Deemed Unsuitable: Blacks from Oklahoma Move to the Canadian Prairies in Search of Equality in the Early 20th Century Only to Find Racism in their New Home

In this profoundly revealing work, R. Bruce Shepard chronicles the little-known journey of African-American settlers from Oklahoma who relocated to Canada’s prairie provinces in the early 1900s, hoping for a new start free of Jim Crow oppression. Instead, they encountered racism and exclusion even in their “promised land.”

Shepard blends personal accounts, archival research, and social history to expose how Canadian ideals of tolerance often masked deep-rooted prejudice. A must-read for scholars of migration, Black Canadian history, and anyone curious about the complexities of race, identity, and belonging. 

Condition: Very Good