BY PAUL JUNOR & SIMONE J. SMITH

“Saying goodbye to a hero, a staple, a confidant who did so much for so many is never easy. Louis March (Uncle Louis) stood as a beacon of strength and compassion, his unwavering dedication touching countless lives. His impact, felt across generations, will leave an indelible mark on all who had the privilege to know him. As we bid farewell, we honour his legacy, cherishing the memories and lessons imparted. Though his physical presence may be gone, his spirit and contributions will forever resonate within our hearts and communities.” Grant & Trish Browning (Founders, Toronto Caribbean Newspaper)

The untimely passing of highly respected Canadian community champion Louis March on Saturday, July 20^th, 2024, has been deeply felt by many in the Black, African and Canadian diaspora. For over 40 years, he served in multiple capacities and roles to ensure that: educational equity, social and justice, as well as human rights were respected. His work as a: community and youth developer, mentor, advocate and activist have garnered widespread attention not just in Canada, but internationally.

His rise to the top of community leadership started with the Black Youth Community Action Project (BYCAP), then to the African Canadian Heritage Association (ACHA), then to the Black Action Defence Committee (BADC) and the Zero Gun Violence Movement (ZGVM).

Louis March was born in Jamaica, and he migrated to Canada with his mother. He graduated from Midland Avenue Collegiate Institute and completed tertiary studies at Toronto Metropolitan University graduating from: the Public Administration and Governance degree program, and the Caribbean Studies certificate program at the Chang School. He also completed a Business Management program at George Brown College.

He participated in many diverse youth engagement and mentorship projects while being involved at the board level with community organizations and Advisory Committees. He spent the summer of 2015 performing volunteer work in Tema, Ghana.

He often spoke about his early days with the BYCAP (where he served as President), which was the youth chapter of the United Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) started by Marcus Garvey in 1914. “Many times, Dudley Laws had problems with youth issues and would come to me. We will work through the issues. We have not done a good job talking about BYCAP,” stated Louis.

Louis served as Communication Directors of the ACHA for many years and volunteered with BADC after it was founded in 1988 by: the Dudley Laws, Charles Roach, Sherona Hall and Lennox Farrell after the killing of Lester Donaldson and several police shootings of unarmed Black men.

Louis started ZGVM in 2013, which started as a 90-day summer campaign that was aimed to: re-engage the public, businesses and institutions back into their respective communities. This summer campaign called for new resources from: corporations, communication between community organizations. and a data bank of all programs and services geared toward youth.

There have been many personal recollections and anecdotes shared by individuals on social media since his passing. Kathy Grant writes, “Emancipation Day 2024 will have Louis March celebrating from heaven. I have celebrated seven birthdays with Louis on the Emancipation Freedom Ride and August 1^st, 2023, was extra special as we all joined in to sing well wishes and Louis smiled and winked.”

Sharon Joseph (Founder of the Breakaway Relief Foundation) shared her personal memories of working with Louis. “We have lost a good man. He cared for the community and was good with everyone. When Louis started to present zero-gun violence, I was happy that I would work behind the scenes, because Louis was knowledgeable about our current crisis with gun violence.” She commented on Louis’ level of dedication and sacrifice for the community. She notes, “Without funding he worked around the clock to ensure there is a representative to speak on the issue of preventing gun violence amongst our youth and helping families and our city to be a safe place to live and grow.”

Dr. Jill Andrew (MPP of Toronto -St. Paul West) posted an inspiring tribute and deeply emotional tribute on Monday, July 21^st on her Facebook page. “This is an unimaginable loss. We all have to go, but this just felt way too soon for you. Even after seeing you at the hospital, I and so many others were still holding out hope. We will miss you. We will all in the many different ways we can continue your life-saving work, your legacy. We will try our best to make you proud. We will keep sharing the life lessons. We will work even harder to show each other care, love, and respect. We can’t thank you enough. Rest in power.”

Chris Clover of Spadina-Fort York wrote a tribute to Louis March on Monday, July 22^nd, 2024. “He worked with Director X’s Operation Prefrontal Cortex project to help these youths deal with their trauma before it spiraled into another episode of gun violence. Collaborating with the Toronto Raptors and many community organizations, Louis pushed for the first Friday in June to be declared the National Day Against Gun Violence in Canada.”

“At Queen’s Park, we organized press conferences and rallies to have this day recognized in Ontario. Working with the Toronto Board of Health, he was part of a team that had the city adopt a public health approach to gun violence-one that addressed the root causes of gun violence. As he often said, ‘We already have zero-gun violence in many parts of our city, those of the richer neighbourhoods. If we are to end gun violence, we must address the root cause, which is poverty.”

Cecil Roach (retired Associate Director of Education, York Region District School Board) writes, “These are challenging times for Black activists as the move to keep our eyes closed and our heads buried in sand. I hope Louis’s anti-gun violence work will be taken up by one of his mentees.”

Szimbah Hanley, community advocate writes, “Thank you Bro. Louie March for your selfless service to protect children, youth and families in our community. Rest in Power. Beloved Brother.”

Olivia Chow, Mayor of Toronto wrote a message on X at @MayorOliviaChow. It reads, “Louis was a fixture in neighbourhoods across the city, whether meeting with officials to develop solutions, marching alongside community members to make their voices heard, or confronting victims and their families. Louis embodied hope. He often said it was his purpose to support communities through the painful grief and traumatic impact of gun violence, and he worked tirelessly at the grassroots levels to inspire people to work together and take action. Many communities are mourning, and I stand with them in their grief. There will be further recognition of his tireless and enduring legacy to come. In this moment, let us hold each other as Brother Louis lovingly held us.”

The Ontario Federation of Labour posted a message titled, “Honouring Louis March” on Monday, July 22^nd, 2024. President Laura Walton writes, “Louis was a tireless advocate for peace on Toronto’s streets, and, more importantly, a believer in the potential of underserved youth. His lifelong dedication to his community was evident through his relentless efforts to create a safer environment, by tackling systemic issues head-on.”

Ahmad Galed (Secretary-Treasurer of the OFL) writes, “Louis’ activism had a profound impact on Black youth growing up in Scarborough. He was one of the first activists to create programs in the 1990’s that addressed systemic issues dis-advantaging Black youth.”

Jackie Taylor (Executive Vice-President of the OFL) writes, “We are mourning the loss of a true leader in our community. His years of dedication to empowering young Black individuals have left a mark on all of us. His legacy will continue to inspire future generations.”

As the Chief Correspondent at the Toronto Caribbean Newspaper, I am deeply saddened by the loss of Uncle Louis. In the times when my work felt unsupported by the very community I strive to uplift, Uncle Louis was the one person who always reached out. We would talk for hours about the state of our community, and he constantly encouraged me to keep pushing forward. “You are one of the brave ones, Simone,” he would say. “You are strong enough to face all that comes at you. Keep up the great work and know that you have my support.”

It is with these words that I will continue to fight for my community, for my people. I want to express my gratitude to Paul Junor for helping put together a tribute for Uncle Louis. It still feels unreal to me, and I will deeply miss having him as a champion in my corner. I miss you so much, Uncle Louis. Forever, Simone Jennifer Smith

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

“I wanted to tell my story for a long time; I wanted to tell everyone all at once. Now I can speak the truth and tell everyone exactly what was going on. I am here to tell the truth.”

For twenty-four hours in the summer of 1988, Canada’s Ben Johnson was the most celebrated athlete on the planet. Then just like that, his life changed forever. He was stripped of the 100-meter gold medal he’d possessed for just three days.

Disqualified! For what?  Just like that, he plummeted from champion, new multi-millionaire and global star to what Canada propagated as a disgrace. I will never forget hearing my dad read the headlines when he won. “Canada’s Ben Johnson Wins Gold,” to “Jamaican Born Ben Johnson Disqualified for Steroid Use!”  Even at a young age, I found that strange.

36 years have passed by since he ran 9.79 seconds in the 100-meter final at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. The young fellow who was at the epicenter of Canada’s worst sports disaster, had to go through years of people doubting him, ignoring his pleas for someone to look into what had been going on.

“They took away my name, my rights to earn a living, it was very tough; people wouldn’t be able to last two weeks, I did it for 36 years.”

The sprint he won in Seoul has since been called “the dirtiest race in history,” with six of the eight competitors linked to doping infractions. The steroid for which Johnson tested positive was not the steroid he believed he was using. His drug screening was riddled with irregularities and crucial testing evidence was withheld by Olympic officials in Seoul, circumstances that credible experts now say denied Johnson his right to due process and should have prevented his disqualification.

Among the troubling issues at his hearing before International Olympic Committee medical commission members: Ben Johnson’s drug test analysis was riddled with unsigned handwritten alterations, including a changed athlete-identification code; a second unofficial urine test (which reportedly tracked long-time steroid use) was dropped on shocked Canadian officials who, in turn, did not challenge this lack of disclosure, or the reason for the test. Of course, now it is coming out that the IOC medical commission gave the benefit of the doubt to some athletes facing doping sanctions in Seoul, but not others.

American forensic toxicologist Dr. David Black, an expert witness in doping matters who was once hired by Ben Johnson, reviewed the former sprinter’s post-race urine screening documentation from Seoul. Dr. Black called the data “Unacceptable under current laboratory requirements and should have been unacceptable in 1988.”

For years, I have been curious about the Ben Johnson story, and when I had a chance to meet him a few years ago, I had so many questions. He was very reserved, and told me that when the time was right, he would tell me everything. Well the time has come, and with the April 16^th, 2024 release of his book, “World’s Fastest Man: The Incredible Life of Ben Johnson” by Mary Ormsby Ben finally has the chance to tell his story, the way that it was supposed to be told.

I sat down with Ben, and to be honest, I just let him share.

“My older brother was an athlete, and I came home with a few ribbons from my track and field matches. He asked what I ran at these events. He was impressed with my results, and he invited me to the track and field, and that is when I met Charlie Francis.”

“The early years of my career were tough; the child that I wanted to be I couldn’t be. My childhood was taken away from me completely because I went from Jamaica to Canada and right into track and field, so I didn’t have time to play with other kids or have fun. I found my destiny at 14 years old. People saw my talents. I was only 98 pounds when I came to Canada and started running track. A lot of the other athletes were a lot bigger than me, so they were faster than me. I started to put on weight and mass, and in 1981 a shift happened. I became one of the fastest young men in Canada. I made the national team in 1981. I will never forget my race with Daniel Creary who was my hero. To race against him was incredible.”

“It was the 1984 Olympics that I won bronze, and the Americans didn’t like me at all. I had beat out their third-place guy. I got more recognition and now more needed to be done. I had to get faster and stronger, and when everyone was on vacation, I was training for the next year. I wanted to keep building on that. That was my secret, I was always building and improving. All the hard work and sacrifice led me to winning the gold medal, and this was all for my mom.”

“Leading up to that race, I was worried. I was not afraid of my opponents; I was afraid of failing. It was my time to show the world. I wanted to get the race over with so much; the pressure was on me to get it over with and cross the line. When I crossed the finish line, it was a great feeling, a great moment. Nothing could beat that feeling.”

“The lab results from 1988 were the wrong lab results. They were not even my lab results. There were scribbles, crossed out information; the federation got their hands on these lab reports, and they knew the truth and locked it away. They knew that what they were doing was wrong, and I would not be able to go after them.”

“The double inquiry was a scam; they wanted to separate themselves from Ben Johnson and to present me as the poster boy for steroids. I saw the results 36 years later; I didn’t get due process. I read it and I was like ‘Wow!’ They went all the way to do this to me, to create a lynch against me.”

“I remember something clearly, something that has never left my mind. In 1985 my mom said to me, ‘Son, the only way they can beat you in the testing room. They can’t beat you any other way.” I had to prepare for the worst after that. I knew that it was coming, I had to prepare myself for it, and nothing can truly prepare you for what I went through. I will say this; they never took anything away from me, they just slowed me down.”

“Thankfully, my name still carried a lot of weight around the world. I was still able to conduct my business and make my money. I went through life and did my thing. 18 years ago, I thought about what my mom said. They made that 9.79 Documentary on my life, and the narrative started to shift.”

I have learned that there was a lot going on in sports at the time, some things that we did not know about. During that time, there was a growing list of world-class sprinters with doping histories and Olympic medals. Of the Seoul 100-meter finalists, Carl Lewis, winner of four golds in 1984, was absolved of stimulant infractions weeks before he was awarded the 1988 gold; Linford Christie tested positive for the steroid nandrolone in 1999, seven years after racing to Olympic 100-meter gold in Barcelona and 11 years after narrowly avoiding a stimulant violation in Seoul, where he earned a silver.

Then there was Dennis Mitchell who retained his Barcelona bronze after high testosterone levels were detected in his 1998 urine sample. It’s not only late-20th-century sprinters on this list. American Justin Gatlin, for instance, failed two drug tests (in 2001 and 2006), and won Olympic medals (gold in 2004, bronze in 2012, silver in 2016) before and after serving his four-year doping ban (from 2006 to 2010).

Ben Johnson’s book shows all that was done to him; what was seen, and what was unseen. There is so much that people will learn about what happened during that time, and the insidious actions that were taken to break him.

BY SELINA MCCALLUM

In the fall of 2022, extremely talented photographer, Bradley Fenton, also known as Coopz, told his brother Brandon that before the end of the year he was going to go on tour with an artist to take photos. The opportunity wasn’t being offered yet, but he was speaking it into existence.

Coopz is a Toronto-based photographer who grew up in Mississauga. He’s shot at music festivals in the states and in Toronto for a few years. Some of the trailblazing international artists he has photos of are: Coi Leray, Burna Boy, A Boogie with a Hoodie, and Shenseea. He has also taken photos of local trailblazers including DJ Rosegold, WondaGurl, Pressa, and Savannah Re. One of the first photos on his Instagram is of the infamous producer, DJ Khaled, which he took in Miami in 2017.

Coopz recalls when he was asked to go on tour in America with Toronto superstars, Leila Dey and Jessie Reyez for the month of November.

“I got invited to shoot the celebrity basketball game that happened in Toronto in October last year. I was doing all the headshots for all the local celebrities that were invited. I saw Leila Dey’s manager. He came up to me, and said he wanted to talk to me after. I was wondering what was going on. And he’s like, yeah, Leila is about to go on tour, and we want you to come with us and be our photographer and videographer.”

The Mississauga photographer couldn’t believe it.

“Same day I called my brother. I’m like, yo! You’ll never believe what just happened. I just got asked to go on tour. So, I was really excited. I was wandering around. It was unbelievable.”

The Mississauga native has been taking photos since he was in grade nine. He also has a sharp business and creative mind.

“I went to a Catholic school; we had civvies day, days where you get to dress up in your actual clothes. I brought a point and shoot camera to school, and I started taking photos with everyone. They loved them and wanted to post on their Facebook — back then there was no Instagram.

For Christmas that year, my parents bought me my first DSLR camera, and ever since then I’ve been shooting with that Canon T3.  I started taking photos every single day for people and started charging them $10. So, I was doing that in grade nine: shooting, making money, and already making a name for myself back in high school.”

Once Coopz was older, he started to do a lot of club photography, which is what helped him master how to use a flash. However, he didn’t want to be seen as just the club photographer.

“I wanted to get out of being a club photographer, because I felt like that hindered me a lot. When people see you as a photographer, in my opinion, I feel like they only want to book you for club stuff. I obviously wanted to branch out and do more things: personal photography and flying, traveling to different cities to shoot people.”

To overcome this, he decided to rebrand himself.

“I started going and shooting more celebrities in LA and Miami, and being like their personal photographer and eventually I started making a name for myself. I started doing hosting’s, so people will come out and party with me. It wouldn’t be me taking photos in the club, it would be me networking and bringing people with me to the club and doing different events. I just built up my own brand and my own name, where it just holds a different type of weight.”

Coopz name definitely holds a different type of weight as he has travelled across America with the incredibly talented and beautiful R&B singer Leila Dey from Toronto, who was opening up for headliner and superstar from Toronto, Jessie Reyez. It is never a dull moment while on tour as the photographer is always working.

“You don’t have to worry about anything else. You have to worry about making sure Leila looks good. With the photos, get her constant photos, constant videos. You just know what your job is. It’s just constant non-stop. It’s just capturing the moments at the right time.”

Coopz also mentioned that being on tour with Jessie’s team felt like being on the road with one big family.

This year, the talented photographer has jumped into real estate and is being mentored by his brother.

“I just got my first property. That is what I’m going to be doing with my brother. He is going to be helping me buy and sell properties. I’m the youngest of four brothers, and all my brothers are heavily business minded people. I always have someone to look up to and ask questions to keep me learning.”

When he’s not learning something new, he’s manifesting the next huge tour he’ll go on. Some of the artists he’d love to go on tour with are Jack Harlow, Kehlani, Lil Baby, Chris Brown, GloRilla, 50 Cent or Ice Spice.

“I love the touring experience, so I’m itching to go back again,” said Coopz.

Coopz also wanted to thank a good friend of his who has helped him for a long time.

“Shout out to DJ Rosegold because she has been helping me for a while, and always bringing me out and connecting me with people too.”