It was in its pages Black Jacks: African American sailors in the age of sail by historian W. Jeffrey Bolster that he made a discovery. In marine logbooks, the initials WH stood for “woolly hair” and meant that someone was black. A picture of WH was beginning to form – he was 22, short, missing a forearm and well-nourished. Then one day, his opening chorus The Possible Lives of WH, Sailor (Running the Goat Books and Broadsides, out now) came to mind: I don’t know your legal name, And I don’t know where you came from – All I know is that it’s a shame there’s no one to claim Your remains. “I started thinking about developing a piece around it, but I don’t know the life of the navy and these men have described their lives better than I can,” says Junaid. “What I can do is speculate, ask questions about what [WH’s] Life might have been like that, so that’s what I started doing.” Settler colonial history is well documented in Newfoundland and Labrador, but Junaid sees no monuments or even acknowledgments of his black history. “The WH stands for that [lack] for me,” he says. “Wouldn’t it be great if, using modern technology, we could learn more about who he was? Maybe he has living relatives who would like to know [about him]. Perhaps it could be reburied near where it originally rested. So, for me, I feel a kinship or a claim to this historical figure.” Illustration: Bushra Junaid Instead of showing traumatic images of slavery, Junaid drew inspiration for the art – a combination of traditional drawing methods, digital rendering and archival images – in part from John Akomfrah’s London-based exhibition ‘Vertigo Sea’. The installation includes three large video screens: footage from National Geographic and the BBC of thriving marine life juxtaposed with people being transported on slave ships or fleeing their country on makeshift ships. In this vein, a naval ship under fire, marine life and a giant wave are among the illustrations Junaid brings to the page. “I want [my illustrations] to evoke a sense of intrigue/mystery or curiosity about who the WH might have been,” he says. Junaid knows that the truths in her poetic narrative will be frightening to some. Learning that 19 slave ships built on the island of Newfoundland traveled to West Africa with rum and other goods to trade for African captives will change the image young readers have of Canada. That’s why it was necessary to include a timeline, references and sources, as well as a teacher’s guide to aid readers in their discovery and understanding. “I tried to include questions that touch on different aspects that might [study] – geography, history, social studies, English,” he says. “I also wanted to ask a question about celebrating WH’s life and how they could do that in modern ways.” Representation is also at the heart of Junaid. “People don’t understand the importance for a racial kid to see someone like him as a role model,” he says. “I grew up in [St. John’s] where I never had a Black teacher in front of me. I had no role model. It’s very emotional and I’m still struggling with it all.” Junaid speculates that this might be why he became an artist. “Art gives me this vehicle, this opportunity to express some of these things. Just love yourself, nurture yourself, and if those stories don’t exist, then create them.” There are so many stories of Black history and “we’re just scratching the surface. [The Possible Lives of WH, Sailor] it is my contribution to it,” says Junaid. “I would like to hear stories about everyday people, their contributions, their trials and tribulations. Learn about the fact that slavery happened in this country, that Black people have been here for hundreds of years in hundreds of different roles and have contributed in so many ways to the cultural and political life of this country.” Photo: Liz Ikiriko.
