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© BOPINION wer | Thursday, February 23, 2023 | & MANY IMPORTANT 2 STORIES TO SHARE © THIS MONTH, WRITES ANITA ANAND ANITA ANAND Column Onacold December day in 1995, a historic motion was adopted in the House of Commons to recognize February as Black History Month. This motion — made by the Hon. Jean Augustine, the first Black woman elect- y 30 years “Ours to Tell,’ tion to tell their stories sand share their histories, their successes, their sacrifices and their triumphs. Oakville has a rich and powerful Black history. For many, it was the shining light at the end of the On derground presented a Tact of. ope and the start of a new life for those fleeing the atroc- ities south of the border. The contributions of whose Strawberry helped lift our town out of economic depression in the 1850s, to Samuel Adams and Rev. William Butler, whose church laid the € groundwork for the iconic the town we know and Nove day. CELEBRATING BLACK HISTORY As minister of national defence, I along with the prime minister offered an official apology last year to bers of the No. 2. Construction _ Battalion and their descendants. De- spite facing prejudice and racial injustice, the 600-sol- dier battalion was invalu- able to our war effort, cut- ig the lu mber front systemic racism in all its forms, the ingful story of resilience, determination, an this injustice never hap- pens again. We will continue to em- power Canada's Black com- munity through our re- newed anti-racism strate- gy, Black entrepreneur- hip program, supporting Black Canad. an communities initiative, the Black-led philanthrop- ic endowment fund, and ny more initiatives. As we build budget 2023, we are determined to deliv- er support to Black Canadi- ans to ensure they can thrive and prosper. Put simply, Black histo- ry is Canadian history. No matter the month of th year, it is our responsibili. ty to celebrate the immea- surable contributions of Black Canadians, which have all too often been over- looked. Anita Anand is the MP for Oakville and the Min- ister of National Defence. She can be reached at an- ita.anand@parl.gc.ca. SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT INSIDEHALTON.COM TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT INSIDEHALTON.COM SNAPSHOT a — Lyn Wiggins photo A mallard duck takes a dip in the frigid waters of Bronte Harbour. Do you have a great local photo you'd like to share? Send it to sleblanc@metroland.com, along with a brief description. OUR HEALTH CARE SYSTEM IS BROKEN CONSIDER FINANCIAL PLANNING THAT ENABLES YOU TO SUPPORT YOUR LIFE, WRITES PETER WATSON Free enterprise ox sion has failed miserably when it comes to the ‘distr’ bution of health-care ser- vices. One of Canada's self- proclaimed achievements is providing free medicine to all. Our ability to deliver medical services has failed and the sooner we face that sad reality the sooner we as anation can fix our broken system. An important link to re- ceiving health care is hos- pital emergency depart- . is where your family doctor recommends you go when their office is closed. PETER WATSON Column Wait times in an emer- gency department can eas- ily be 10 hours. Wait times discourage you from going to ae oppital, or may make you leave before re- A friend told mea story. Amiddle-aged man went to the emergency department and asked how long he would wait. The wait time was not acceptable to him, so he left. He went home, laid down on his chester- field and die would be record heart attack. The true cause of death, in my opin- ion, was a broken health- care system. Yes, maybe he should have stayed at the hospital. People do have heart attacks in hospitals, pl investment issues that ¢ enable you to support your life. Health is at the top of the list for peo- ple's priorities. Ona personal note, over the years I have been im- pressed with the advance- ment of medical science. Unfortunately, recently, it seems our health-care system has imploded. It's time to fix the problem. Our health depends on it. Peter Watson, of Watson Investments MBA, CFP®, REP, CIM®, FCSI offers a weekly financial plai ning column, Dollars © Sense. He can be contacted through www.watsonin- vestments.com. This newspaper, published very Thursday, isa wan of pli, a brite ‘owned ae of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family mprised publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the pate NewsMedia Council. omplainants are urged to bring ther concerns to the attention of fied, write The National New- sMedia Council, suite 200, 890 fons St. Ai IN M4W 2H2. 116-340-1981 Web: ink edenounllea nnc N ocna ‘Newebedia Counc insidehalton@metroland.com facebook.com/OakvilleBeav @OakvilleBeaver WHO WE ARE a and Operations Dana Rol Regional General Manager Jason Pehora Director of Fontent Lee Ann Waterm: Regional Managing Editor Catherine O'Hara Managing Editor faen Miceli deed or Distril Charlen Circulation | Manager Kim Mossman Directors of Advertising Cindi Campbell and Graeme Macintosh Director Creative Services Paul Gostlin CONTACT US Oakville Beaver 211 Pritchard Rd., Unit 4, Hamilton, ON, L8) OG5 Phone: 1-866-838-8960 Classifieds: 1-800-263-6480 Advertising: 289-293-0620 am ait delivery inquiries, please lossman@metroland.com or all 905-631-6095. Letters to the editor Send letters to insidehalton@metroland.com. 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