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Wab Kinew
MLA
Kinew in 2015
Premier-designate of Manitoba
Assuming office
October 2023
SucceedingHeather Stefanson
Leader of the Opposition in Manitoba
Assumed office
September 16, 2017
Preceded byFlor Marcelino
Leader of the Manitoba New Democratic Party
Assumed office
September 16, 2017
Preceded byFlor Marcelino (interim)
Member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba for Fort Rouge
Assumed office
April 19, 2016
Preceded byJennifer Howard
Personal details
Born
Wabanakwut Kinew

(1981-12-31) December 31, 1981 (age 42)
Kenora, Ontario
Political partyNew Democratic
Spouse
Lisa Monkman
​
(m. 2014)​
[1]
Children3
ResidenceCrescentwood, Winnipeg[2]
Alma materUniversity of Manitoba (BA)
OccupationBroadcaster, university administrator, musician
Websitewabkinew.ca Edit this at Wikidata

Wabanakwut "Wab" Kinew MLA (/wɑːb kɪˈnuː/; born December 31, 1981) is a Canadian politician who is the premier-designate of Manitoba. He is a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba for the riding of Fort Rouge. He has been the leader of the Manitoba New Democratic Party (NDP) and leader of the Opposition since September 16, 2017. Before entering politics, he was a musician, broadcaster and university administrator, best known as a host of programming on CBC Radio and CBC Television.[3]

Early life and education

Wabanakwut "Wab" Kinew was born on December 31, 1981, in Kenora, Ontario. From the Onigaming First Nation in Northwestern Ontario, he is the son of Tobasonakwut Kinew,[4] a former local and regional chief and a professor of Indigenous governance at the University of Winnipeg, and Dr. Kathi Avery Kinew, a policy analyst.[5]

Kinew moved to suburban Winnipeg with his parents in childhood and attended Collège Béliveau,[6] a French immersion school, and vacationed in Onigaming in the summers.[5] He graduated from the University of Winnipeg Collegiate,[6] a private high school which Kinew said in a 2014 interview was "one of the best in Winnipeg."[7] Kinew went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from the University of Manitoba,[6] later pursuing a master’s degree in Indigenous governance.[8]

Career

Broadcasting and media

Kinew began working in broadcasting after the Winnipeg Free Press published a letter to the editor which he had written about Team Canada hockey, and a local CBC Radio producer contacted him to express interest in creating and airing a documentary feature on the matter.[4]

In 2010, Kinew was a finalist for the Future Leaders of Manitoba award and lost to Canadian filmmaker and director Adam Smoluk.[9] Other notable finalists of the award include Olympic champion Jennifer Jones, radio personality David 'Ace' Burpee,[10] friend of Bell Let's Talk Karuna (Andi) Sharma,[11] artist Kal Barteski,[12] and Canadian restaurateur and philanthropist Sachit Mehra.[13]

Kinew has been a reporter and host for the CBC's radio and television operations,[14] including the weekly arts magazine show The 204 in Winnipeg and the national documentary series 8th Fire in 2012.[3] He is also a host of the documentary program Fault Lines on Al Jazeera America.[15]

In 2014, he appeared as a panelist on CBC Radio's Canada Reads, defending Joseph Boyden's novel The Orenda.[16] The novel won the competition.

Kinew was a guest host of Q for two weeks in December 2014,[17] and moderated the 2015 edition of Canada Reads.[18]

Music

After being a member of the hip-hop groups Slangblossom and the Dead Indians[19] in the mid 2000s, Kinew released his debut individual CD as a rapper, Live by the Drum, in 2009.[14] The CD won an Aboriginal Peoples Choice Music Award for Best Rap/Hip-Hop CD.[20] His second CD, Mide-Sun, followed in 2010.[21]

Albums

Year Album details Awards
2009 Live By the Drum
  • Released: January 24, 2009
 Aboriginal Peoples Choice Music Award
2010 Mide-Sun
  • Released: September 4, 2010

University administration

In 2011, the University of Winnipeg named Kinew its first director of Indigenous Inclusion.[20] In 2014, Kinew was appointed associate vice-president of Indigenous Relations after Jennifer Rattray resigned the position.[4][8] He is also an honorary witness for the Indian Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation Commission.[4]

On October 25, 2014, Kinew received an honorary doctorate degree from Cape Breton University.[22]

Writing

Kinew has written a total of four books—The Reason You Walk, Go Show the World, Walking in Two Worlds, and The Everlasting Road—all published by Penguin Canada.[23]

The Reason You Walk is a memoir that chronicles the year 2012, during which Kinew strove to reconnect with the Indigenous man who raised him. In the book, Kinew details his point of view on several controversial matters related to his past, including convictions resulting from alcoholism, his assault of a taxicab driver, and misogynistic and homophobic lyrics from his music career.[24] A reviewer for The Globe and Mail commented: "the undeniable significance of The Reason You Walk's message, and the fact that the book holds so much for both aboriginal and non-aboriginal readers, makes it a must-read. This is not just a memoir, it's a meditation on the purpose of living." Kinew was honoured with the 2016 Kobo Emerging Writer Prize for non-fiction, for this book, which comes with a $10,000 cash award.[25]

In 2018, Kinew published a children's book, Go Show the World: A Celebration of Indigenous Heroes, about notable figures in First Nations history, including John Herrington, Sacagawea, Carey Price, and Crazy Horse. He was inspired to write the stories of such people by Barack Obama's Of Thee I Sing, and K’naan’s song Take a Minute.[26] The book went on to make the 2018 Governor General’s Literary Award for young people’s literature – illustrated shortlist.[27]

In 2021, Kinew released Walking in Two Worlds, a young adult fantasy novel published by Penguin Teen, in which an Indigenous teen girl is caught between the real world and a virtual video-game universe.[28] The book won Kinew an Aurora Award for science fiction and fantasy in 2022.[29]

Political career

Kinew considered running for the leadership of the Assembly of First Nations in its 2014 leadership election,[30] but decided not to mount a campaign as he was newly married in August and felt that it was not the right time to be away from home for an extended period.[4]

In 2016, he was announced as a Manitoba New Democratic Party candidate for Fort Rouge for the 2016 provincial election.[31] During the final days of the campaign, misogynistic and anti-gay tweets and other social media comments were discovered by media on Kinew's Twitter feed. This created a scandal with calls for the New Democratic Party to drop Kinew from the ballots.[32][33] Kinew apologized for his past comments.

On April 19, 2016, Kinew defeated Manitoba Liberal leader Rana Bokhari in the riding of Fort Rouge.[34] He was subsequently named the NDP's spokesperson for reconciliation and Critic for Education, Advanced Learning, and Training, as well as for Housing and Community Development.[35]

In 2017, Kinew ran for leadership of the Manitoba NDP and was elected leader at the September 16 convention, defeating the only other candidate, former cabinet minister Steve Ashton, by a margin of three to one. This would mark Kinew as the first elected First Nations leader of a major party in Manitoba's history.[36]

In 2017, Kinew passed Bill 223 to mark September 30 as Orange Shirt Day, a day meant to honour residential school survivors.[37]

In 2019, Kinew passed Bill 228, the Sikh Heritage Month Act.[38][39] Kinew also put forward a private member's bill that would bestow title of honorary first premier to Metis leader Louis Riel and require Riel's contributions be part of the school curriculum.[40]

Kinew led the Manitoba NDP into the 2019 provincial election; the party gained 6 seats but the Progressive Conservative Party were re-elected to a majority.[41]

Kinew led the Manitoba NDP into the 2023 provincial election. During the previous legislature, the NDP gained a lead over the governing PCs in polling. However, the race had tightened during the campaign period.[42] The NDP campaign focused on healthcare reform.[43] The NDP were declared the projected winner of the election, which will make Kinew the first First Nations person, and second Indigenous person overall, to be elected a provincial premier.[44][45]

Premier of Manitoba

Personal life

Kinew recounts that he "experienced racially motivated assaults by adults" during his time growing up in suburban Winnipeg.[5]

Some time after moving out of his parents' home at the age of 19, Kinew began experiencing problems with alcohol.[24]

On February 24, 2003, Kinew was arrested in Winnipeg, after he was spotted erratically driving his father's 2000 Dodge Dakota by Henderson Highway late in the evening. A witness testified in court that they followed Kinew for several kilometres and saw him lose control of his vehicle twice after striking a guard rail and street light. Kinew continued to drive several more kilometres with a blown-out front tire before police caught up to him at a parkade. Police reported Kinew as having bloodshot eyes and slurred speech, as well as being unsteady on his feet. A near-empty bottle of gin that was purchased that afternoon was found in the back seat. Kinew refused to undergo a breathalyzer after being taken into custody.[36] For this incident, Kinew was convicted of impaired driving.[5]

In June 2003, Kinew was charged by the RCMP with two counts of domestic assault related to allegations that he threw his then-girlfriend, Tara Hart, across a room during an argument.[46] A Crown attorney and Kinew's lawyer appeared in court several times between January and June 2004.[47] The charges were subsequently stayed. Kinew denies the allegations, while Hart has continued to maintain otherwise.[46][47] These charges were previously unknown to most during Kinew's public life, only coming to light in 2017 via anonymous emails sent to Winnipeg media outlets. Hart has said that she can only recall one alleged assault and does not know why two charges were filed. She claims that after she left Kinew, she was living outside Winnipeg and never heard from the Crown on why the charges were stayed.[47]

On June 27, 2004, while bound by a court recognizance on his previous DUI charge, Kinew was arrested following an altercation with a taxi driver. Kinew was intoxicated when he caught the cab shortly before 5 in the morning. According to the Crown prosecutor, Kinew "began to insult the [cab driver] with some racial comments which continued until the driver reached the intersection of Portage Avenue and Fort Street." While stopped at a red light, Kinew exited the vehicle, approached the driver's side door window, which was open, and punched the driver in the face. A passerby yelled out and momentarily interrupted the assault. When the driver exited the cab, Kinew pushed him to the ground and kicked him, according to CBC News. Kinew attempted to flee the scene when police arrived, and Kinew declined to discuss the incident after being taken into custody. The taxi driver suffered a small laceration to his elbow and swelling to his face.[48] On page 70 of his 2015 memoir, The Reason You Walk, Kinew claimed he had grabbed a cab with friends and "hopped out without paying," after which:[24]

[T]he driver caught up with us and pushed me. I turned around and shoved him back. A passing cabbie saw what was happening, stopped his taxi and jumped out to help his fellow driver. He swung and hit me in the face. I grabbed him and swung back. We stood in the middle of the street, arms flailing in full-on hockey fight mode. The police showed up and tackled me.

It has been pointed out that Kinew's account of the incident in his book heavily differs from what was heard in court during his 2004 sentencing hearing.[24]

Also in 2004, Kinew was given a conditional discharge for an assault in Ontario after getting into a fight.[49][50] Kinew also claims that in 2006 he was charged with stealing a money order, but that charge was stayed when he repaid the money.[50]

Kinew has gone through various exercises to rehabilitate himself from his issues with alcohol, including attending sweat lodges and a sun dance event where he fasted for four days and pulled buffalo skulls by piercings cut into his body. Kinew also began attending regular Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.[24]

Kinew has since quit drinking and, in 2014, applied for a pardon from the Canadian government, which was granted by the Parole Board of Canada in 2016. The Parole Board ruling removed from the Canadian Police Information Centre database references to his convictions on assaulting a taxi driver, a Driving Under the Influence conviction for refusing a breathalyzer sample, and two breaches of court orders.[51]

In September 2016, Kinew married Dr. Lisa Monkman, an Ojibway family physician who practises medicine at an inner-city clinic.[6][52][53] The couple welcomed a son in May 2017.[54] Kinew has two sons from a previous relationship.[5]

Electoral record

2019 Manitoba general election: Fort Rouge (electoral district)
Party Candidate Votes % ±% Expenditures
New Democratic Wab Kinew 5,055 51.0 +13.4 $23,922.64
Progressive Conservative Edna Nabess 1,857 18.7 -10.1 $7,290.07
Green James Beddome 1,580 15.9 +4.9 $8,974.33
Liberal Cyndy Friesen 1,290 13.0 -7.1 $8,223.63
Manitoba Michael McCracken 54 0.5 -1.5 $582.58
Independent Bradley Hebert 30 0.3 -0.2 $0.00
Total valid votes 100.0  
Total rejected ballots 30
Turnout 9,913
Eligible voters 16,870
Source: Elections Manitoba[55]


2016 Manitoba general election: Fort Rouge
Party Candidate Votes % ±% Expenditures
New Democratic Wab Kinew 3,360 37.63 -13.63 $39,199.49
Progressive Conservative Audrey Gordon 2,571 28.80 8.64 $42,245.54
Liberal Rana Bokhari 1,792 20.07 -3.06 $30,238.82
Green Grant Sharp 983 11.01 5.57 $322.90
Manitoba Matthew Ostrove 175 1.96 – $945.26
Communist Paula Ducharme 47 0.53 – $33.67
Total valid votes / expense limit 8,928 – – $44,855.00
Rejected 125 –
Eligible voters / Turnout 13,896 65.15 3.92
New Democratic hold Swing –11.04
Source(s)
Source: Manitoba. Chief Electoral Officer (2016). Statement of Votes for the 41st Provincial General Election, April 19, 2016 (PDF) (Report). Winnipeg: Elections Manitoba.
"Election Returns: 41st General Election". Elections Manitoba. 2016. Retrieved September 10, 2018.

References

  1. ^ Welch, Mary Agnes (2017). "Wab Kinew". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved September 19, 2017.
  2. ^ [1]
  3. ^ a b "CBC series 8th Fire aims to dispel native stereotypes". Toronto Star, January 17, 2012.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Wab Kinew: behind the voice of CBC’s Q guest host". Toronto Star, December 15, 2014.
  5. ^ a b c d e "The accidental journalist: Wab Kinew emerges as contender to host Q". The Globe and Mail, December 19, 2014.
  6. ^ a b c d "Kinew might be in queue to host Q: Guest spot last month piqued his interest." Winnipeg Free Press, January 9, 2015.
  7. ^ "Wab Kinew discusses education at Thunder Bay orientation". Wawatay News, September 18, 2014.
  8. ^ a b "Wab Kinew | Education with Impact - 2 | The University of Winnipeg". www.uwinnipeg.ca. Retrieved August 28, 2023.
  9. ^ "FTM's Adam Smoluk wins Future Leaders of MB award". Film Training Manitoba. February 5, 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  10. ^ Wilson, Jill (August 15, 2019). "Honey of an idea: Winnipeg DJ turns made-in-Manitoba condiment into potato chip flavour for charity". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  11. ^ "Friends of Bell Let's Talk". Bell Let's Talk. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  12. ^ Coopsammy, Eleanor. "Winnipeg artist's large labour of love on way to Churchill — full of food". CBC Manitoba. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  13. ^ Sanderson, David (April 27, 2014). "Butter chicken in every pot..." Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  14. ^ a b "Aboriginal rapper, CBC host has plenty to say". Winnipeg Free Press, January 24, 2009.
  15. ^ "Canadian journalists Ali Velshi, Wab Kinew join Al Jazeera America". The Canadian Journalism Project, April 9, 2013.
  16. ^ "Joseph Boyden's novel The Orenda wins CBC's Canada Reads contest". Edmonton Journal, March 6, 2014.
  17. ^ "CBC ponders new name for ‘Q’ in light of Jian Ghomeshi scandal". CityNews, November 12, 2014.
  18. ^ "Canada Reads 2015: One book to break barriers". CBC Books, November 19, 2014.
  19. ^ "Dead Indians website - music page". Archived from the original on September 8, 2005. Retrieved September 19, 2017.
  20. ^ a b "UWinnipeg names first Director of Indigenous Inclusion". University of Winnipeg, October 4, 2012.
  21. ^ Manitowapow: Aboriginal Writings from the Land of Water. Portage & Main Press, 2013. ISBN 978-1-55379-307-6. p. 384.
  22. ^ David Akin, "Wab Kinew: “This country is true. This country is strong. This country is free.”". canoe.ca, October 29, 2014.
  23. ^ "Wab Kinew". Penguin Random House Canada. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  24. ^ a b c d e "What we know so far about Wab Kinew's convictions, stayed charges." CBC News. 2017 September 24. Retrieved 2023-08-27.
  25. ^ "Second Annual Kobo Emerging Writer Prize Winners Announced". Kobo. June 21, 2016. Retrieved June 11, 2019. Camilla Gibb, Author and Non-Fiction Judge, says: 'Wab Kinew's story is a deeply moving memoir about the possibility of forgiveness and healing within a family, a community and a country coming to terms with the damaging legacy of the residential school system. The son of an Anishinaabe chief and a non-native woman, Kinew moves within two worlds, as did his father, both seeking to reconcile conflicting parts of selves shaped by different cultural forces. Wab Kinew's book is a gift to this country.'
  26. ^ "Wab Kinew celebrates Indigenous heroes with new children's book". The Kingston Whig-Standard. September 21, 2018. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
  27. ^ "Go Show the World". CBC. August 22, 2018. p. 1. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
  28. ^ ""Walking in Two Worlds by Wab Kinew"". September 14, 2021. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
  29. ^ July, Ashly (August 16, 2022). "Fonda Lee, Wab Kinew and Premee Mohamed among winners of 2022 Aurora Awards for science fiction and fantasy". CBC. p. 1.
  30. ^ "Wab Kinew eyes run for Assembly of First Nations chief". CBC News, May 20, 2014.
  31. ^ "Wab Kinew NDP’s candidate in Fort Rouge". Winnipeg Free Press, February 2, 2016.
  32. ^ "The Liberals say Kinew's social media comments, which surfaced earlier this week, are demeaning to women, gays and lesbians". Toronto Star. March 11, 2016. ISSN 0319-0781. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
  33. ^ "Selinger stands by Kinew". Sault Star. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
  34. ^ "Wab Kinew beats out Liberal leader Rana Bokhari to win in Fort Rouge". Global Manitoba, April 20, 2016.
  35. ^ "MLA's appointed as critics". Winnipeg Free Press, May 16, 2016.
  36. ^ a b https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/kinew-assault-ndp-1.4295906
  37. ^ "Manitoba NDP call on government to make Orange Shirt Day a statutory holiday". CTV News Winnipeg. November 26, 2021. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  38. ^ "Kinew Bill to Celebrate Sikh Heritage Month Passes in Legislature". Manitoba NDP. May 29, 2019. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  39. ^ "Bill 228 - Passed!". Sikh Heritage Manitoba. June 28, 2019. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  40. ^ "Manitoba NDP seek honorary premier title for Louis Riel". CBC. December 5, 2019.
  41. ^ "Manitoba Election: Incumbent premier Brian Pallister's full victory speech after PCs re-elected | Watch News Videos Online". Global News. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  42. ^ https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/election-sexism-racism-heather-stefanson-wab-kinew-1.6967223
  43. ^ "NDP's Kinew promises to boost health care, balance the budget". October 16, 2022.
  44. ^ "NDP to form majority government following historic Manitoba election". CTV News Winnipeg. October 3, 2023. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
  45. ^ "Wab Kinew makes history as Manitoba NDP projected to form government - Winnipeg | Globalnews.ca". CJOB. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
  46. ^ a b Martens, Kathleen. 2017 September 15. "Woman who made allegations of domestic assault against Wab Kinew speaks out." APTN News.
  47. ^ a b c Lambert, Steve. 2017 September 14. "Woman at centre of Wab Kinew domestic assault allegations says she was thrown." CBC News. The Canadian Press. Retrieved 2023-08-27.
  48. ^ https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/kinew-assault-ndp-1.4295906
  49. ^ Froese, Ian. 2019 August 14. "Raising Wab Kinew's troubled past makes sense, but still fraught with peril, political experts say." CBC News. 2017 September 24. Retrieved 2023-08-27.
  50. ^ a b "Manitoba NDP leadership candidate Wab Kinew addresses more brushes with law". TBNewsWatch.com. Canadian Press. August 18, 2017. Retrieved August 28, 2023.
  51. ^ Martin, Nick (September 20, 2017). "Sep 2017: Kinew sought pardon for crimes before running for office". Winnipeg Free Press.
  52. ^ "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  53. ^ CBC News (October 30, 2014). "Indigenous physician brings unique perspective to her practice". CBC.
  54. ^ CBC News (November 24, 2017). "NDP Leader Wab Kinew and wife expecting a baby". CBC.
  55. ^ "2019 Voting Area Maps and Station-by-Station Results" (PDF). Elections Manitoba. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
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