Viola Desmond Biography, Wiki, Age, Parents, Siblings, Cause of Death, Family, Bill, Quotes and Facts

Viola Desmond Biography – Viola Desmond Wiki

Viola Desmond born Viola Irene Davis, was a Canadian Business owner and beautician. She was born on July 6, 1914 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada and died on February 7, 1965 in New York, New York, United States aged 50.

After graduating from high school, Desmond worked as a teacher in Black schools. Black women in Nova Scotia were restricted from going to beauty salons and studying beauty culture, so Desmond attended schools in Montréal and New York. When she obtained her diplomas she opened a salon and eventually a beauty school.

On November 8, 1946, during a business trip to New Glasgow, Nova Scotia, she experienced car trouble. While waiting for her car to be repaired, she took in a movie at Roseland Theatre, which was segregated with a main floor for white patrons and a balcony for black patrons. Unaware of the segregation policy, Desmond proceeded to the main floor. She was ordered by the manager to go to the balcony.

When Desmond refused, the manager called the police. She was physically ejected from the theatre by the police chief and the manager, causing injury to her hip. The next morning she was brought before the local Magistrate. Canada had no formal segregation laws, but individual provinces such as Nova Scotia enacted them. It was also common practice for the New Glasgow theatre to assign tickets based on race with an amusement tax determined by seat location. Those purchasing a downstairs ticket paid a tax of three cents while patrons in the balcony paid a tax of two cents. Ironically Desmond was charged with tax evasion for her failure to pay the proper tax for a downstairs ticket. She was, according to prosecutors, one cent short.

Desmond was convicted and fined twenty dollars and court costs. When word of her situation reached Halifax, the black community raised funds to hire legal counsel for Desmond to launch an appeal of her verdict. Initially members of the Nova Scotia Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NSAACP) feared a racist backlash debated whether to assist her. Eventually, they did but were defeated when the Nova Scotia Supreme Court dismissed the application for judicial review in 1947.

Viola Desmond Age

She was born on July 6, 1914 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada and died on February 7, 1965 in New York, New York, United States aged 50.

Viola Desmond Parents

She was the daughter of James Albert and Gwendolin Irene Davis. She was from a middle-class mixed-race family; her mother was white and her father black.

Viola Desmond Siblings

She had nine siblings: Olive Scott, Helen Fline, Alan Davis, Constance Scott, Wanda Robson, Eugenie Parris, Emily Clyke, John Davis, and Gordon Davis.

Viola Desmond Death

She died on February 7, 1965 in New York, New York, United States.

Viola Desmond Cause of Death – How Did Viola Desmond Die

Viola died of Gastrointestinal bleeding.

Viola Desmond Nationality

She was Canadian.

Viola Desmond 10 Dollar

Starting in 2018, Viola Desmond is going to be the first Canadian woman to be featured on a regularly circulating Canadian ten-dollar bill