Wab Kinew

Wab Kinew
Member of the Legislative Assembly
for Fort Rouge
Assumed office
April 19, 2016
Preceded by Jennifer Howard
Personal details
Born (1981-12-31) December 31, 1981
Kenora, Ontario
Nationality Canadian
Political party New Democratic
Spouse(s) Lisa Monkman

Wabanakwut (Wab) Kinew (born December 31, 1981)[1] is a Canadian politician, musician, broadcaster and university administrator, best known as a host of programming on CBC Radio and CBC Television.[2]

Background

Originally from the Onigaming First Nation in Northwestern Ontario, he is the son of Tobasonakwut Kinew,[1] a former local and regional chief and a professor of indigenous governance at the University of Winnipeg, and Kathi Avery Kinew, a policy analyst.[3] Kinew moved to suburban Winnipeg with his parents in childhood and attended Collège Béliveau,[4] a French immersion school, and vacationed in Onigaming in the summers.[3] He graduated from the University of Winnipeg Collegiate[4] which Kinew said in a 2014 interview was "a private high school, one of the best in Winnipeg."[5] Kinew earned a B.A. in economics from the University of Manitoba.[4]

Career

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 topic.[1]

Kinew has been a reporter and host for the CBC's radio and television operations,[6] including the weekly arts magazine show The 204 in Winnipeg and the national documentary series 8th Fire in 2012.[2] He is also a host of the documentary program Fault Lines on Al Jazeera America.[7]

In 2014, he appeared as a panelist on CBC Radio's Canada Reads, defending Joseph Boyden's novel The Orenda.[8] The novel won the competition.

Kinew was a guest host of Q for two weeks in December 2014,[9] and moderated the 2015 edition of Canada Reads.[10]

Music

Kinew released his debut CD as a rapper, Live by the Drum, in 2009.[6] The CD won an Aboriginal Peoples Choice Music Award for Best Rap/Hip-Hop CD.[11] His second CD, Mide-Sun, followed in 2010.[12]

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.[11] In 2014, Kinew was appointed acting associate vice-president of Indigenous Affairs after Jennifer Rattray resigned the position.[1] He is also an honorary witness for the Indian Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation Commission.[1]

On October 25, 2014, Kinew received an honorary doctorate degree from Cape Breton University.[13]

Politics

He considered running for the leadership of the Assembly of First Nations in its 2014 leadership election,[14] but decided not to mount a campaign as he was newly married in August and felt it was not the right time to be away from home for an extended period.[1]

In 2016, he was announced as a Manitoba New Democratic Party candidate for Fort Rouge in the 2016 provincial election.[15] 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.[16][17] Kinew apologized for his past comments.

On April 19, 2016, Kinew defeated Manitoba Liberal leader Rana Bokhari in the riding of Fort Rouge.[18] He was subsequently named the NDP's spokesperson for reconciliation and critic for education, advanced learning, and training as well as housing and community development.[19]

Writing

Kinew has written two books, a personal memoir and a children's book about notable figures in First Nations history, which were published by Penguin Canada in 2015.[1] The memoir, The Reason You Walk, chronicles the year 2012, during which Kinew strove to reconnect with the aboriginal man who raised him. The Globe & Mail reviewer 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."

Public speaking

Kinew is a public speaker currently represented by the National Speakers Bureau in Canada and the Global Speakers Agency internationally.[20]

Personal life

Kinew recounts that he "experienced racially motivated assaults by adults" during his time growing up in suburban Winnipeg.[3] In 2003, Kinew received a DUI conviction.[3] Kinew has since quit drinking and is seeking a pardon from the Canadian government to expunge his criminal record.[3] Kinew is married to Lisa Monkman, a family physician who practises medicine at an inner-city clinic,[4] and has two sons from a previous relationship.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Wab Kinew: behind the voice of CBC’s Q guest host". Toronto Star, December 15, 2014.
  2. 1 2 "CBC series 8th Fire aims to dispel native stereotypes". Toronto Star, January 17, 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "The accidental journalist: Wab Kinew emerges as contender to host Q". The Globe and Mail, December 19, 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Kinew might be in queue to host Q: Guest spot last month piqued his interest" Winnipeg Free Press, January 9, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Wab Kinew discusses education at Thunder Bay orientation". Wawatay News, September 18, 2014.
  6. 1 2 "Aboriginal rapper, CBC host has plenty to say". Winnipeg Free Press, January 24, 2009.
  7. ↑ "Canadian journalists Ali Velshi, Wab Kinew join Al Jazeera America". The Canadian Journalism Project, April 9, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Joseph Boyden's novel The Orenda wins CBC's Canada Reads contest". Edmonton Journal, March 6, 2014.
  9. ↑ "CBC ponders new name for ‘Q’ in light of Jian Ghomeshi scandal". CityNews, November 12, 2014.
  10. ↑ "Canada Reads 2015: One book to break barriers". CBC Books, November 19, 2014.
  11. 1 2 "UWinnipeg names first Director of Indigenous Inclusion". University of Winnipeg, October 4, 2012.
  12. ↑ Manitowapow: Aboriginal Writings from the Land of Water. Portage & Main Press, 2013. ISBN 978-1-55379-307-6. p. 384.
  13. ↑ David Akin, "Wab Kinew: “This country is true. This country is strong. This country is free.”". canoe.ca, October 29, 2014.
  14. ↑ "Wab Kinew eyes run for Assembly of First Nations chief". CBC News, May 20, 2014.
  15. ↑ "Wab Kinew NDP’s candidate in Fort Rouge". Winnipeg Free Press, February 2, 2016.
  16. ↑ "The Liberals say Kinew's social media comments, which surfaced earlier this week, are demeaning to women, gays and lesbians.". Toronto Star. 2016-03-11. ISSN 0319-0781. Retrieved 2016-03-14.
  17. ↑ "Selinger stands by Kinew". Sault Star. Retrieved 2016-03-14.
  18. ↑ "Wab Kinew beats out Liberal leader Rana Bokhari to win in Fort Rouge". Global Manitoba, April 20, 2016.
  19. ↑ "MLA's appointed as critics". Winnipeg Free Press, May 16, 2016.
  20. ↑ "Wab Kinew | Aboriginal Speaker | National Speakers Bureau". National Speakers Bureau. Retrieved 2015-10-16.
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