Heritage Days | RJAC Home

WORLD HERITAGE AND INTERNATIONAL DIVERSITY DAYS*

18-25 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

27 United Nations International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust

Black History Month

1-7 World Interfaith Harmony Week

20 World Day of Social Justice

21 International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

21-27 Week of Solidarity with the Peoples Struggling Against Racism and Discrimination

Arab Heritage Month (Arab-America)

22 Earth Day United Nations2

Asian Heritage Month (Canadian Government)

Haitian Heritage Month3

21 World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development

Canadian Indigenous History Month

20 World Refugee Day

21 Treaty Day/National Indigenous Peoples Day (Canada)

(We currently have no relevant dates listed for July)

9 International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples

23 International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition

Hispanic Heritage Month (United States)

30 Orange Shirt Day (honouring Indigenous Peoples who were sent to residential schools - Canada)

Mi’kmaq History Month (Nova Scotia)

1 Treaty Day (Nova Scotia)

2 International Day of Non-Violence

4 Sisters In Spirit (Canadian Day for Remembering Missing and Murdered Women and Girls)

17 International Day for the Eradication of Poverty

16 International Day of Tolerance United Nations

2 International Day for the Abolition of Slavery

18 International Migrants Day United Nations

It is acknowledged that this list is by no means exhaustive. It is simply offered as a place to start.
Most “International Days of” are United Nations declarations.
There are number of nationality “Heritage Months” out there (and it’s sometimes difficult to say who has declared it to be such): Irish, Italian, German, etc. However, the above dates have been chosen in relation to the populations that would be considered "racialized people" within the North American (Canadian) context.
Last updated March 6, 2020

Note that there are multiple commemorations of this tragedy, some with moveable dates. The UN day is included here since it is consistently on this date.
The emphasis is certainly environmental. We include it here for consideration of a much broader definition of "Earth" to include racial diversity and health.
No national or international group outside of Haiti seems to have adopted this; however, it is recognized locally in American cities and counties withsignificant Haitian populations (e.g. Miami Beach, Florida)