny. After working as a nanny for a year she went to Toronto’s Teachers’ College and earned a teaching certificate.
Subsequently she taught and volunteered with immigrant groups to improve the lives of immigrant women. In order to advance her teaching prospects she went to the University of Toronto where she earned a BA (Hons) and later a Master of Education degree. She continued teaching later becoming a vice principal and eventually principal in the Toronto District Catholic Schoolboard.
In 1995 Augustine put a motion before Parliament to recognize February as Black History Month. The motion passed unanimously in December 1995 and February was proclaimed Black History Month across Canada.
In 2002 Augustine was appointed Secretary of State for Multiculturalism and Status of Women on May 26, 2002 making her the first Black Woman to achieve a cabinet post on parliament.
After achieving a multitude of successes in Parliament Augustine retired from politics but continued to work her work in advocacy. In 2007 she was appointed as Ontario’s first Fairness Commissioner. The Office of the Fairness Commissioner (OFC) ensures that qualified foreign-trained professionals (e.g., in medicine, teaching) can get the required licences to practise in the province.
During Augustine’s tenure, the OFC influenced hundreds of improvements made to licencing procedures in Ontario — improvements that made the process easier to navigate, more transparent and impartial. After eight years at the helm of OFC, Augustine retired in March 2015.