Former Africville resident and activist, Eddie Carvery, is seen with his grandson and great-grandson, Eddie Carvery III and IV, at Africville Park in Halifax on Monday July 28, 2025. On July 14, Carvery was served notice to remove his trailer from the park. Photo by Tim KrochakArticle contentEddie Carvery Sr. has defied eviction orders before.THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY.Subscribe now to access this story and more:Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsSUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES.Subscribe or sign in to your account to continue your reading experience.Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsRegister to unlock more articles.Create an account or sign in to continue your reading experience.Access additional stories every monthShare your thoughts and join the conversation in our commenting communityGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorArticle contentCarvery has been embroiled in one of Canada’s longest civil rights protests. For 55 years, he has lived in a trailer on the land where he was born – in Africville – fighting against the injustices inflicted on his community.Article contentArticle contentNow, the 78-year-old, who’s in ill health, has another fight on his hands. He was served an eviction letter from the Africville Heritage Trust Society to leave the property by midnight on July 13. The trust is a non-profit group which operates a museum in the replica of the Baptist church on the grounds of Africville Park.Article contentArticle contentOn July 14, he was issued a $25 parking violation.Article content Former Africville resident and activist, Eddie Carvery, is seen inside his trailer at Africville Park in Halifax on Monday July 28, 2025. Photo by Tim KrochakArticle content“I wasn’t surprised,” Carvery responded when asked about the eviction notice. “But I’m not going away.”Article contentHis friends and family and members of the community, many of them descendants of Africville residents, gathered Monday on the grounds, within eyeshot of the trailer, to show their support for Carvery.Article contentHe has lived on the land since 1970, the year the final home in Africville was bulldozed by the city. Before it was razed, the tight-knit black community was home to some 400 residents from 80 families.Article contentIn 2010, former Africville residents and their descendants received an apology and $3 million from the city, one hectare of land and the replica church, which is now a national historic site. Carvery, who demanded individual compensation and a public inquiry, rejected the settlement and refused to leave.Article contentArticle content“It’s been a long time. It’s been a hard protest,” said Carvery, as he stood at the step of his trailer close to the shore of the Bedford Basin. “It should never have happened. They were racist towards us. We were here before Halifax. But they killed our society.Article content Former Africville resident and activist, Eddie Carvery, speaks to a visitor to his trailer, at Africville Park in Halifax on Monday July 28, 2025. Photo by Tim KrochakArticle content“I’ve been here all my life. I have suffered through the pain, I know the humiliation, I know what it’s like for a community to turn their back on you. But I also know what I’m doing is the right thing and what they did was wrong. It’s my job to let everyone know what they did to Africville. Our community is gone, our society is gone, but I’ll keep fighting the campaign.Article content“They won’t scare me off.”Article contentMuch of the discussion on Monday centred around what the trust wants to do with property adjacent to Africville Park.Article contentIn May 2024, Halifax regional council voted to approve the sale of two lots of surplus land to the trust. At a public hearing, representatives from the trust said they wanted to use the land to expand a parking lot and build an interpretative centre.
They wont scare me off: Africville crusader Eddie Carvery has been issued another eviction notice
