The media’s misrepresentation of a high crime rate at Jane and Finch has earned the neighbourhood an undeserved reputation in the public eye.
But these careless assumptions are merely based on uncritical observations, as well as news coverage that seeks to construct an easy-to-consume narrative for the audience.
Fourth-year York social science and theatre student Lola Lawson resides in the Jane and Finch neighbourhood.
Lawson, a poet and spoken-word artist, has worked with several local community agencies.
Jane and Finch’s negative image has driven Lola Lawson to become a community activist and public speaker; she calls herself a “voice for the Jane and Finch community.”
Lawson recently presented a skit at the Inclusion Day conference at York with her group, Nomanzland, which comes together to create artistic works representing oppressed and marginalized people.
For Lawson, York is close to home. Yet in spite of this convenient location, she has experienced the consequences of the stereotyping and stigmatization of her neighbourhood on her own campus.
Excalibur: What real-life events inspired your performance at the Inclusion Day conference?
Lola Lawson: Definitely my experiences of being from a priority neighbourhood. Kind of trying to be the voice of the “hood.”
I remember one time, in one of my social science classes, we were talking about violence in priority neighbourhoods and its effects, [such as] youth that turn out to be violent or children who are put in jail.
So, it is something that has come up lots of times, for me personally, in the university institution. A lot of the time, your classmates and your professor don’t understand what is actually going on in these priority neighbourhoods.
And just being from Jane and Finch, I always felt obligated to be that voice amongst my peers.
E: Is it something that came out of being a university student or is it something that started before that?
Lawson: I definitely saw it more in university. Being in university, and being from Jane and Finch, you hear what people have to say, all the stereotypes and misconceptions.
Oftentimes, people just look at the media and assume that what they say about Jane and Finch is it. So, not only from the university, but also from jobs, from programs, and from media, it’s just been continuous.
E: What are some of the misconceptions and stereotypes you’re talking about that you’ve personally faced?
Lawson: [I am most commonly stereotyped] when I apply for jobs. If I put a Jane and Finch or Driftwood address, I won’t get a call back.
I remember one time, I went to Yorkdale to drop off some resumes, and as I left, I saw them look at it and throw it in the garbage.
Being from Jane and Finch comes with the assumption that we’re criminals and drug dealers.
Even when I’m just driving around there, I get pulled over all the time.
There are just so many police on the Jane strip and Finch strip that I get pulled over for no reason. Well, because of where I live. I am being profiled because of my address.
E: Is there an instance at York when you felt you were profiled? Any instance in which you felt you were being discriminated against?
Lawson: To a certain extent by students. I’ll say where I’m from and their reaction is “Oh! You’re from Jane and Finch. You don’t look like you’re from Jane and Finch. You don’t act like you’re from Jane and Finch.”
And of course, I’m thinking, what does a person from Jane and Finch look and act like?
Jane and Finch is very multicultural. There are white people, black people, Asian people, Indian people.
And they just assume that because you’re from that neighbourhood, you should have a certain image, or act a certain way.
E: Where do you think the students’ attitudes towards Jane and Finch come from?
Lawson: The majority of their attitudes come from the media.
Even though Jane and Finch is right there, a lot of people from York won’t step into the Jane and Finch area because of what they hear from the media, as well as some classrooms, and the way some professors talk about it.
Even the professors’ assumptions are based off the media and statistics that [focus on the negative aspects of Jane and Finch].
I remember my cousin was entering her first year and during orientation week, one of the tour guides pointed to the Shoreham bridge and warned the students not to go over it because that’s where Jane and Finch was, and there are a lot of shootings there.
So the people at York, like the media, keep reinforcing that violent image, and that’s why gap will continue.
E: What are some of the more positive aspects of the Jane and Finch community that York University doesn’t get to see?
Lawson: There are definitely many positive aspects of the Jane and Finch community.
Being an artist myself, I can name another 50 artists from the community. There’s a large span of talented people there.
E: What kinds of artists are you talking about?
Lawson: I mean painters, rappers, dancers, graphic designers, everything.
Basically anything I would need, as an artist myself, I could easily find in my community.
We are also very family-oriented; we have a lot of family and community barbeques, a lot of community forums.
When things aren’t going right in the community, there’s action groups that [stand up] against police brutality.
And every year, we do a peace walk for all the deceased and victims of gun violence. We definitely come together as a community when we are in need.
There’s so many youth programs and community centres that youth can go to, [and] a lot of studios.
There are a lot of resources in our community, and a lot of positive people who know how to use these resources to make positive programming.
E: Do you feel like your opportunities are limited because of where you come from?
Lawson: In terms of jobs they are. If you talk to a lot of youth who live in Jane and Finch, they’ll say they have to change their name and address to get a callback for a job.
Because a lot of people still believe that “Jane and Finch people” aren’t good people. [They] don’t want to employ these people.
E: What kind of artist are you?
Lawson: I am an actress, spoken-word artist, rapper, and community activist—I do spoken-word workshops for youth.
With Nomanzland, I act and we do acting workshops for youth.
I do [my own] acting workshops, as well.
I perform at various events in and out of the community, across the GTA.
But definitely with my art, it’s a plus because I use my experiences growing up in this neighborhood as I project them through my music, through my poetry.
It’s the base of why I am an artist; it’s because of all these bad experiences that I use my art to inform other people of what’s going on in the community and what needs changing.
Nomanzland is real life. Real drama. Real theatre. We’re raw.
We tell it how it is, and we show it how it is. We are all from Jane and Finch.
Carina Samuels
Contributor
