The story of an 80-year-old Black candidate with community in his heart who ran for Toronto’s City Council
By: Hadiqah Khalil
Content Warning: Ant-Blackness, Police Brutality, Anti-Black Stereotypes
If you search up “Jane and Finch” on Google, the results received are the typical stereotypes against the “Jane and Finch” community—essentially written by someone guided by systemic biases and the historical impacts of white supremacy. However, as one elderly activist fought to challenge the stigma against Jane and Finch, the documentary of his efforts sheds new light on the community he loves.
In the 1960s, Jane and Finch grew from a small hub of 1,300 residents to 33,000 in 1971. Amid a bustling city gentrified by white homeowners, Jane and Finch, a contrastingly racialized neighborhood, was failed by a government unwilling to provide its growing community with the social infrastructure it needed to survive. Social services and economic opportunities were seldom proportionately funneled to community members as organized police presence made the area one of the most state-surveilled in Toronto. But what a power-laden media apparatus that routinely paints Jane and Finch as a “catch-all name” for crime and violence in the city fails to show, Jane and Finch has long been an emblem of cultural richness, collectivity and care. And one of the activists at the heart of this community: Winston LaRose.
In a CBC documentary that captures the heartening journey of the 80-year-old activist, Torontonians get a 44-minute glimpse into the life of Mr. Jane and Finch himself as he advocates for the rights of the Jane and Finch community while bringing the lack of Black representation in Canadian politics to the fore.
The story is unpredictable yet invigoratingly moving — it encouraged me to actually get out of bed and dissect flaws in my life and inspire my surrounding communities. Thematic elements of racial injustice are present in the film as it highlights the corrupt Canadian political system, that leaves very little room for genuine change in the Jane and Finch area. Despite the uncertainty, the central figure of this documentary deeply encourages the audience to continue to revolutionize and rise up against all odds.
The story, directed and produced by Canadian film directors Ngardy Conteh George and Alison Duke, first premiered at the Toronto Black Film Festival in 2019. After Mr. Jane and Finch’s official airing on CBCDocsPOV on Feb. 22, 2019, the film won the Donald Brittain Award the following year. In addition, the documentary won an award for Best Writing in a Documentary Program at the eighth Canadian Screen Awards in 2020. It is currently available to stream on CBC Gem.
It’s safe to say the 2018 Municipal election was a controversial one in the books (as the council was reduced from 47 wards to just 25), but LaRose did not fail to challenge the stereotypes towards his community against other politicians. LaRose is not just a community member, an advocate or even a running candidate—he’s a proud citizen known by all as Mr. Jane and Finch.
“Jane and Finch is a community that is close to my heart. It is a richly diverse community north of Downtown Toronto, a place where new immigrants come to settle,” LaRose said in the documentary. “I have been grassroots in the community. I represent people in every kind of advocacy situation.”
So, where does his political journey begin? Viewers are taken back to the 2018 Municipal Election when LaRose ran for councillor of Ward 7—passionate about representing the Jane and Finch community. He believes in assisting the general population with immigration difficulties, housing concerns, police brutality and the lack of safety for youth in local schools.
The film’s ability to capture such live and pivotal moments during the election is truly an eye-opener to those who fail to understand the undeniable existence of racism in Canada’s foundations, history and present. The film implores viewers to reconsider and reflect on the powerful voices we choose to give platforms to, and who we allow to dictate how our communities exist.
The documentary showcases the presence of LaRose’s competition: Giorgio Mammoliti and mentions the racist remarks presented by Mammoliti when he referred to the representatives of the Jane and Finch community as “cockroaches.” Respectfully, someone, please educate me on why Mammoliti came in second place while LaRose came in seventh in the 2018 Municipal election. These results alone say enough about our political system.
LaRose showcases just the opposite. For over 25 years, he and his team served the public through their local office located in Yorkgate Mall, while creating The Jane-Finch Concerned Citizens Organization (JFCCO). This organization actively develops to provide deserved rights to the disadvantaged, which includes opportunities and services available for youth as well as battling against social and economic injustices.
The Jane and Finch community continued to face attacks through controversial comments, according to Ontario’s Minister of Community Safety Michael Tibollo in the documentary. As he entered the Jane and Finch area — of which Black Canadians make up almost 30 per cent — he further propagated and enabled racist ideologies by referring to the community’s history with gang violence: “I went out to Jane and Finch, put on a bulletproof vest, and spent 7 p.m. to 1 a.m. in the morning visiting sites that had previously had bullet-ridden people killed in the middle of the night,” Tibollo said.
I stand with LaRose on the behavioral effects severe underemployment, poverty and police brutality has on the community. One can only take action once educated on the causes of the problem: displacement, discrimination and colonialism.
“Our politicians are not dealing with the fundamental root causes of what’s causing crime. It’s always about bringing in more police officers, putting police officers in our schools, they’ll bring them in our churches next,” said LaRose during his campaign. ”If we restructure our [government] approach to how we create societies and communities, we will not have the crime problem.”
The documentary was definitely worth the watch if one would like to educate themselves on what went down in the 2018 municipal election from the eyes of LaRose himself, although I felt it lacked further discussion on Black Canadians and the colonial undercurrents and beliefs still held today against the Jane and Finch community. I hoped the film would have had a 50/50 discussion of LaRose’s campaign, yet also providing much needed context of Black Canadian history, to those who are uneducated on the sole issues they encounter.
After watching this film, I feel inspired, yet vastly humiliated, as I see a man who is driven to make his voice be heard while many individuals—shamefully including myself prior to viewing the film—hold unconscious biases towards a community without self-educating on the root of the problem. Mr. Jane and Finch represents the many members of a community who have been suppressed by the rest of Torontonians as the rising stereotypes overtake them. Let’s continue to slam down racist remarks and degrading stereotypes on a community that grounds the city and makes space for its community members to exist and thrive unapologetically.