March honours 16-year-old stabbing victim Jannai Dopwell Bailey
A group marched in Cote-des-Neiges-NDG Saturday to honour Jannai Dopwell-Bailey, a 16-year-old who was fatally stabbed last month.
The group met in front of his school, Programme Mile End, where a memorial still stands.
Bailey’s friends and family remember him as a fun and loving teenager.
“A child who loved to dance, he loved rapping, he loved his family, he loved his mom,” said Bailey’s cousin, Onica John.
His family also wants to set the record straight, and make sure people know who Bailey was.
“He wasn’t in any type of gang,” said his brother, Tyrese Dopwell-Bailey. “I know because he’s black and he has dreads, automatically the media thought that he was gang affiliated.”
“He was just a little boy. A teenager figuring out life,” he added.
Two suspects have been arrested in connection with Bailey’s death and face charges of second-degree murder. One of them is 18-year-old Andrei Donet, while the other is a minor and therefore cannot be named.
Bailey’s mother says there needs to be more after school resources to prevent incidents like this one from happening in the future.
“Play basketball, play music, socialize — there’s nothing here for the youths. They are on the street,” said Charla Dopwell.
Cousin Onica John agrees.
“In Cote-des-Neiges there’s certain programs that need to be implemented to help with the young ones. Because if you leave them to just hang, they’re going eventually end up doing stuff that they’re not supposed to,” she said.
Dopwell said she met with Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante, but did not disclose any details about their interaction.
“The mayor came [to] my home and the meeting went well, and that’s all I’m going to say.”
There is hope that some good can come out of the tragedy community — but the loss will never be forgotten.
“It’s very, very sad,” said Dopwell. “I miss him. I sleep, I breathe, I eat, I think of Jannai.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
Half of Canadians have negative opinion of latest Liberal budget: poll
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
opinion Why you should protect your investments by naming a trusted contact person
Appointing a trusted person to help with financial obligations can give you peace of mind. In his personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew outlines the key benefits of naming a confidant to take over your financial responsibilities, if the need ever arises.
Teacher shortages see some Ontario high school students awarded perfect grades on midterm exams
Students at a high school in York Region have been awarded perfect marks on their midterm exams in three subjects – not because of their academic performances however, but because they had no teacher.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Doctors combine a pig kidney transplant and a heart device in a bid to extend woman's life
Doctors have transplanted a pig kidney into a New Jersey woman who was near death, part of a dramatic pair of surgeries that also stabilized her failing heart.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Ottawa injects another $36M into vaccine injury compensation fund
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
An Ontario senior thought he called Geek Squad for help with his printer. Instead, he got scammed out of $25,000
An Ontario senior’s attempt to get technical help online led him into a spoofing scam where he lost $25,000. Now, he’s sharing his story to warn others.