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CBC
a day ago
- Entertainment
- CBC
Londoners in new 'Black Lives Lived Here' exhibit never thought they'd be in a museum
Isha Bhargava New exhibit shows playful memories and snippets of daily lives of Black Londoners A new display at Museum London offers a rare glimpse into the everyday lives of Black families who lived in the city during the mid-20th century. The Black Lives Lived Here: London Family Photos from 1910s to 1960s exhibit is a visual history shown through family photographs of daily events, such as children playing or going to school, and special milestones ranging from weddings to birthday parties and trips abroad. "Part of the idea of this exhibit was to get away from the representations of minstrels and mammies, so the Aunt Jemima kind of images that sometimes we have of Black folk, that have been produced through dominant forces in society," said the project's curator Zahra McDoom. "These are everyday moments, people taking photos of each other and it shows a very different kind of life in London." Many individuals featured in the display went on to become trailblazing entrepreneurs, prominent entertainers and decorated athletes, but others, were regular Londoners known as strong community pillars who overcame racial and societal adversities. On Sunday, some of them can to see the exhibit and spoke to a crowd about their memories of their photos. Here are some of their stories: Joey Hollingsworth Image | Joey Hollingsworth Caption: Joey Hollingsworth stands beside his photo while he toured Japan in the 1960s. The tap dancer says he never thought he'd see a day where his family photos were featured in a museum. (Isha Bhargava/CBC) Open image in new tab Tap dancer, actor and singer, Joey Hollingsworth is the first Black man who competed in CBC's talent show Pick the Stars and regularly appeared on Canadian and some American television shows from the 1950s to the 1970s, including The Ed Sullivan Show on CBS. Now in his late 80s and with a visual impairment, Hollingsworth couldn't see the photos but reflected on his beginnings as an adopted child who began dancing when he was a toddler. Some his pictures show him dancing, sitting in his vintage car, touring Tokyo in the 1960s and hanging with parents and siblings in their family home. "This is my hometown and that's why it's so exciting to me. My parents, who I never thought would be in a museum, their photos are here," he said. "This is one of the finest exhibits that I'm just so pleased to be part of and it's exciting for Black people to be recognized." Hollingsworth admitted he didn't fully realize the challenges other Black Londoners experienced in their lives, but that changed when he was asked to perform in a minstrel show in St. Thomas. The theatre shows were performed by white artists wearing blackface, portraying racial stereotypes of African Canadians. His parents were against it but eventually agreed, so long as he didn't wear white gloves or blackface. Years later, he proudly performed in Canada's last minstrel show in Fredericton. "They told me it was the last one because the government has banned them and I thought my dad would love that, so I did the last minstrel show in Canada and closed them." Barry Howson Londoner and basketball star Barry Howson made history as the first Black man on a Canadian National Basketball team, and competed in the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, but his family's roots in the city dating back decades. His mom, Christina, became a widow and single mother to eight children after her first husband James F. Jenkins died. Jenkins was founder of the Black Canadian newspaper, the Dawn of Tomorrow. Christina battled severe depression following his death but ultimately kept the paper running which is how she met her second husband and Howson's dad, Frank. 3 historians share local Black history they believe deserves more recognition Howson believes if she let the newspaper shut down, he would never have been born. Proudly pointing to his mothers photos, Howson shared how she overcame these challenges and the influence it had on his athletic pursuits. "It makes me proud and with what she had to go through, I always took the saying 'If you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail' so I follow that example," said Howson, who also recalled positive memories of neighbourhood kids gathering in front of his childhood house on Hamilton Road. "A group of the Black people lived in the community and the stores [nearby] were very honest and helpful with the Black people and it was a nice close community. We didn't have any segregation or things like that and we learned to survive." Legacy of Stan "Gabby" Anderson Image | Anderson family Caption: Jeff Anderson, second from the left, poses in front of his parents Stan and Lorrie's wedding photo alongside his mom Lorrie, third from the right, his wife, sister and son Jared. (Isha Bhargava/CBC) Open image in new tab The life of baseball legend, Stan "Gabby" Anderson and his family is also featured in the exhibit, including videos of his kids in their Glenwood Avenue house. His eldest son Jeff said he was speechless when he saw photos of their "regular days" on such a large scale. "I was so used to seeing pictures on a small little postcard size, and now to see them on a wall in a museum, it's very emotional," said Jeff Anderson, alongside his son Jared. "We really learned the values that have kept our families this strongly knit for so long, all the troubles they've had to endure to bring us to this point. We carry along that history with us forever and now other people can have an inside look on how our family came about," added Jared. The exhibit is on display at Museum London until April.
CBC
26-03-2025
- Politics
- CBC
After 26 year, city politicians take over running London transit
Isha Bhargava | CBC News | Posted: March 26, 2025 11:01 AM | Last Updated: Just now The LTC has seen low ridership, complaints about service at a time when Bus Rapid Transit ramps up Caption: Some members of London's strategic priorities and policy committee (SPPC) from left to right: Coun. Jerry Pribil, Coun. Sam Trosow, Coun. Corrine Rahman and Mayor Josh Morgan. Rahman was among councillors asking for the dissolution of the LTC while Pribil still remains on its board. (Isha Bhargava/CBC) London city councillors are saying goodbye to a longstanding commission that has overseen London's public transit system for decades, citing leadership concerns. In a vote at city hall Tuesday, the Strategic Priorities and Policy committee (SPPC), which includes all members of council, voted 9-6 in favour of eliminating the London Transit Commission (LTC). Instead, they agreed to temporarily put five of their own in charge of the board that oversees the city's bus system until a long-term plan is finalized. The decision comes after three board members suddenly quit yesterday, taking the chair of the board by surprise. Media Video | Is London's transit so bad it's worth dissolving the governing body? Chair pushes back and says no Caption: Some London Transit Commissioners resigned and called for new leadership this week. They say the service isn't meeting the needs of Londoners. The chair of the commission disagrees. Stephanie Marentette points to the work being done with paratransit that she says shows service improvements. Open Full Embed in New Tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage than loading CBC Lite story pages. Councillors Corrine Rahman, Shawn Lewis, David Ferreira and Elizabeth Peloza wrote an open letter Monday asking for the transit commission to be replaced by three city politicians who would oversee the transit authority while a governance review is underway. "Concerns have been raised by council and the public: around accessibility issues, ridership experiences, route extensions into new developments, growth hours, rapid transit implementation and council directions," the four wrote in the letter. After a lengthy debate, the councillor's proposal was accepted. The committee appointed five, not three councillors as initially suggested, to replace the commission. Councillors will be able to volunteer for the position at next week's full council meeting. The London Transportation Commission, as it was first known, was formed in 1951 when the City of London bought the public transit service. The current CEO, Kelly Paleczny, has led the LTC since 2014. She declined to comment Tuesday. The LTC has seen decreasing ridership numbers, and complaints from people with disabilities who can't rely on the accessible service. It's also in need of major repairs and new buses to keep up the fleet. LTC Chair Stephanie Marentette spoke to council on Tuesday, urging them not to get rid of the commission as she believes the organization's relationship with the city can be repaired. Marentette proposed councillors fill the three vacant seats and let the remaining four commissioners stay on the board instead of dissolving the entire LTC because having three new members with no LTC experience manage the organization alone is setting it up for failure, she told councillors. Some councillors tried to delay the vote to a future meeting next month because they said they didn't have all the information at hand and wanted more time before making a decision. But others, including Mayor Josh Morgan, urged the situation needs to be dealt with immediately. Marenttette told CBC News after the meeting that the close vote makes her believe councillors could change their minds by next week when they have to make the final decision and she will continue having conversations with them. "I don't feel confident that every single member of council who voted tonight is confident in their decision and I think there's still an opportunity here and I'm going to keep pushing," she said. Accessibility advocate Jacqueline Madden was among the three board members who resigned, saying the LTC board wasn't able to work well with city council. After the meeting, she expressed relieved at SPPC's decision. "I found that I wasn't able to contribute on a level playing field with everybody else and something needed to happen to make a change," she said, adding that communication with the city was lacking on projects like school bus passes and assessment growth. The commission's remaining four members are: Chair Stephanie Marenttette Vice-chair Scott Collyer Commissioner Sheryl Rooth Commissioner and Coun. Jerry Pribil Other members of the board who resigned alongside Madden are Coun. David Ferreira and commissioner David Little. The LTC's fate lies in the hands of the full council vote on April 1.
