We cannot be erased! Jamaican filmmaker documentary picked up by CTV Gems

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

The colours of the Jamaican flag, familiar old school, and dancehall tunes coming from Treasure Isle Records, the smell of curry, mixed with a little bit of jerk, and a hint of Pizza Pizza. Repurposed oil drums with steam coming out the top. Your mouth waters as you walk down the street.

If you live in the city of Toronto, you know exactly what area I am talking about. For those who are not familiar with this great city, I am going to do the soft introduction, and then I am going to point you in the direction of writer and filmmaker Sharine Taylor. It is because of her, a relevant part of Jamaican history will be archived, and it could not come at a better time.

“I began thinking about preservation and archiving. Many first-gens who share complicated hyphenated identities have to explore the histories of where they come from outside our home.”

In the mid-twentieth century, African immigrants from the Caribbean began arriving in large numbers to the city of Toronto. They settled in areas such as: Bathurst and Bloor, the community around Jane and Finch and Eglinton West. During this time, widespread housing discrimination was the norm, and these geographic enclaves became spaces of refuge and belonging. It is where Jamaican families began to: establish communities, institutions and culture in a land that was completely foreign to them

Since then, the historical Little Jamaica has been a transnational space for new immigrants and successive generations of the Caribbean diaspora to connect with home.

That memory of a vibrant, pulsating and dynamic community is what inspired writer and director Sharine Taylor to forge a short documentary called Tallawah Abroad: Remembering Little Jamaica, which premiered at the Montreal Black Film Festival.

Sharine moved out of the neighbourhood and into the suburbs as a child, so when she returned in 2017 (almost two decades later), she was stunned to see the transformation. Shuttered storefronts, clouds of dust and cranes reaching to the sky were now the features that characterize Eglinton West.

Little Jamaica’s devolution into a virtual ghost town is a direct result of the ambitious, costly and several-times delayed transit project: the Eglinton Crosstown Light Rail Transit. Years of noisy construction, constant road closures and hijacked sidewalks have led to a plunge in revenue for the local businesses that once populated the area. Hair salons, barbershops, Caribbean grocery stores, clothing stores, music stores and restaurants have experienced plummeting revenues, forcing many businesses to close their doors forever. Naturally, with the addition of a pandemic, it has become even harder for business owners to stay afloat.

“When my grandma first came to Toronto in the ’70s, Eglinton West was a place that she frequented to get specific brands or food items that weren’t as widely available as they are now.” Sharine shared with me. “I lived right off Tretheway Drive, inside a low-rise, yellow-brick apartment with my mom, aunt, and cousin.

Every other weekend, my aunt used to drag us to Eglinton Avenue West to get her nails and hair done. To see what has become of my memories; all the sights and sounds; it is vey disheartening. It is why I knew that I had to do this project. I didn’t realize that it would consume me the way that it did.

Yes, filmmaking can be daunting and challenging, but what really stuck with me is the fact that when I stopped filming, the people who lived, worked, had families, and were part of this community would still have to contend with their tragic reality.

Tallawah Abroad: Remembering Little Jamaica, has been written about in numerous magazines and newspapers, including an article done by our own Selina McCallum, but there have been some exciting updates. The short film was picked for distribution, and in September 2020, you will be able to catch this heart warming, archival documentary on CTV Gems.

In the documentary, Sharine follows Vernal Small, the owner of a 47-year old business Jamall Caribbean Custom Tailor, who is now tasked with confronting how the rapid changes on Eglinton West are: shifting the dynamics, changing the future, and slowly erasing the presence of his once thriving community.

Toronto Caribbean Newspaper is proud of Sharine for sharing a story with the world that could very easily be shrouded in the dust of the current construction, and difficult social climate.

“Who can tell the story of the paradoxical black experience better than us? We’re made to feel both hyper visible and invisible. Our community is everywhere, but nowhere. We are known and unknown, and maybe that aspect of our identity makes us unique.”