Bill White (Canadian politician)

Infobox Politician
name = William Andrew White, III

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caption = Bill White, seen here in the mid-1970s.
"Photo courtesy of the White family".
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office = First Black Canadian MP candidate
constituency = Spadina, 1949
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birth_date = birth date|1915|2|7|mf=y
birth_place = Truro, Nova Scotia
death_date = January 22, 1981 (EST)
death_place = New Zealand
party = Co-operative Commonwealth Federation
relations =
spouse = Vivian R. Keeler
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children = W. Romney White, Chris White, Laurie White, Sheila White, Tim White
residence = Scarborough, Ontario
occupation = Teacher/Composer/Choral Group Leader
religion = Unitarian


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William Andrew (Bill) White, III., O.C. (February 7, 1915 – January 22, 1981) was a Canadian composer and social justice activist, who was the first Black Canadian to run for federal office in Canada.

1949 Federal election

He stood as the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation candidate in the electoral district of Spadina in the 1949 election, although he was not elected.

Order of Canada

Bill White was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada on December 18, 1970. cite web
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title = Honors, Order of Canada
work = Governor General of Canada Website
publisher = Governor General of Canada
date = 2006-03-30
url = http://www.gg.ca/honours/search-recherche/honours-desc.asp?lang=e&TypeID=orc&id=2358
format = HTML
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accessdate = 2007-02-23 ] He was invested into the Order on March 31, 1971. The appointment was for "services to the community and his contribution to better relations and understanding between people of different racial background." Another honour he earned was the Scarborough Citizen of the Year in 1976.

Family history

He was the son of Baptist minister William A. White, the brother of famed Canadian concert singer Portia White, labour union leader Jack White, and television performer Lorne White. Bill White was the father of software designer W. Romney White, folk musician Chris White. Toronto physician Laurie White, social activist and politician Sheila White and professional musician Tim White.

Death

Bill White died in New Zealand on January 23, 1981 local time ( January 22 in Toronto's Eastern Time Zone).

References and notes

ee also

Canadian federal election, 1949
Electoral firsts in Canada