Did you know that Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario, Lincoln Alexander joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1942 after the colour line had been lifted? He enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force on 20 October 1942 as he felt he looked best in that uniform. Mr. Alexander had poor eyesight and was not able to be deployed overseas. He trained as a wireless operator in places such as Guelph, Ontario, and Lachine, Quebec. He then served at Number Seven Air Observer School, in Portage La Prairie, Manitoba, which was a British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP) establishment. In 1945, Cpl. Lincoln Alexander was refused service at a Vancouver bar because he was black. He was honorably discharged at the end of the war, with the rank of corporal.
“The air force experience taught me the value of self-respect, discipline, and confidence, and those are elements that have served me well throughout my life. They apply to all areas, whether the air force, the law, or politics,” said Lincoln Alexander in his 2006 memoir Go to School, You’re a Little Black Boy.