The NDP’s Jagmeet Singh broke one of the toughest barriers in Canadian society on this date in 2017 when he was elected federal leader of his party. A former MPP at Queen’s Park in Toronto, Singh became the first member of a visible minority to lead a national political party.  He has now led the NDP through two general elections - in 2019 and 2021. From Scarborough, Ontario myself, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that Singh was born in my hometown and his career and life story is a matter of community pride for everyone in Scarborough. Note to readers: Over the years, I have had the honour of having many distinguished Canadians co-lead history-themed walking tours of downtown Kingston with me.  The still-growing list of notable Canadians includes: Bob Rae, Jean Charest, Kathleen Wynne, Paul Martin, John Turner, Beverly McLachlin, Jim Flaherty and Marc Garneau.  I am pleased to report that former Ontario Premier David Peterson will join me to co-lead a history-themed walking tour of Kingston's downtown tomorrow -- Saturday, October 2nd at 2pm.  Anyone who might be in the area will be welcome to join us; the tour will start at the Visitor Information Centre in front of Kingston City Hall. The tour is presented by Kingston Destination Group. Tickets can be purchased online here. caption id="attachment_446515" align="alignleft" width="559" NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh/caption Arthur Milnes is an accomplished public historian and award-winning journalist.  He was research assistant on The Rt. Hon. Brian Mulroney’s best-selling Memoirs and also served as a speechwriter to then-Prime Minister Stephen Harper and as a Fellow of the Queen’s Centre for the Study of Democracy under the leadership of Tom Axworthy.  A resident of Kingston, Ontario, Milnes serves as the in-house historian at the 175 year-old Frontenac Club Hotel.