Tireless advocate leaves ‘important legacy’
Morrison fought to keep Niagara’s Black history from being forgotten
She was a Niagara Falls icon.
Wilma Morrison may have appeared small in stature, but looks can be deceiving.
She was a titan of a woman often recognized and honoured for her tireless advocacy of Niagara’s Black history for decades.
The 91-year-old died Thursday at St. Catharines General Hospital after a battle with COVID-19. She had been living at Lundy Manor Retirement Residence.
But those who knew the modest and unassuming Morrison don’t want her to be remembered as another pandemic statistic.
Instead, they want to remember her for bringing Niagara’s Black history to the forefront, for a life well lived.
“Definitely in her case, big things came in small packages,” said Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati.
“She was a ball of fire — full of really great energy.”
He said the first time he met Morrison was 10 years ago when he first ran for mayor.
“I was going door-to-door and
I liked her right away. She just had a real, likeable way about her. She was not just a tireless advocate for Black history, she was also a great lady.”
Recently retired Niagara Falls city historian Sherman Zavitz said while Morrison’s personality displayed “copious amounts of warmth and wit, she also had a firm resolve to educate people about the story of Niagara’s Black history.
“That mission was successful. She has gone from our midst but leaves an important, immense and permanent legacy.”
He described Morrison as a “very capable, intelligent woman.”
“A gentle woman, but hard, too, when she had to be, in a gentle sort of way. She was firm when she was on a cause or working for a cause and knew it was the right way to do things. I admired her very much.”
Morrison fought to save the BME Church in Niagara Falls from demolition in the 1990s.
The Peer Street church is where many former slaves congregated after fleeing the U.S. via Niagara’s Underground Railroad.
Thanks to Morrison, it was declared a heritage site in 2000.
She has received numerous awards for her dedication to Black history and her volunteer efforts, including the Lieutenant-Governor’s Ontario Heritage Award, the Niagara Falls Arts & Culture Wall of Fame and the Hamilton Black History Committee Award of Merit.
In 2010, Morrison received an honorary degree from Brock University, recognizing her efforts in promoting and preserving Black history.
In 2011, she received the Order of Ontario, the highest official honour the province can bestow.
“If it wasn’t for Wilma, this church would not still be in existence,” said Rev. Lois Dix, from Nathaniel Dett Memorial Chapel of the BME Church of Canada.
“It’s the only physical exhibition of the fact that this was a Black community around this area many years ago. It’s the only remaining structure and she was the one responsible for everything — having it declared a heritage site and keeping it up and running.”
Dix described Morrison as a “wonderful friend” and a “dynamic force” in the church and community.
“She had a sense of humour that could rival anybody. We loved to one line each other because we both had a very similar sense of humour.”
Dix said Morrison, who turned 91 in February, was still going to the church until she started to feel unwell.
“People in the congregation would pick her up and bring her into the church on Sundays. She was able to come most Sundays. Everybody is devastated. We’ll definitely have a celebration (at a later date) of the life of this woman because it needs to be celebrated.”
In 2016, Ayo Adewumi produced and directed a featurelength movie called “Wilma,” which told the story of Black history in Niagara from Morrison’s perspective as a Black Canadian and detailed her efforts to save the BME church from the wrecker’s ball.
The local filmmaker, who first met Morrison in 2011, took to his Facebook page Friday to describe her as a friend and mentor, “a woman who took me as a friend and treated me like a son.”
“This is a big loss to Canada and the Black community. Her ‘hat’ is just too heavy for anyone to wear,” he wrote.
“You've played your part and you played it well. Those lessons learnt from you will forever be treasured. Your story shall be told to generations yet unborn.”
In an interview, Adewumi said he and Morrison developed a “mother-son kind of relationship” after the death of his mother about five years ago.
He said he visited Morrison every week, even when she moved to Lundy Manor.
Adewumi said in addition her vast knowledge of local Black history, Morrison’s quick wit and storytelling flair made her a natural for the camera.
“I think her greatest legacy is what she’s done for the Black population in Niagara Falls because if not for Wilma, we never would have known anything about Black history in Niagara Falls. We just had history here and there, but she was the one who actually co-ordinated everything and traced the background and it was a sense of pride.”