Local Leaders: Reclaim Rebuild Eg West’s Marcus Pereira
TORONTO - “Home away from home” is how Marcus Thomas Pereira, co-founder of Reclaim, Rebuild Eg West (RREW), describes Toronto’s Little Jamaica.
Pereira, 20, is of Grenadian-Trinidadian-Portuguese descent and lived in Little Jamaica all his life. His father immigrated from Grenada in the eighties and settled in the city. Along with two sisters, Pereira attended elementary school and secondary school in his community before pursuing an undergraduate degree in business at University of Waterloo.
“When I’m in Waterloo, I always wish that I was in Toronto,” laughed Pereira.
Little Jamaica stretches along Eglinton Avenue West between Marlee Avenue and Keele Street. For decades, it has been the epicentre for Caribbean and Black culture in the city. Its history dates back to the seventies when an influx of Jamaican immigrants set roots in Toronto. Eglinton West’s rich history contributed to the diversity that Toronto sees today.
The street is lined with Caribbean and Black-owned businesses ranging from hair salons, barbershops, clothing stores and more. It is home to restaurants like Randy’s Takeout, serving the city’s best Jamaica beef patties. During the summer months, passersby can smell the jerk chicken being cooked on a grill outside of Rap’s restaurant and hear music played aloud on speakers.
“Eglinton West is the community that raised me. It's where I buy my food. It’s where I buy my Black hair products. This is where I cut my hair and have wisdom-filled barbershop talks,” says Pereira. The community watched me grow from a little boy into the man I am today.”
Today, only a small fraction of the neighbourhood remains. Since the construction of Metrolinx’s Eglinton LRT began in 2011, over 150 businesses have shut down. A combination of overwhelming construction and a rise in rental prices have decreased foot traffic in the area, making it difficult for business to stay open while displacing long-standing residents and tenants. In some cases, residential condominiums have taken their place. To make matters more challenging, provincial COVID- 19 regulations have put a financial strain on the businesses, adding to the challenges imposed by the existing LRT construction.
In June of last year, Pereira helped form Reclaim, Rebuild Eg West (RREW), a grassroots advocacy organization, aimed to preserve Little Jamaica amidst the troubling effects of transit construction, condominium construction and provincial COVID-19 regulations. Exhausted by the government’s lack of support for their home, the organization took matters into their own hands to raise money and advocate for the community.
He credits his childhood friend, Jem, for the idea of RREW. “She posted an open call out on Instagram to have a community meeting to discuss the gentrification and how we could organize against it.” At this small meeting on a sunny day at a local park, RREW was born.
The group now works to educate the public about Black history in Toronto while garnering financial support and raising the voices of Little Jamaica. “Everyone wants to see change, but very few on a roll up their sleeves and get to work,” said Pereira. “And ultimately, big change comes from organizations like grassroots organizations like us.”
RREW organized the Bana on the Block Rally on Aug. 29 to support the community and bring attention to the ensuing destruction of his home. Hundreds of people showed up to show their support, and it helped put through Motion 24.36, a bill that recognizes Little Jamaica as an official community in the Toronto, like Spadina Ave.’s Chinatown and St. Clair Ave. W.’s Little Italy, in October.
Marcus Pereira, right, during the Aug. 29 Bana on the Block Rally.
Pereira also began the Eg West Tenant Relief Fund on GoFundMe to collect donations to “redistribute to the tenants of Little Jamaica to ensure the maintenance of its vibrancy.” It has reached almost half of its goal of $30,000 that will be used to help tenants in Little Jamaica and other BIPOC communities with rent prices and other necessities.
His love for history fuels his interest in learning about his ancestry and the history of Black people in Toronto and around the world. “The work we do is for the elders that built this community, because they might not have the capacity to put in this activist work. I'm 20 and I have all the time in the world. I can I work on this instead of playing video games” says Pereira.
He is inspired by Dudley Laws, an outspoken activist that helped create the Black Action Defense Committee (BADC) in the late eighties amidst a rise in police brutality in Toronto. Laws brought widespread attention through public demonstrations that encouraged the formation of the Ontario Special Investigations Unit.
Pereira has faced many challenges in his pursuit to protect his community. “Sadly, many people, including residents of the community feel that it's too late to save Little Jamaica.” The fight puts a mental and emotional strain on community members, too. Pereira adds, “When I think of my neighbourhood being gentrified, it's not just losing your house. It's about losing the culture of the community, the history, the social connections you and your family have made. You can't just put those in a box and take them wherever you go.”
Despite the complexities and challenges he faces in his journey to help preserve Little Jamaica; he continues to remain hopeful for its future. Pereira participated in a panel with local change-makers and activist Angela Davis for a student-run group at his university that discusses racial discrimination and the future of Black liberation.
The work of Pereira and RREW’s is far from over. RREW plans to continue to host demonstrations in the summer, as long as COVID-19 regulations permit. They also plan to continue to educate the public on Little Jamaica and Toronto’s Black history, raise funds to support tenants and businesses and keep politicians accountable in preserving its community.
“Thankfully, we have generous citizens across our city willing to distribute their wealth and resources, or else, who knows where we'd be right now,” says Pereira. “I'll always have this lingering sadness and hope for the future of our community. But I'm just happy for the support we're getting right now. I'll never forget it, even if there isn't a Little Jamaica in the future. I'll always tell my kids that there were people that cared.”
For more information on Reclaim, Rebuild Eg West and ways to support Marcus and the Little Jamaica community, visit their Instagram page @reclaimrebuildegwest.
