Fallen Black Canadians in uniform

Remembrance dog tags

Aim

To increase youth awareness of the contributions and sacrifices of Black Canadians in the military over the years, by researching a fallen service member.

Target Audience

This activity is suitable for ages 12 to 18.

Objectives

Through this activity, youth will:

• learn that many Black Canadians have proudly served in the armed forces over the years.
• explore the challenges that some Black members of the military faced because of racism and discrimination.
• use online research skills to discover the stories of Black Canadian military members who died as a result of their service.

Activity sequence

• Introductory discussion
• Research and preparation
• Presentations
• Wrap-up discussion
• Optional extension activities

Materials

• Video: Black Canadian Fallen (Black Canadian Veterans.com)
• Black Canadians in uniform - a proud tradition (Veterans Affairs Canada)
• Handout: Remembrance dog tags for  Fallen Black Canadians in uniform (PDF)
• Website: Canadian Virtual War Memorial
• Poem: A Soldier’s Farewell

Introductory discussion

Show the "Fallen" video made by Black Canadian Veterans. This short clip presents a selection of Black Canadians who served in the military and died in service over the years.

Tell your students that they will use remembrance dog tags featuring the pictures of Black Canadians who served and died in military service.

For deeper learning

To help your students gain an overview of the sacrifices and achievements of Black Canadians, ask them to explore the web feature Black Canadians in uniform - a proud tradition.

Students can read independently or you can divide them into expert groups to examine sections of the feature, which also includes links to Black Canadian Veteran profiles, memorials and a photo gallery.

You may ask a few comprehension questions regarding the web feature, such as:

• The story of Black Canadians in uniform is not very well known. Why do you think that is?
• Why do you think young Black Canadians were eager to serve their country during the First World War and the Second World War, despite the prejudiced attitudes of many of the people in charge of military enlistment?

What is a military dog tag?

Ask students if they know what a military dog tag is. Have they ever seen one?

A dog tag is a piece of formal identification military personnel must wear while on duty. It is used to identify them if they die or are wounded while on the job.

The term dog tag comes from its similarity to the tags used to identify dogs. Officially, it is called an identity disc or ID tag. The tag bears key information about the person wearing it. This includes their name, rank, service number and blood type. It also includes religion, so the appropriate clergy person is called in case of injury or death.

Canadian troops have worn these tags since the First World War. Canadian identification tags are now breakable into two pieces. Should a person die, one piece stays with the deceased and the Department of National Defence keeps the other piece of the tag. 

Click on these links to see images of some military dog tags:

• First World War:
• Percy Jones
• Harold Clifford Kerr
• Alexander Baikie Mowat
• Second World War:
• Alvin Maxmillian Bunnage
• Athol Lorne Lunan
• Melvin Silas Laughren

Explain to students that remembrance dog tags help us put a face on remembrance. The tags they will look up represent just a small sample of the many thousands of Black Canadians who have bravely served across Canada’s military history.

Did you know?

Creating a complete list of every Black Canadian who has served or died in the Canadian military is not possible. Canadian enlistment papers for the First and Second World War did not specifically ask the ethnicity of those who signed up to serve. As part of the medical examination during intake, a medical officer would make notes about the person's physical appearance, including things like height, weight, hair and eye colour as well as their complexion. These descriptions were not standardized, however, and cannot be used on their own to determine race.

Research and preparation

Using card stock paper, print the remembrance dog tags of Fallen Black Canadians in uniform (PDF).

• Cut out each dog tag. Laminate them if you would like to reuse them.
• Punch two holes in each of the dog tags and insert a piece of string or a metal chain through the holes.
• Hand out the dog tags.
• Have students research the individuals using the Canadian Virtual War Memorial. Ask students to add the service number and age of the individual to the dog tag.
• Encourage students to search online for more information about the person on their dog tag. They can enrich their presentations with their findings, such as information about the person’s hometown, where they enlisted, the places they served, the circumstance of their death and where the person is buried.

Researching tips

• The Canadian Virtual War Memorial is a registry of more than 120,000 Canadians and Newfoundlanders who served and died for their country. It contains digitized photographs and personal memorabilia. It honours and remembers those who served and died in military uniform.
• If the student is researching an individual who died during the First World War, suggest they use Library and Archives Canada’s Personnel Records of the First World War online database. The service records of all First World War personnel are available there to download.
• If the student is researching an individual who died during the Second World War, suggest they use the Library and Archives Canada’s Service Files of the Second World War - War Dead, 1939-1947 online database. You can also encourage students to click on “How to obtain copies or consult a file” from the left-hand side menu and follow the instructions noted for Option #1, which will redirect them to the Ancestry.ca website. The service records of all Second World War personnel who died in service are available here to download. You and your students can create free accounts on Ancestry.ca. Although there are a few important steps to follow before accessing a military file, with some patience you will be able to access a wealth of information on the person.
• Researching an individual who died after the Second World War is sometimes challenging. Students may find online searches for relevant publicly-available information, such as newspaper websites, their best approach. Official sources of personal information, like Library and Archives Canada, are generally not accessible due to privacy legislation. A minimum number of years must have passed before their military records are made public.

Presentations

Ask each student to present information on the person they researched. This can be done as a class activity or in smaller groups.

Younger students may simply introduce their fallen service member and share just the information they gathered to complete the dog tag, like the province or military branch. Older students could be asked to prepare a slide for a larger presentation. They could include details about their service member's hometown or family, what conflict they served in and additional photos or newspaper clippings they collected. The finished slide show could be played at your school's remembrance ceremony.

Wrap-up discussion

Lead a discussion on the remembrance dog tag activity. Explore questions like:

• What are actions we can take to better recognize Black Canadians who served and died in service?
• February is Black History Month in Canada. Why is it important to have a period of time dedicated to highlighting the contributions of Black Canadians to Canadian society and history?
• Canada’s military history reflects Canada’s history. Those who served and continue to serve represent people from all walks of life, including different social, ethnic and cultural backgrounds. What other underrepresented groups have made contributions to Canadian military history?
• How can we thank Black Canadians for their military service?

End the lesson by sharing the poem A Soldier’s Farewell by Owen Rowe. Owen emigrated to Canada from Barbados in 1942. He served in the Canadian Army and Air Force during the Second World War, achieving the rank of Pilot and Flying Officer. You can share the poem in writing or watch this video of Owen Rowe reading his poem.

Discuss the emotions conveyed in the poem. Focus on the passage:

“Land of my birth, So filled with mirth;
I go - and I may not return”

What does the author meant by I may not return?

Remind students that all of the people on their dog tags left their regular lives behind to travel far away and put their lives on the line. None of them returned home.

Do you think it’s important that the current generation learn about them and commemorate their sacrifice? Please explain.

Optional extension activities

If use of social media is permitted in your class, share the Black Canadian Veterans Stories website, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube pages with students. These resources contain a wealth of information and are updated regularly.

To further students’ learning and awareness, you can also visit websites such as:

• Black Canadians and Canada’s Military (Canadian War Museum)
• Ten Black Canadians in the Armed Forces (Canadian Encyclopedia)
• Black History Month feature (Canadian Heritage)

These materials were developed with gracious support from Kathy Grant and Black Canadian Veterans Stories.