Father’s Day: A personal essay on love, loss and love
A couple years back I spent a few months woodshedding, taking a class in creative non-fiction at Ryerson University here in Toronto. I didn’t have a specific reason for doing it beyond curiosity, and a desire to tackle a new challenge. On the job I write about other folks all the time but this class … Continue reading
Black History Year Round
Black History is important to all of us, and not just in February. SWAY Magazine, Winter 2009 By Morgan Campbell February is around the corner, and that means two things. It means we celebrate Black History Month, and it means we field questions from white folks about why Black History Month even exists. After all, there’s … Continue reading
December 2006 — Coolest Moment of the Year
28 December 2006 – Toronto Star Mother’s Day in Miami and I’m at Tropical Park Stadium, following Romario, the legendary Brazilian striker. He’s here playing with a minor league soccer club in a quest to finish his career with 1,000 goals. I notice the home team has laid out a buffet for the media. Then I … Continue reading
February 2005: It’s Not Always About Colour
As the debate over Afric-Centric schools intensifies people on both sides of the debate need to remember the issue is more than skin deep, writes Morgan Campbell 8 February 2005 – Toronto Star I survived 13 years in Ontario’s “white” school system, and sometimes I wonder how I did it. In high school I saw black … Continue reading
February 2005: You See a Fugitive, I See a Friend
In 1969, Joseph Pannell fled an attempted murder charge in Chicago and lived under an assumed name in Toronto until his arrest last year. As Pannell awaits an extradition hearing, Morgan Campbell describes the mentor he calls ‘Pops’. 6 February 2005 – Toronto Star Joseph Pannell had just been escorted into the prisoners’ box during a … Continue reading
July 2004: Views From a Drive-through City
6 July 2004 – Toronto Star Star reporter Morgan Campbell takes you on a tour of his home city, the world’s biggest small town. When I went away to university, I learned I had no hometown. At 18, I enrolled at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill. (Evanston is to Chicago what Mississauga is to … Continue reading
July 2003: No matter what, Kobe’s going to be okay
29 July 2003 – Toronto Star I’ve read only two kinds of stories about Kobe Bryant since the NBA superstar was arrested and subsequently charged with sexual assault at a Colorado resort earlier this month. Of course, thousands of stories have appeared in newspapers and Web sites around the world, but most of what I have … Continue reading
July 2001: Chasing woman is not a story — Not even in blackface
17 July 2001 – Toronto Star By Morgan Campbell Last Tuesday I looked at the front page of The Star and above the banner I saw a graphic of a black man. He was a cool-looking cat with cornrowed braids and aqua shades. Next to him were the words “Heart Breakers,” and an invitation to … Continue reading
February 2001: Police Harrassment — A rite of passage for Black men
7 February 2001 – Toronto Star By Morgan Campbell One night last week, as I waited for a bus at the corner of Queen St. and Britannia Rd. in Mississauga, I saw a black Ford Taurus drive past me, then stop. The car rolled backward then stopped again, just in front of where I stood. … Continue reading
Morgan Campbell: A Writer on Sports and More 