NewmarketToday continues its annual tradition of marking the giving season by celebrating Newmarket's Community Angels — the people whose kindness, compassion and community spirit help make our town one of the best to live in the country.
Jerisha Grant-Hall can recall feeling a sense of “unbelonging" after moving to Newmarket and collecting local magazines in 2017.
One of them was the Town of Newmarket recreation and culture guide, and in about 300 pages, she said she could not find a single Black person pictured. It prompted her to call the town about it, and if they could not find any Black families to be photographed, she said hers could do it.
A black person was on the community guide next year. Soon after, she started the Newmarket African Caribbean Canadian Association (NACCA), and she has been fighting against anti-Black racism in the community ever since.
“You have to see yourself when you live somewhere, whether it’s print media, on digital platforms,” she said. “When I look at all of these things holistically, and you don’t see yourself reflected, that becomes an issue of exclusion and belonging.”
Her efforts as chair of NACCA and the town’s anti-Black racism task force have extended beyond publications. She has championed diversity in the town, with NACCA launching projects to help the local Black community. She has also spearheaded efforts for the municipality to reflect inward on racism both internally and throughout the community, culminating in a report and the town working toward an anti-Black racism plan.
She said her advocacy work started when she was at York University studying English. She said that her courses centred on whiteness, and she went through a period of feeling bothered and having a sense of oppression.
That led her to take on a double major, adding Latin American and Caribbean studies. In that, she said she found her voice.
“The basis of any activism or any social justice work, coming from an individual, often starts with experience and empowerment,” she said. “You have the experience. You’ve got your empowerment through whatever sources of perseverance that you use.”
The passing of her mother is also part of her motivation. She said it put social injustice into perspective for her and helped her link personal history to collective history. She added that she also draws strength from her ancestors.
She said it is critical to think about legacy and the next generation.
“We all, I think, need to have a sense of responsibility, and I think that sense of responsibility is one of my biggest motivations,” she said. “We need to leave our community better than we inherited it.”
NACCA has been creating scholarships and recently opened the first-ever Black-centred library in the region, among other efforts. Meanwhile, the town has been progressing in implementing its anti-Black racism plan and addressing the more than 100 recommendations the task force made.
“We’re in a good place. The reason I’ve put all of my energy and all of my motivation behind that work is because I believe in our community. I believe in the power of people to change,” she said. “I feel there’s a desire, a willingness, the political will in Newmarket. That is why we have a plan.”
The advocate said she sees herself and the community as the owners of the plan's outcomes and ensuring it does what it says it is going to do. She said they will hold the municipality accountable.
NACCA has been at the forefront of making change happen and making Newmarket a more diverse and inclusive place, Grant-Hall said.
“Somebody has to raise their hand. Somebody had to go to the table because if you’re not at the table, your voice is not heard."
Editor's Note, Dec. 26, 2022: This article was altered for incorrect information on who appeared on the town guide in 2018.
