New book celebrates over 100 Indigenous athletes from Manitoba
CBC
A new book celebrating the history of over 100 Indigenous athletes from Manitoba is being touted as a direct response to one of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's 94 Calls to Action.
"I think it's really important that we educate and build awareness through these stories of athletes and teams that have come before us," said Kevin Chief, a former MLA and basketball star.
Chief, who is Anishinaabe-Métis from Duck Bay, Man. about 330 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg, is featured in A History of Excellence, The Untold Stories of Manitoba's Indigenous Sport, published by the Manitoba Aboriginal Sports and Recreation Council (MASRC).
In the book, Chief shares what it was like growing up in Winnipeg's North End, and how he found his passion for basketball.
He went on to win provincial championships in junior high and high school, and eventually became a three-time CIS/Great Plains Athletic Conference All Star.
"Back then, it was always easier just to not remind people that you were Indigenous, you know, even though my last name was self-evident," said Chief.
"I was always more proud to identify as an athlete first than I was Indigenous, because we didn't celebrate a lot of the accomplishments and highlight enough stories about the success of Indigenous people."