The Three Rules of Fight Clubs in Winnipeg
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FREE.WEEKLY. VOLUME VOLUME 74 // ISSUE 15 // JAN. 23 THE THREE RULES OF FIGHT CLUBS IN WINNIPEG HighligHting common aspEcts in WinnipEg's divERsE combat spoRt scEnEs Public arT exPlores lockouTs highlighT hosTile TargeTed ads and new MéTis hisTorY P5 labour environMenTs P11 Year's resoluTions P14 The official newspaper of The UniversiTy of winnipeg 2 The uniTer // january 23, 2020 LET'S TALK on the cover Martial artist candace daher is one of many winnipeggers using combat ABOUT FIGHT sports as part of their cultural life and fitness routine. CLUB! read more on page 7. Chuck Pahlaniuk’s 1996 novel Fight Club and the 1999 film adaptation by David Fincher offered pointed critiques of toxic masculinity, back before the term “toxic masculinity” had entered the zeitgeist. The characters used violence to exorcise their own frustrated sense of manhood and lash out at a society that they feel has “emasculated” them. That’s grim and gruesome. No wonder no one wanted to talk about fight club. Who would’ve wanted to hang out with those machismo- obsessed goons in the first place? In this week’s issue of The Uniter, our arts and culture reporter Naaman Sturrup offers a look at communities in Winnipeg offering a decidedly cooler idea of a “fight club.” By speaking to folks from the city’s various combat sports scenes, including Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Isshin-Ryu karate and professional wrestling, Naaman showcases how Winnipeggers are using these sports to stay active and have fun in productive, non-violent ways. Unlike the reactionary vision of a “fight club” presented in Fincher’s film, we explore the ways in which these scenes are striving to become more inclusive, more diverse and more welcoming. Winnipeg’s various wrestling promotions have made pioneering efforts to make their shows safer spaces, and Winnipegger- turned-international wrestling superstar Kenny Omega has used his platform to centre queer stories in wrestling in a completely new way. The world of 2020 looks a lot different than that of Fight Club. People seem to be a lot less sulky about IKEA and Starbucks. People are finding new, positive ways to engage with fighting for fun. Yet, somehow, Brad Pitt still rocks the shirtless look like no one else. —Thomas Pashko follow us on social media PhoTo bY callie lugosi @ThEUniter @ThEUniter fAcEbOOk.cOM/ Prairie studio glass, a glass art studio founded in 1978 by lucinda doran and brian McMillan, focuses on producing quality art while also giving back to their Theuniter community. read more on page 4. UNITER STAFF Staff photographer AND ONlINE content co-ordinator contrIbutorS contacT us SUbmissions CorrEctions callie lugosi » [email protected] MANAgINg Editor Thomas Pashko » [email protected] STAFF PHOTOgRAPHER COMIC General INquiries Submissions of articles, letters, In the Jan. 16 article Business MANAgER keeley braunstein-black » [email protected] keegan steele 204.988.7579 graphics and photos are ”Strategizing for instability,“ VACANT STAFF Illustrator photographer [email protected] encouraged, however all new we referred to the Manitoba gabrielle Funk » [email protected] kayla stensland www.uniter.ca contributors (with the exception of Eco Network by the acronym CreativE director letters to the editor) must attend MEN. 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We also reserve the right to edit for length/style. ARTS Whose House? RYLAND BIRD’S HOUSE PhoTos bY keeleY braunsTein-black ryland bird in his home WELCOME TO THE 1) a quaLitY sEtup “Wii U, regular Wii, a Switch, Xbox 360, gamer’s den PlayStation 3 and 4, that’s kind of our arsenal.” KEESHA HAREWOOD 2) Food at tHE REadY FeAtUreS rePORTER @KeeShAhAreWooD “With four people living in the house, our one fridge in the kitchen was not For many gamers, it’s important to have a enough … that one we got from one space to settle down and get comfortable of our old roommate’s grandfather’s.” before diving headfirst into a video game. Ryland Bird has just that space. 3) it’s bob Ross! “It’s a little bit of everything,” he says. “When I’m not at work, it’s not like I’m “He’s a very peaceful guy. He only itching to get out of the house. I’ll go out means good things.” and do stuff with my friends, but I don’t mind being at home, because there’s so 4) a LittLE RuFF aRound much to do here.” tHE EdgEs When Bird’s not at home playing video “The Chance the Rapper one I actually games with his three other roommates, got from a university in Nova Scotia, he works as the director of community but it’s a little chewed up by the dog.” outreach for the Manitoba Esports Association. “I have been a part of the Manitoba 5) HomEmadE computER 1 2 Esports Association for a little bit under a “For my entirety of high school, I was year now,” Bird says. on a MacBook Pro … and then I finally “I focus a lot on (the) community upgraded.” aspect. I reach out to different schools, different programs to see if there's any 6) maKEsHiFt cuRtains interest or anything that we can help “It’s more because I don’t have out with in regards to setting up either events or more focus on esports in the curtains. Keeps the sun out in the community.” morning.” Bird is excited for the future of the Manitoba Esports Association and 7) HiddEn Loot 3 4 particularly for an upcoming event “That’s kind of all our collections of happening this summer. stuff, but it’s pretty layered in there “We’re partnered with the Red River as well.” Exhibition this year. So we're going to be putting on 10 day events come June,” he says. “We’re going to have a lounge there and have a bunch of different games set up, and on weekends we’re having live events for our esports semifinals and finals for a league that we’re putting on.” The ultimate goal is to expand the esports scene in Manitoba. “There is a lot of demand for esports here that really isn’t recognized a whole lot,” Bird says. “I see so much potential for the future.” 5 6 7 4 The uniTer // january 23, 2020 GLASSICAllY BEAUTIFUL glass art studio brightens community HAnnAH foulgeR @FoUlgerScovFeFe ArtS AnD cUltUre rePorter Prairie Studio Glass glitters on the corner of At Prairie Studio Glass, they also teach Sargent Avenue and Sherbrook Street in the courses on fused and stained glass for dif- West End. The glass art studio, founded in ferent skill levels, offering six-week inten- 1978 by Lucinda Doran and Brian McMil- sives or one-day workshops. lan, focuses on producing quality art while “We’ve designed the classes to be accom- also giving back to the community. modating to anybody,” McMillan says. The Following Doran’s retirement last sum- classroom and the workstations are wheel- mer, her son Matthew McMillan now leads chair accessible, and the courses have been the studio, but he says “we don’t advertise made available to blind or deaf students. ourselves as individual artists. We are Prai- “The classic studio mentality has always rie Studio Glass.” been to be very guarded about all the The Prairie Studio Glass building con- information that you have developed over tains a store, a classroom where they teach the years, and to give that information to PhoTo bY callie lugosi courses on glass art and a full artist studio. someone off the street is obviously a lit- Stained-glass pieces hang in the window of Prairie Studio glass on Sargent Avenue. The store sells “everything you need to tle troubling for most studios. (But now) do glass as a hobbyist or artist,” Matthew we’re focusing on producing well-designed McMillan says. The studio is where they artwork and setting the bar for Canada in handcrafted and numbered,” McMillan year’s Inukshuk ornament as “standing on create original or commissioned pieces, as glass art,” McMillan says.