It Happens Here: Tour company aims to showcase vibrant Roxbury community
ROXBURY - A Roxbury native's tour company aims to showcase the neighborhood's Black history and local businesses to those from outside the community.
"I'm so proud, I'm proud of my community," said Collin Knight, the founder and CEO of Live Like a Local Tours. "I'm so proud of all the great people that have come from here."
Live Like a Local Tours brings people from outside the community to learn about Roxbury's Black history and culture.
"I wanted to use this tour company to one, support local businesses. But also, to figure out how to tell my story. The story of the rich Black history and culture that exists here in Roxbury. It's the geographic center of Boston in general. It's the heart of the city and it's the epicenter of Black culture since the 1960s."
One way to learn about Roxbury is the mural walk, which features "Roxbury Love Story" that was create by Rob Hibbs and Genaro Ortega. It represents the place where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King first met.
"The important part of the mural too and where it's actually at, is this is where Twelfth Baptist Church actually was," said Knight, showing the mural. "This is where Dr. Mating Luther King actually preached and this is where Coretta Scott King sang in the choir. She went to the New England Conservatory and studied voice and the violin."
One Thousand Hooves by Stephen Hamilton, depicts African women leading the Army of Men.
"I feel like it's one of the most important things for young Black women to see themselves, within art, within movies. We just have to do a better job in society when we are talking about representation and I think that this mural reflects that."
Another mural on Knight's tour is Faces of Dudley, created by Mike Womble and the Mural Crew.
"So we have a lot of the figures I talk about on the tour," said Knight. "We have Melnea Cass here at the end. We have the bowling center that I talk about. We have the great Dr. Elam Lewis here. I'm a Roxbury native. I have a tremendous amount of pride for where I grew up. So to be able to tell the story from my perspective, it means so much."
For more information and to book a tour, click here.
