Ralph Thomas | |
---|---|
Born | 1938 (age 86–87) Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada |
Occupation | Activist |
Spouse | Judith Meinert |
Ralph Thomas ONB (born 1938) is a Canadian activist and former amateur boxer from Willow Grove, New Brunswick, Canada. [1] He was the president of Pride of Race, Unity and Dignity through Education (PRUDE), a New Brunswick-based organization promoting inclusion. He is also a co-founder of the New Brunswick Black History Society, an organization dedicated to promoting and preserving Black history in New Brunswick. [2]
Thomas was born in 1938 [2] in Saint John [3] and was raised in Willow Grove, [4] a nearby settlement founded by Black refugees. [5] Thomas grew up at a time where racism and racial segregation existed in Saint John, and siblings of his who lived there were restricted from entering certain establishments such as the Admiral Beatty Hotel. [6]
For a large part of his career, Thomas worked in the automotive trade industry. [4] He also had a career in amateur boxing, in which he had a nickname "Tiger". [6]
In 1966, Thomas founded the New Brunswick Amateur Boxing Association and served as its president for 20 years. [7] He was also a 28-year long member of the board of directors of the Canadian Amateur Boxing Association. [8] In 1968, he created Golden Gloves, a boxing club based in Saint John. [2] [7] In 1976, Thomas was inducted into the Canadian Boxing Hall of Fame as well as the New Brunswick Sports Hall of Fame in 2000. [7]
In 1997, Thomas became the president of PRUDE Inc. (Pride of Race, Unity and Dignity through Education), [9] an advocacy group dedicated to assisting visible minorities and newcomers in Saint John. [6] [8] [10] Through his advocacy work, Thomas has educated young people in the province about Black history. [11]
In June 2010, [12] Thomas co-founded the New Brunswick Black History Society (NBBHS), [2] serving as the group's project coordinator. [13] [14] Through his advocacy work with other NBBHS and PRUDE Inc. members, Thomas has done several presentations educating others about Black history in New Brunswick. [14] Through his work with the NBBHS, Thomas has contributed towards changing geographical names tied to racism and slavery, [15] renaming them to honour historical Black figures in the province such as Abraham Beverley Walker. [16] [17]
Thomas has received multiple awards and accolades for his advocacy work, including the New Brunswick Human Rights Award in 2012, [2] [8] an honorary doctorate from the University of New Brunswick in 2019, [2] the Sovereign's Medal for Volunteers in 2020, [18] and the Order of New Brunswick in 2021. [3]