Page 4 - My FlipBook
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Chapter One
WHO WAS
VIOLA DESMOND?
iola Desmond was a brave Black Canadian woman. She made
a choice that inspired others to take a stand against racial
Vsegregation in Nova Scotia.
Viola was born on July 6, 1914 in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She had
nine siblings, including her youngest sister, Wanda Robson. Her
father was James Albert Davis, and her mother was Gwendolyn
Irene Davis.
The Davis family had lived in Halifax for generations and were
well known in the Black community. James Albert Davis was a
barber like the other men in his family. He worked at the family-
owned business, Davis Barber Shop. At the time, being a barber
was one of the few jobs a Black man could have. White people
would not cut Black people’s hair, so Black barbers would do it.
Viola opened her own beauty salon called Vi’s Studio of Beauty
Culture in 1937.
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