Emmanuel Akanbi

Pride and Protest: “Parade” Screening at Museum London

Last month, I went to Toronto’s Soulpepper Theatre to watch a production of Michael R. Jackson’s Tony and Pulitzer award-winning musical, “A Strange Loop.” I was stunned by its unapologetic Blackness, especially seeing it amongst a predominantly white crowd. The musical offers a gritty understanding of the lived experiences of a Black gay man in the modern era (modern as in like 2015 modern, to be fair), so much so that a white family with their young daughter packed up and left by the third song. I could not stop thinking about this white family leaving. I kept wondering if…

Read MorePride and Protest: “Parade” Screening at Museum London

Inside the London Premiere of Vancouver-based documentary series Ana Falastini

On May 25, Palestinian-Canadian filmmakers Dalia Al Ahmad and Rawan Ramini came to Western University’s Conron Hall to premiere their Vancouver-based documentary series “Ana Falastini.”  The event brought upwards of 100 community members together and featured surprise performances from the Asala Dabke group and the debut of the Palestinian Threads of Diaspora project in London. The filmmaker duo showed three episodes of their five-episode documentary series, each discussing a specific part of Palestinian identity through interviews in both Arabic and English. Part 1 — History “To be a Palestinian is politicized.”  The first portion of the documentary opened with members…

Read MoreInside the London Premiere of Vancouver-based documentary series Ana Falastini
Posters and signs at the CUPE 2073 strike line on Oxford St

“We’re falling behind”: Canadian Hearing Services workers strike for fair wages, job protections

For more than six weeks, over 200 Canadian Hearing Service (CHS) workers have been on strike across the province. Represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local (CUPE) 2073, the sign language interpreters, mental health counselors, audiologists, and other striking staff of CHS are hoping for more support from the public as they approach their sixth week on the lines. CHS is a nonprofit organization based predominantly in Ontario. The organization provides a plethora of services for Deaf and hard of hearing individuals across the country. Since Julia Dumanian became CEO of the company in 2015, service provisions in…

Read More“We’re falling behind”: Canadian Hearing Services workers strike for fair wages, job protections

London Community rallies together for May Day

On Sunday, more than 70 London workers and community members gathered in Victoria Park to celebrate May Day. The celebration included music, chants, and speeches from local organizations and union chapters. May Day, also known as International Workers’ Day, celebrates the labour movement and the workers behind it. The origins of May Day trace back to 1886, following a massive general strike in the United States involving workers across the nation striking to demand an eight-hour work day. In Chicago, on the third day, police officers fired into a crowd of striking workers, which incited a rally at the city’s…

Read MoreLondon Community rallies together for May Day

Poetry and Prose, Roots and Rhythm: Black History SLAM

As the state of the world continues to change around me, it’s been hard to decide how to respond to it. There’s an endless list of things that need attention and many systems to fight to create any sort of change. When responding to a capitalist status quo that places profits above people and the environment at large, it’s hard to feel sane in any one form of response, so I’ve been able to find solace in multiple things at once. Protesting with the community; promoting and engaging in mutual aid; and, most recently through journalism, sharing underrepresented stories and…

Read MorePoetry and Prose, Roots and Rhythm: Black History SLAM

Small group of Londoners counter-protest to take a stand for reproductive rights

A small group of abortion rights activists in London counter-protested the anti-abortion “Life Chain” event in front of Victoria Hospital on Sunday. Local churches and anti-abortion protesters  participated in what is known as the “Life Chain,” an annual anti-abortion event held across cities in North America on the first Sunday in October since 1987. In London, this protest was held in front of Victoria Hospital at the corner of Wellington Road and Commissioners Road — but protesters were met with a counter-protest by London Reproductive Justice, a local group that advocates for abortion and reproductive rights. The counter-protesters arrived around…

Read MoreSmall group of Londoners counter-protest to take a stand for reproductive rights

London community comes out strong supporting 2SLGBTQ+ “No Space for Hate” counter-protest

Dozens of community members came out to support London’s 2SLGBTQ+ community in a counter-protest against the 1 Million March For Children protest at Victoria Park on Friday. London’s counter-protest was one of over 30 held across Canada on Friday in response to nationwide protests against educational content about 2SLGBTQ+ communities and policies in schools — called the “1 Million March For Children” — held the same day. In London, the counter-protest event was dubbed the “No Space for Hate Counterprotest”.   The counter-protest started at 9 a.m. at the northwestern entrance of Victoria Park while the greenspace surrounding the WW2 era…

Read MoreLondon community comes out strong supporting 2SLGBTQ+ “No Space for Hate” counter-protest