Man Elected As Premier In Historic Win

Why I'm Not Celebrating Wab Kinew's HISTORIC WIN

Photo by THE CANADIAN PRESS/David Lipnowski

On the evening of October 3, 2023, with the rest of Canada, I learned that Wab Kinew, an Anishinaabe artist and writer, and leader of the Manitoba New Democrat Party (NDP), had become the first First Nations premier of the province of Manitoba in Canada. Now, a note here for those unfamiliar with Canada’s ridiculous Indigenous classification system - In Canada, there are three broad government-defined groups of Indigenous people: First Nations (these individuals can be status or non-status but I won’t get into that whole mess here), Métis, and Inuit. Other Indigenous women and men have previously been elected as premiers of some of Canada’s provinces and territories, such as John Norquay, a Métis man who was elected as the fifth premier of Manitoba and Inupiaq/Norwegian woman Nellie Cournoyea, who was elected as premier of the Northwest Territories in 1991. At any rate, Kinew’s election as premier is a big deal and nearly everyone is celebrating this historic win.

Except for those women who aren’t celebrating Kinew’s historic win.

I’m one of those women.

Now, this is about Kinew as an individual and not about Kinew as an individual at the same time. The issues here are larger than any one man and this is partly what’s so important: that Kinew is a man, an Indigenous man sure, but still a man. And that position provides certain benefits in a patriarchy. I’m wondering, as I’m sure many other Indigenous women are wondering: why elect a man as leader who has been charged with assaulting a female partner? And not only that, but why elect a man as leader who then denies that the assault even happened when questioned about it? Kinew’s “domestic violence”¹ charges were stayed, which in Canada, means nothing in terms of guilt or innocence. What stayed, dismissed, dropped or acquitted charges, or even lack of charges, in cases of male violence against women in Canada most often means is that Canada’s justice system was made by men, in the interests of men. Historically and currently, in cases of male violence against women in the home (and outside the home), victims are usually blamed, their allegations denied, and they’re painted by abusers and the media as liars; these cases are too often misunderstood, mishandled, and considered “unimportant” by the justice system and general public (Sheehy, 2014). This acceptance of male violence against women runs deep, very deep. So deep that we might not be able to see how male violence against women in relationships actually functions and the impact it has on women and girls and on our culture as a whole.

The sense of entitlement men have toward their female partners expresses itself across a wide spectrum of abuse and violence and may not be as readily apparent as the fact that currently, a woman in Canada is killed, on average, about once a week by a male partner (Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability). Before a man has ever put his hands on a woman though, he’s built up to that moment by abusing her verbally, emotionally, financially, and in many other ways that don’t show scars or cigarette burn marks, black eyes, or bruises. The woman who is being abused by a man she’s in a relationship with has also entered into that heterosexual relationship within the confines of patriarchy where she is obligated, to a greater or lesser extent, in more or less visible ways, to cater to him and his needs and wants. This male entitlement and female obligation is our baseline; it’s our unseen and perhaps most important Canadian cultural value (Smiley, 2023). Dworkin describes this baseline in relation to male sexuality:

“The male sexual model is based on a polarization of humankind into man /woman, master/slave, aggressor/victim, active/passive. This male sexual model is now many thousands of years old. The very identity of men, their civil and economic power, the forms of government that they have developed, the wars they wage, are tied irrevocably together. All forms of dominance and submission, whether it be man over woman, white over black, boss over worker, rich over poor, are tied irrevocably to the sexual identities of men and are derived from the male sexual model. Once we grasp this, it becomes clear that in fact men own the sex act, the language which describes sex, the women whom they objectify. Men have written the scenario for any sexual fantasy you have ever had or any sexual act you have ever engaged in” (Dworkin, 1976, p. 11).

As women and men, we enter into heterosexual relationship within the confines of patriarchy; within the confines of male entitlement and female obligation, domination and submission, master and slave, as Dworkin so eloquently stated. Positioning sex-based inequality as the primary component of colonization allows us to define a female-centered definition of “colonization” and thus of “decolonization” or what I call “decolonizing feminism” (Smiley, 2023).  This decolonizing feminism doesn’t let Indigenous men off the hook when they commit acts of violence toward women and it doesn’t let them use “colonization” or “racism” as excuses or justification of their behaviour.

Despite some advances made as a result of feminist organizing, many women are still afraid to ask for help or to use the police when they’re being abused by their current or former husbands or boyfriends. And when they do, they are too often ignored, dismissed, or blamed for the violence committed against them. I recall an incident with a young Indigenous woman a few years ago who was terrified that her former abusive boyfriend was about to murder her and her family. Due to mistrust, she hadn’t called the police before, but this time, she knew it was different. She called, police came to her home, and she was so panicked and so terrified that she was about to be murdered that the police decided the best course of action was to bring her to the hospital, sedate her to calm her down, and then return her home where she was left alone to protect herself and her family as best she could. She was a sitting duck with even less ability to think clearly and defend herself because of the medication she was forcibly given. There are so many other stories similar to this being told about the past, the present, and will be told in the future. Overwhelmingly, the question “why did she stay?” is still asked, explicitly or implicitly, demonstrating that men’s violence against women in relationships is normal. Otherwise, as a culture, we’d be asking “why did he abuse a woman?”.

Kinew states he has “…been open about [his] shortcomings…” in his past (Lambert, 2017). In his 2015 bestselling memoir he recounted past interactions with the criminal justice system related to drunk driving and assaulting a cab driver and has since apologized for these actions and received a record suspension, commonly known as a pardon, for these convictions. In 2003, Kinew was charged with two counts of assault against his girlfriend at the time. She stated that he threw or pushed her across the room during an argument in their shared home, injuring her hands and legs (Martens, 2017). Shortly after the assault, the woman called her grandmother to pick her up and she left with only a laundry basket of clothes, abandoning the rest of her household contents (Martens, 2017). Kinew didn’t mention these assault charges in his bestselling memoir. In 2017, when Kinew was running to become the leader of the Manitoba NDP,  these charges were made public by an anonymous source. And what did Wab do? Did he apologize for his actions? No, he did not. He claimed, “that never happened…the matter was investigated and the charges were dropped” (Martens, 2017) even though the charges were stayed at the time, not dropped. By stating, "I take responsibility for the role I played in the end of our relationship, but as I've said, this specific incident did not happen”, (Lambert, 2017) Kinew is actually saying that his former female partner is lying about the assault. Wab, this is not how you “…continue to be an ally and stand up against violence in all forms” (Lambert, 2017), because 1) you’re only an ally (whatever that means to you) when it suits your purposes, and 2) you don’t stand up against violence in all forms, just some forms? I don’t know how you decide which violence to stand up against and which violence is just fine, I’m guessing this might be related to however you decide which women are liars and which women aren’t and I’m also guessing this probably has something to do with what works in your best interest at the time. Honestly though, it’s not difficult. As I’ve stated before, we stand with women who are assaulted or we stand with the men who assault them (Smiley, 2023). And yet some way, some how, Canada collectively forgot about all of this. Or maybe they didn’t forget. Maybe, just maybe, Canada decided they just didn’t care. It was in the past, old news, it doesn’t matter anymore or maybe it didn’t even matter in the first place.  

You know, there are just too many accounts of powerful, well-known, respected Indigenous men sexually harassing and sexually assaulting Indigenous women. And you know what they do? They protect each other and they help each other out: Murray Sinclair, a well-respected Anishinaabe senator at the time, stated in 2017 that the abuse allegations against Kinew were ‘..beginning to look like a witch hunt” and that Kinew had answered all questions around the incident, basically saying the matter was finished (Malone, 2017). Sinclair also suggested that the media coverage of the abuse allegations against Kinew were motivated by racism (Robertson, 2017). Give me a break, oh poor victim of racism, Wab Kinew. This is one of the ways that Indigenous men present themselves as victims of colonization and racism to excuse or deflect away from their actions when they commit violence. What about her, though? What about the impacts on her life? What about the impacts of racism (and sexism) on her life? What about when this came out in public and she never intended it to? What about when he publicly denied the assault ever happened, what did that do to her? What did she risk when she called police? What did she risk when she came forward in the media, speaking out against a very powerful Indigenous man mentored by another very powerful Indigenous man, who probably knows many other powerful Indigenous men? I can’t imagine what it feels like for her to watch Kinew being celebrated as a leader across Canada. I know how I feel about it though: I’m fucking angry and I’m fucking sick of it. Kinew claims that he’s taken responsibility for his troubled past and turned his life around, making “…good on a second chance at life...” (Lambert, 2023). How many Indigenous women get second chances at life? Or even a first chance? Not many, considering we’re born into a world that quietly, and sometimes very loudly, sexualizes us, uses us, and degrades and exploits us. Oh, and Murray, the situation is not resolved. Maybe for you it is, and maybe for Kinew it is too, but for Indigenous women and for women who are victims of male violence, not even close. We haven’t forgotten about the misogynist lyrics in Kinew’s award-winning album, or about the misogynist social media posts he’s made. We don’t forget, we can’t, even if we want to. He apologized, but what does an apology mean when he still suggests that women lie when they come forward with stories of abuse by men? And honestly, this should never have happened in the first place and it wouldn’t have happened if Kinew actually respected women. Oops, I was a grown ass man and thought male violence against women was “funny” and had “value” but now I’m totally different because now I only call women who are victims of abuse liars instead of talking about hitting women in the face with a fist and male genitalia and I don’t “joke” about “fat women” on social media anymore.

Committing violence against women should disqualify any man from holding public office. Have a problem with that? Think about what that says about you. It’s easy not to throw a woman across a room when you argue, or touch her inappropriately in a workplace setting, or rape her, or call her names, control her, degrade her to her face or in the lyrics of your award-winning album, punch her, or abuse her in any way. The assault charges that Kinew continues to deny haven’t hampered his career at all. Unfortunately for women, male violence against women is considered normal and acceptable. Look at that clown, Trump, look at that other clown, Louis C.K., look at how many men have assaulted women and gotten away with it, no consequences, no repercussions, but instead success and celebration! For the victims of male violence and for all women however, our lives, our sense of self, and our confidence are destroyed in the process and when we see men who have committed violence against women, Indigenous or not, being celebrated as presidents and leaders, artists, bestselling authors, and award winning performers, it sends a very strong message that we don’t matter.

But guess what? We do matter.

1. I don’t use the term “domestic violence” because it hides men’s violence – what does domestic violence even mean? Violence in a house? A house that’s violent? I prefer to use terms like “male violence against women in the home” or “male violence against women in relationships” and others. These terms, although not perfect, more accurately describe the perpetrators and victims of the violence that is occurring, which is overwhelmingly, across time and place, male violence against women.

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Canadian Femicide Observatory For Justice And Accountability. (n.d.). Femicide is preventable. Femicide is Preventable | Femicide in Canada. https://www.femicideincanada.ca/

Dworkin, A. (1976). Our Blood: Prophecies and Discourses on Sexual Politics. New York: Harper & Row.

Lambert, S. (2017, September 14). Woman at centre of Wab Kinew domestic assault allegations says she was thrown. The Canadian Press, https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/wab-kinew-domestic-assault-allegations-1.4290885

Lambert, S. (2023, October 3). Premier Wab Kinew: From rapper to reporter to Manitoba’s top political office. The Canadian Press, https://ckpgtoday.ca/2023/10/03/premier-wab-kinew-from-rapper-to-reporter-to-manitobas-top-political-office/

Malone, K. (2017, September 21). Wab Kinew allegations turning into 'witch hunt,' Senator Murray Sinclair says. CBC News, https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/murray-sinclair-wab-kinew-1.4300130

Martens, K. (2017, September 15). Woman who made allegations of domestic assault against Wab Kinew speaks out. APTN National News, https://www.aptnnews.ca/national-news/woman-who-made-allegations-of-domestic-assault-against-wab-kinew-speaks-out/

Robertson, D. (2017, September 21). Coverage of abuse allegations against Kinew motivated by racism: Sen. Sinclair. Winnipeg Free Press, https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2017/09/21/coverage-of-kinews-abuse-allegations-motivated-by-racism-sen-sinclair

Sheehy, E. A. (2014). Defending Battered Women on Trial: Lessons from the Transcripts (Law and society series). Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press.

Smiley, C. (2023). Not Sacred, Not Squaws: Indigenous Feminism Redefined. Australia: Spinifex Press.