On Kane and Clarity

This morning, after a lot of thought and reflection, I published a piece on the divisive nature of Evander Kane and proposed an explanation as to why he is this way. You can read it here. The responses were varied but mostly positive. I will reiterate what I say in the initial piece. Part of the discomfort with Kane is a social construction of a black person. He is into things like hip hop and boxing. But there are somethings I want to clear up that pertain to what I said about Winnipeg.

First of all, Winnipeg is my hometown and the only place I have ever lived. If it wasn't for better job opportunities being rural, then it may be the only place I ever live. But Winnipeg is not perfect. Though I hope not many people face racism, it happens though and it has to be acknowledged. There is a perception around Kane, media driven mainly, that he is a loose cannon. Kane is perceived as a "bad boy" when allegations against him have been proven untrue.

This is not to say that Kane is not without blemish. He is not perfect. He sometimes puts his own frustrations above the team and fights without any discernible inciting incident. Kane is immature, but he has not done anything to deserve the type of attention he gets.

That is not to say Winnipeg is not without fault. Winnipeg is a city witch can sarcastically be called "one great city". I love it here, but there are many faults that I touched on where the context got lost. Winnipeg is a blue collar town. I talked about the Human Rights Museum; every time Winnipeg tries to do something progressive or new, there is a major pushback because of money. Even when LRT was looked into, the city backed out because of money. The Human Rights Museum has a hall dedicated to FNMI Rights issues as well as halls that will have ever evolving exhibits.

But it isn't just about the money, it is about the complaining about how flashy the building is. The building is meant to be a landmark, a place that draws people to it. It is flashy and it was funded by public funds. It is a national museum and that is pretty huge.

I am a history student and I try to look at things with an eye on the past while living in the present. Canada has a less then stellar history with blacks (I recommend checking out Black History Canada) and hockey has a less then stellar record as well. I am not saying at all of Winnipeg is racist. I am saying that there are some people here who are and others who are bothered by his antics partially because of his race. If you disagree or would like to further the discussion, civil discourse is alway best.