A largely untold chapter of North American civil rights history is taking center stage with the premiere of True North: Canadian Myths and Black Power, a new documentary debuting on PBS's Independent Lens. Directed by Michèle Stephenson, the film examines the history of anti-Black racism in Canada and the role Montreal played in the global Black Power movement during the late 1960s.

Women supporters gathered outside the courtroom during the Sir George Williams protest trials. (copyright, La Presse)

 

Premiering July 6, the documentary is also available for streaming through the PBS app and the PBS Documentaries YouTube Channel. Through rarely seen archival footage and firsthand accounts from Black students and activists, the film chronicles the political activism that emerged in Montreal during a period of global social upheaval.

Set against the backdrop of the Vietnam War, decolonization movements across Africa, and revolutionary activity throughout the Caribbean, True Northexplores how Black students from Jamaica, Haiti, Trinidad, and other parts of Canada united with Montreal's established Black community to challenge racism, colonialism, and inequality.

The documentary focuses on the events leading to the 1969 Sir George Williams Affair, one of Canada's most significant student protests. Sparked by allegations of racial discrimination involving a white faculty member, more than 400 students and activists occupied the university's computer center in protest. The demonstration ended with a forceful response from Canadian authorities and police, becoming a defining moment in Canada's civil rights history.

Poet and activist Ted Joans at the Congress of Black Writers in Montreal, Canada, 1968. (Copyright, La Presse)

 

The film also revisits the Congress of Black Writers, held at McGill University in October 1968. Considered the largest Black Power conference held outside the United States, the gathering brought together influential thinkers and activists from across the Black diaspora to discuss liberation movements and the meaning of Black Power.

Among those who participated were Stokely Carmichael, Alvin Poussaint, James Forman, and C. L. R. James. The conference helped inspire many of the Black student leaders involved in the Sir George Williams Affair.

Produced by Leslie Norville, the documentary blends personal narratives with historical analysis to examine how the events in Montreal influenced broader movements for racial justice and Black liberation across the Americas.

The project received critical funding from Black Public Media. Stephenson, whose previous documentary Going to Mars won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, continues her work exploring stories centered on the experiences of people of African descent. Norville is an Emmy Award-winning producer whose recent projects include The First Wave and the upcoming series Black Life: Untold Stories.

True North: Canadian Myths and Black Power offers historical context to contemporary conversations about racial justice, student activism, and the international dimensions of the Black freedom movement, highlighting Canada's often-overlooked place in that history.