Ottawa Public Library – Greenboro
363 Lorry Greenberg Dr, Ottawa, ON , K1T 3P8, ON, K1T 3P8
As part of THE NFB IN LIBRARIES annual programming, the Greenboro Branch of the Ottawa Public Library is presenting the following film to highlight Black History Month:
John Ware Reclaimed|Director: Cheryl Foggo | 2020 | 73 min
Is it possible to love someone who died before you were born? Cheryl Foggo believes so. John Ware Reclaimed follows filmmaker Foggo on her quest to uncover the complex story of John Ware, a Black cowboy and rancher who settled in Alberta prior to the turn of the 20th century. As she endeavours to dig past the racist myths and mistellings surrounding Ware, she recalls her childhood in Calgary, Alberta, her own experiences of racism, and her family’s history as part of the 1910 migration to western Canada to escape violence in the southern United States. She also evokes the suppressed history of a thriving Black presence in the Prairies: the Black pioneers who lived, worked, and raised families in the west. Foggo’s archival, genealogical, and archaeological search, and her creative reimagining of John Ware’s life, reveal who this iconic figure might have been, and what his legacy means.
Trailer: John Ware (Trailer 1m26s)
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FREE SCREENING
To have more information on this screening, consult the library’s website.