TORONTO, November 5, 2024 – 1934: The Chatham Coloured All-Stars’ Barrier-Breaking Year, by Heidi LM Jacobs (Biblioasis, 2023) is the winning entry for the 2024 Speaker’s Book Award. The Honourable Ted Arnott, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, made the announcement at a ceremony at the Legislative Building, Queen’s Park, last night.

The pride of Chatham’s East End, the Coloured All-Stars broke the colour barrier in baseball more than a decade before Jackie Robinson did the same in the Major Leagues. Fielding a team of the best Black baseball players from across southwestern Ontario and Michigan, theirs is a story that could only have happened in this particular time and place: during the depths of the Great Depression, in a small industrial town a short distance from the American border, home to one of the most vibrant Black communities in Canada. Drawing heavily on scrapbooks, newspaper accounts, and oral histories from members of the team and their families, 1934: The Chatham Coloured All-Stars’ Barrier-Breaking Year shines a light on a largely overlooked chapter of Black baseball.

During the ceremony, Speaker Arnott also announced the winners of the Speaker’s Award for Youth Writers that recognizes students in grades 7 to 12 for their excellence in original writing.

Launched in 2012, the Speaker’s Book Award honours non-fiction works by Ontario authors reflecting the diverse culture and rich history of the province and its residents. Winning books are available for sale at the Legislative Gift Shop and featured in the Legislative Library.

For more information on the award, visit the Speaker’s Book Award web site.
 

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For media inquiries, please contact:
Parliamentary Protocol and Public Relations Legislative Assembly of Ontario 416-325-7500 bookaward@ola.org