Robert Sutherland

Robert Sutherland (1830–1878), a native of Jamaica, was the first known graduate of colour at a Canadian university, and the first Black man to study law in British North America. A graduate of Queen's University. Sutherland qualified to practise law in Ontario under the then prevailing system of apprenticeship and examination. He studied at Osgoode Law School and practisid law for 20 years in Walkerton, Ontario. Upon his death in 1878, Sutherland's left a large bequest (his entire estate of $12,000) to Queen's University, roughly equivalent to the institution's annual operating budget. This donation was the largest the school had ever received, saving it from financial catastrophe in a banking crisis.

Memorials at Queen's University=

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.

The City of Kingston erected a plaque to Sutherland's memory in the front foyer of Grant Hall in 1974, when George Speal (Comm '54) was Mayor.

In January 1997, the Alma Mater Society of Queen's University established the AMS Robert Sutherland Task Force (RSTF) to "seek a space on campus which would be appropriate to recognize the contributions of Robert Sutherland, the university's first major benefactor and first Black graduate." The RSTF (Greg Frankson, Annette Paul, Kevin Ashby, Donna Wallen, Viniyini Murty, Kiké Roach and Rosalie Griffith) made recommendations that led to several new memorials.

The Robert Sutherland Visitorship was established by the John Deutsch University Centre Council in 1997, with the express purpose of bringing to Queen's University a noted speaker each year with expertise in the areas of equity, community diversity and race relations.

Visitors have included: Esmerelda Thornhill, academic and Black Canadian historian; Enid Lee, international consultant; Ken Wiwa, journalist and author; Patricia McFadden, activist; Faith Nolan, singer and songwriter; William Commanda, elder, and Romola Trebilcock; George Elliott Clarke, poet and author; Afua Cooper, dub poet and author; and Lawrence Hill, novelist.

...
Wikipedia