On Account of Darkness: Shining Light on Race and Sport - Paperback

by Ian Kennedy (Author)

For marginalized athletes past and present, achievement can bring celebrity without equality and recognition without opportunity.

In many ways, Ontario's Chatham-Kent region is a microcosm of Canadian multiculturalism. As a terminus of the Underground Railroad, it has long been home to a large Black community Walpole Island and Delaware First Nations are nearby and many interned Japanese Canadians worked on local farms during World War II. The history of sport in the region is emblematic of the challenges that have confronted generations of non-white athletes nationwide. Each chapter uses the story of a local athlete--some famous, others more obscure--to illuminate one aspect of the evolving relationship between race and sport in North America. Combining tales of personal triumph with sports history and social commentary, On Account of Darkness examines systemic racism and ambivalent attitudes that persist to this day.

Fall 2022 Young Adult Selection - Top Grade: Canlit for the Classroom

Author Biography

A resident of Erie Beach, Ontario, Ian Kennedy is an educator and journalist with a passion for sport and storytelling. In 2011, he founded CKSN (Chatham-Kent Sports Network), an online news outlet covering both amateur and professional athletes. His reporting has been featured on radio, in newspapers and publications that include The Hockey News, Yahoo Sports and Outdoor Canada magazine. He holds degrees in Kinesiology and Education from the University of Western Ontario.