By Christine Kilfoil
On September 29th 2018 Marc Aubin launched his book Blight, a fictional account of the destruction of a vibrant Lowertown in the name of urban renewal and the battle of a young resident to reclaim it.
Marc is uniquely placed to chronicle the story of Lowertown, and it was no accident that he chose Bingham Park to launch his book. His family has lived nearby since the 1890s, and he has lived on and off in Lowertown since he was born. The strong family roots continue with a father, brother and uncle all living in the area of St. Andrew, Sussex, Boteler and Dalhousie.
Marc has a long history of community service in Lowertown; he was president of the Lowertown Community Association from 2011 to 2014 and served for several years as chair of the King Edward Task Force. In 2014 he ran against the incumbent councillor in Rideau-Vanier and though unsuccessful, the lasting effect of his candidacy has been more focus on Lowertown issues at City Hall.
But it is a long road from community activist/politician to author. Marc felt the story of Lowertown needed to be understood. The book draws from actual historical events, and recounts how the decision-makers of the day changed the community’s future. Marc wanted readers to feel anger at political decisions that devastated neighborhoods, ripping apart the ties to Lowertown’s French, Irish, Italian, Jewish and other communities. He knew the story of stolen homes and businesses, the destruction of green and healthy trees and the ramming of a highway through a community, effectively splitting it in two. As Marc explains, “growing up, I heard many stories from residents past and present who were negatively affected by the urban renewal of Lowertown East in the 1960s and 70s. I was really struck by the injustice of it and felt that no one had properly recognized the damage done to individuals and the collective of this community. I felt compelled to write a story about it.”
Getting a book published for a first-time author has been described as akin to being struck by lightning, and many would-be authors’ stories lie buried under a prospective publisher’s slush pile of manuscripts. But Marc’s publishing journey was different. “Finding the publisher was actually a fluke. I was in Mexico on vacation and met up with some friends on a rooftop. Upon showing one of my friends the draft of my book cover on my cell phone, he indicated his brother-in-law was in publishing in Toronto. After a few phones calls with the publisher, a contract was signed.”
The challenge of good story telling is not only to ensure the accuracy of historical events, but to bring it to life through meaningful characters. The book’s main character is very much based on Marc, but he explains that it is really difficult to fully create a character based on a real person. “We are very complex people and we change over time, and trying to communicate who I was 10 and 20 years ago is not easy. While the book is a work of fiction, it is historical fiction. I would say 60-80% of the story is based on real facts and events”.
Marc acknowledges that Lowertown has been forever changed. But change does not mean defeat. He believes Lowertown today is still a community with a rich but humble history that gives it character and context. Part of that history lives on both in the physical landscape and in the people. He asserts that Lowertown today is still more a connected community than many places in Ottawa. As individuals and organizations continue to work together to build a neighbourhood, he thinks technology has a role to play. “In some ways, we have a strong community thanks to the way technology allows us to communicate and participate. Whereas in the past, church leaders and politicians were able to operate in a much more isolated and unsupervised way, we now have a lot more opportunities to participate and question authority.”
There are still challenges. Marc points to the void between individuals and City Hall and the burden on community associations to fill part of that gap through volunteer effort. “However, I think that what is being done is contributing to a long and gradual improvement in a sense of community.”
And what is next for Marc Aubin? In fact the book was only a side project for Marc, who is working on an app project. But as he indicates: “I need time for rest”. It would appear Marc’s definition of rest is much broader than it is for most of us, given all the things Marc has done and continues to do. It is unlikely that he is finished yet with the contributions he has to make for Lowertown and for his own personal ambitions.
Marc’ book Blight is available in-store at all Chapters in Ottawa, online directly from the publisher (https://crowsnestbooks.com/books/blight/) or Amazon or Chapters Indigo. You can also purchase a copy from Marc.