Geoffrey Canada

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Geoffrey Canada (born January 13, 1952) is an African-American social activist. He is the author of Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence in America. Since 1990, Canada has been president and CEO of the Harlem Children’s Zone in Harlem, New York. [1]

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[edit] Early life

Born in New York City, Canada was raised in the South Bronx neighborhood. He is the third of four sons of McAlister and Mary Canada. His parents' marriage ended in 1956, after which his father played little part in the children's life and did not contribute financial support. [2]

Canada holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Bowdoin College and a Master's degree in education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

[edit] Role with the Harlem's Children's Zone

The Harlem's Children's Zone was profiled in 2004 in a story by Paul Tough in the New York Times Magazine, which described it as "one of the biggest social experiments of our time." [3]

In 2006, Canada was appointed by Michael Bloomberg to co-chair a task force to combat poverty in New York City. [4]

On April 25, 2007 he appeared in an interview by Anderson Cooper during a CNN profile highlighting the "Stop Snitchin'" message prevalent in much of modern hip-hop music.

The plot of a 2004 episode of CBC's WireTap centered around the confusion of Geoffrey Canada with the nation Canada to humorous effect, during an interview with Paul Tough.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Gergen, David. "Moving Toward Manhood", PBS, 20 January 1998. Retrieved on 2007-04-24. 
  2. ^ "Geoffrey Canada, social activist", Current Biography, February 2006. Retrieved on 2007-04-24. 
  3. ^ Tough, Paul. "The Harlem Project", New York Times Magazine, 20 June 2004. Retrieved on 2007-04-24. 
  4. ^ Hu, Winnie. "New York: Manhattan: Mayor Convenes Antipoverty Group", New York Times, 8 March 2006. Retrieved on 2007-04-24. 

[edit] External links

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