Searching for Serafim: The Life and Legacy of Serafim “joe” Fortes - Couverture souple

Smith Diaz, Ruby

Couverture souple

ISBN 10 : 1551529750 ISBN 13 : 9781551529752

Editeur : Arsenal Pulp Press, 2025

Synopsis

The life and legacy of Serafim "Joe" Fortes, a trailblazing Black lifeguard, who became a cultural icon in a racist society

Searching for Serafim is a layered exploration of the life of Serafim "Joe" Fortes. A Trinidad native who arrived on the shores of Canada in 1885, Fortes was heralded as a hero in Vancouver for saving dozens of people from drowning as the city's first lifeguard, and his funeral drew the largest crowd ever recorded in the city's history. Since his passing, Fortes has been commemorated with a postage stamp and local buildings named in his honour. Yet, little has been discussed about how he navigated an openly white supremacist society as an Afro Latino man.

In Searching for Serafim, author Ruby Smith Díaz seeks to unravel the complicated legacy of a local legend to learn more about who Fortes was as a person. She draws from historical documents to form an insightful critique of the role that settler colonialism and anti-Black racism played in Fortes's publicized story and reconstructs his life, from over a century later, through a contemporary Black perspective, weaving poetry and personal reflections alongside archival research. The result is a moving and thought-provoking book about displacement, identity, and dignity.

With black-and-white photos.

A propos du livre

À propos de l'auteur

Ruby Smith Díaz is an Afro Latina multidisciplinary artist, educator, and award-winning body-positive personal trainer. Her experiences growing up in a migrant, poor, single-parent family in amiskwaciy (Edmonton, AB) have inspired her to dedicate her life's work to exploring and addressing issues of equity and social justice. Ruby currently resides on the unceded territories of the Stz'uminus peoples (Ladysmith, BC).

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Arsenal Pulp Press
• Date d'édition: 2025
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 1551529750
• ISBN 13: 9781551529752
• Reliure: Broché
• Nombre de pages: 144
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible