On a hot summer day in July, Vincent Puhakka went around to various streetcar, subway and bus stops in Toronto trying to convince transit users to call their city councillors to advocate for more funding to the TTC. Puhakka is 29, a millennial, and passionate about transit in the city.
He’s not alone. Puhakka is one of over 1,000 members of Toronto’s NUMTOT Facebook group which is a hub for conversations and ideas about urbanism and transit in the city. The Facebook group is also a place for memes, lots of them. NUMTOT stands for “New Urbanist Memes for Transit-Oriented Teens,” and the original group created by American college students in 2017 now has over 100,000 members. The Toronto-specific NUMTOT Facebook group called RRMTOT (Rocket-riding memes for Toronto-oriented teens) accompanies similar groups like Young Urbanists League and City-Building Toronto. The RRMTOT group commonly discusses issues in Toronto’s transit system and political landscape in relation to urbanism all while making jokes and memes, staying true to millenial styles of communication.
Jon Bullock, the creator and administrator of the RRMTOT group, started the group in February after being inspired by the constructive conversations he saw happening in the global group. He thought a more Toronto-focused space to discuss transit was essential. Bullock, along with many others in the group, believes that the biggest issue facing Toronto transit is making sure everyone has accessible transit. He spends a lot of his free time lobbying local government for changes. A most recent development that Bullock supported for new bus service along Kingston Road in Scarborough to combat what Bullock called an “underserved area.”
Conversations and memes added to Toronto’s NUMTOT often poke fun at Doug Ford’s policies, most recently his council cuts which will likely result in a less democratic handle on what happens with the TTC’s funding. When urban planner Jennifer Keesmaat announced she was running for mayor, the group erupted with joy, calling her “our queen.”
“It’s not just clicktivism,” Puhakka said. “The connection between online and ‘real world’ is very deep. By circulating everything from articles to discussions to memes about the situations going on in our city, and then actually translating these things into real life.”
Derek Lee is another member of the group who dedicates many hours every weekend to updating and translating Wikipedia articles about Toronto transit in order to disseminate the most updated and accessible information. Lee has translated over 100 articles from English to Korean after he noticed the lack of Toronto transit information available online in Korean, a language he felt was in high demand in the city. He translates these articles and does his own additional research out of the belief that a more informed community is essential. One of the articles he translated and added to was even rewarded a ‘Good Article’ title by Wikipedia.
“Even though many of them may not be seen as unsubstantiated memes, it is a gateway medium for many citizens whose day-to-day lives depend on public transit and such ease of being part of the community is what makes the NUMTOT incredibly powerful at mobilizing for active transportation,” Lee said of the group.
Another active NUMTOT, Reece Martin, was involved in the vocal campaign against Councillor Giorgio Mammoliti’s plans to cancel the Finch West LRT, calling and writing to the councillor frequently. Martin agrees that accessibility is the biggest issue in the transit system, and spends a lot of his free time contacting councillors about his disapprovals.
Chris Drew, who has been called “the most active NUMTOT in Toronto” by peers is part of countless activist groups in the city including CodeRedTO, Cycle Toronto and is the co-founder of the group, Fight Gridlock in Brampton, the main focus of these groups being the movement away from car dependency and believes the ultimate issue for the TTC is stable long term funding.
The NUMTOTs share their experiences in the Facebook group while raising awareness about issues they are passionate about. It’s a new form of activism and people should think twice before dismissing Facebook posts and memes. It’s clear millenials have their own way of creating change.
“NUMTOT is like reading a transit report or attending a meeting, but with a very fast and humorous way to think of key issues,” Drew said. “For some people, I think it can be a new key to unlock the door of transit participation.”
cultureintern@nowtoronto.com | @OliviaaBednar
