William Lyon Mackenzie Quotes
God sees with equal eye
William Lyon Mackenzie, 1795-1861, Canadian Newspaper Publisher and Revolutionary, Printed call to arms in the Rebellion of Upper Canada, December 1837
Sourced by: Eigen's Political and Historical Quotations
The power structure of England and the English administrators of South Africa were strong advocates of racial equality at the beginning of the 19th century. They insisted on equal administration of law. However the Boer white population could think of nothing more absurd. In a sense the Boers were much like the Southern Whites at the same time. The South African government however could not enforce its equality policies in the rural area – the majority of South Africa at the time. When democracy and self rule came to South Africa, the racially moderating force of the English was minimized and the majority of South Africans wanted a racially segregated society. Apartheid resulted.
William Lyon Mackenzie was a Scottish-born Canadian-American journalist and politician. He grew up in Dundee, Scotland, and emigrated to York, Upper Canada, (later known as Toronto) in 1820. He published his first newspaper in 1824 called Colonial Advocate and wrote articles that supported the policy proposals of the Upper Canadian political Reform movement. In 1827 he was elected as a York County representative to the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada. He investigated corruption by Tory politicians (who were the political opponents of the Reform movement) and other elite members of Upper Canada, which he called the Family Compact. He brought grievances from Upper Canada citizens to the Colonial Office in London, England, causing the colonial secretary to propose reforms in the colony. In 1834, York became the city of Toronto and Mackenzie was elected by the city council to be its first mayor, but he was not reelected the following year.
