Hundreds of residents gathered at city hall on Sunday to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
Local dance and drum troupes performed at the event considered one of the highlights of Toronto's Black History Month celebrations.
"It's a blessing to have that freedom and to know that people are not going backward, they are going forward," said Toronto resident Patrick Bastien.
His grandchildren enjoyed learning about the pivotal 1807 decision by the British Parliament and Canada's role in putting an end to one of history's darkest moments.
"I think it was very terrible back then because they used black people for slavery and stuff like that, and if it was me and I could go back in time, I would probably change that," said Wesley Hull. "I'd make them all equal."
Ontario Lieutenant-Governor John Graves Simcoe played an important part of abolishing the slave trade in Canada.
"He did ban the importations of new slaves into Canada, and that was a positive," said Dr. Afua Cooper, an author and professor of African-Canadian culture.
But Canada has its own scars in relation to slavery, Cooper said.
"Some of our founding fathers, William Jarvis, Peter Russell, all were slave holders, right here in Toronto," she said.
With a report from CTV's Alex Mihailovich
