Gun violence has plagued Toronto’s northwest Jane and Finch neighbourhood for decades. In director Rico King’s new documentary Nekai Walks, we see its devastating impact across multiple generations.
The film centres on Nekai Foster, who at age 16 was shot in the head at random while walking home. Incredibly, he survived and eventually made a near full recovery. The film also interviews others — teachers, parents of victims and more — whose stories take us deeper into the community.
Most of the shootings discussed are allegedly retaliatory against previous attackers, creating an ongoing cycle of violence.
We follow teacher and advocate Devon Jones to schools and cookouts, where he acts as a mentor to many in the community, trying to help young students break out of the cycle of violence. Jones says he has lost over 50 young people over the course of his career, either killed from gun violence or doing time in prison for it.
Later, we visit Imo Lewis in prison, where he is serving a life sentence with no possibility of parole for 18 years. He laments making the foolish decision to shoot two people in his youth and wishes there was more support to stop young men like him from doing like he did.
Midway into the film, King weaves in interviews and systemic analysis on why gun violence persists in the neighbourhood. Poverty, economic deprivation, lack of opportunities and chronic understaffing at schools are all brought up.
As Jones tells us, there are eight schools in Jane and Finch that share a single guidance counselor.
Interviewees talk about advocating for better, but the film stops short of describing why the community isn’t getting the resources it needs and what it might take to force governments to end their decades of neglect, especially in a time of budget cuts.
The most powerful aspect of the film, though, is watching Nekai’s journey as recovers from a near-death experience, spending months in hospital then eventually walking and meeting with politicians and advocating for change.
Nekai Walks is an important portrait of a Toronto community dealing with persistent loss. It’s also a story about rebuilding, joy, and the determination to overcome.
The film shows at Hot Docs on April 24 and 25, and will air on TVO in September.
