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After years in a gang, addiction and 17 months in custody, Sean Rayland-Boubar, an Anishinaabe entrepreneur from Sagkeeng First Nation, built Red Rebel Armour, a Winnipeg streetwear company that hires people leaving the justice system. He's giving others the second chance he had to fight for, while still facing many of the same barriers they do. Sean tells Stuart why the gangs have always had one advantage over every employment program: they'll put you to work the day you get out. Red Rebel Armour is his attempt to match that low barrier to entry with work that leads somewhere better. We're talking: Why transportation, not a criminal record, is often the biggest barrier to employmentHow flexibility and accountability work together in second-chance hiringHow jail can feed gang recruitment instead of ending itReconciliation, from treaty obligations to residential school denialism onlineThe personal costs of being a cycle breaker Sean also shares the story behind Red Rebel Armour's Every Child Matters design, which creates seasonal jobs each September and funds donations to local organizations. He closes by reflecting on the documentary about his work with Elder Lionel Houston, with a message for anyone in prison who believes their life is over: "Whatever you're going through is just a season." Watch the "Pain into Purpose" documentary Visit the Red Rebel Armour website

When Dr. Lorena Sekwan Fontaine was a child, her aunts and uncles would turn their backs or leave the room whenever they spoke Cree. She thought they were hiding something from her. They were: the language itself, learned the hard way in residential schools, where speaking it meant being hit. That memory sits at the centre of this conversation with Stuart Murray, a wide-ranging look at what Fontaine calls linguicide, the deliberate killing of a language, and what it means for Canada's human rights obligations today. Fontaine, a lawyer and professor and head of Indigenous Studies at the University of Manitoba, traces her path from a childhood split between English at home and Cree overheard in secret, to a legal career built on the realization that Canadian law had no real framework for what residential school survivors had lost. Section 35 of the Constitution recognized Aboriginal and treaty rights, but on language, she says, it was "an empty box." She and Stuart also dig into why the Indigenous Languages Act, which now folds language rights into Section 35, is a real step forward but still leaves Indigenous language rights far weaker in practice than the constitutionally entrenched rights of English and French speakers, particularly in education. We're talking: Why Fontaine resists the term "linguicide" becoming a place where the conversation gets stuck, when the real goal is moving forwardThe gap between Section 35's language protections and the constitutionally entrenched rights of English and French speakersHer own daughter's education, and the choice to enroll her in French immersion when no Cree or Ojibwe option existedWhether Orange Shirt Day is driving structural change or settling into symbolismHer vision for twenty-five years from now: Indigenous languages on street signs and spoken at the counter, not just in the classroom Read Fontaine's book, Living Language Rights: Constitutional Pathways to Indigenous Language Education, and watch the CBC documentary Undoing Linguicide, drawn from her doctoral research.

Winnipeg designer, artist, and storyteller Lennard Taylor joins Stuart Murray to talk about clothing as identity, not just fabric. Lennard traces his path from a soccer career cut short by injury to two decades of painting, sewing, and dressing people out of his studio and boutique on Sherbrooke Street. Lennard pushes back against fast fashion, arguing that most people have lost the basic skill and instinct of dressing themselves with intention. He talks about his "bloodline" signature, a red stripe stitched into many of his garments as a symbol that everyone bleeds the same blood regardless of skin colour or language. He names his pieces after real Winnipeg clients — the Catherine pant, the Brenda Swing shirt — because his designs are, in his words, built from real community relationships, not abstractions. Much of the conversation is about zero waste: free repair workshops that teach basic skills like sewing on a button, turning worn or memory-laden clothing into sculpture instead of landfill, and a longer-term vision for turning textile waste into building material for housing. He closes on why community matters to him as a father, entrepreneur, and artist. We're talking: Fast fashion versus intentional, longer-lasting wardrobesThe "bloodline" signature and its human rights meaningZero waste, repair, and turning old clothing into art Connect with Lennard or find out about his upcoming sustainability events at LennardTaylor.com

Johise Namwira joins Stuart to talk about what it means to bring the National Black Canadian Summit to Winnipeg, and why she sees it as a movement rather than a moment. Namwira came to Winnipeg as a child after her family fled the Congo War, and later studied African studies at Oxford, a path that shapes how she talks about displacement, memory, and who gets left out of Canadian history. This is the furthest west the summit has ever travelled, and Namwira is direct about why: Winnipeg has a rich, historically underrepresented Black community, one with its own layered history most residents don't know. She points to a Manitoba mayor who once told Black migrants moving west that they had to leave, part of a longer story that includes the Underground Railroad and Africville, and one she says has to be reckoned with before "solutions" mean anything. That history runs alongside a present she's proud of: organizations like Black History Manitoba and the Congress of Black Women of Manitoba, which was founded in Winnipeg and went on to spark a national movement. The third summit, held in Halifax, produced a founding document for this whole movement: over 100 calls to action for governments, institutions, and communities, built on three pillars: recognition, justice, and development. It opens with the Sankofa bird from Ghana, a symbol for looking back while still moving forward. Namira calls it required reading before this summit, and this year's panel lineup is built directly on those pillars: Systemic justice and community-based reformHousing barriers facing Black communitiesAI and technology, and the push for anti-bias systemsA session pairing Indigenous and Black leaders in direct conversation Namwira closes with a message aimed squarely at young people: they're not the leaders of tomorrow, they're the leaders of today, and Winnipeg is already proving it, from the African Cup of Nations to local choirs, artist collectives, and creative networks she names one after another. Tickets are free for anyone under 30. There are 150 volunteer spots open across the weekend, and table sponsorships available for the opening ceremony. Whatever your age, check out the summit September 18-20, 2026, at the RBC Convention Centre. Register for the summit here.

Indigenous Tourism Manitoba's work runs in two directions at once: on one side, indigenous business owners who need support getting market ready, connected to funders, and connected to each other. On the other, a public that often can't name a single indigenous-owned business. As CEO, Holly Spence has spent her career building the links on both sides, work she ties directly to what reconciliation actually requires. We're talking: Holly's own experience learning to walk between two systems, from Peguis First Nation to the city, and what that taught her about the barriers other business owners faceA persistent myth about who pays taxes, and what the numbers actually showTourism as a form of self-determination: who controls the story determines who profits from itHer case for why indigenous-led tourism might be the strongest driver of reconciliation in the province Holly also talks about what it took to get here, including a system that wouldn't count $400,000 in business equipment as collateral because it sat on reserve land. But the throughline of the conversation is bigger than her own path: it's about who gets to tell the story of a place, and who profits when they do. Learn more about Indigenous Tourism Manitoba

Kate Sjoberg has been calling for more housing in Winnipeg since long before she became Executive Director of Resource Assistance for Youth (RaY). With over two decades in community development and nonprofit leadership, including prior roles at the Wrench, North Point Douglas Women's Centre, the Spence Neighbourhood Association, and Main Street Project, she's seen the city's homelessness response from nearly every angle. Her assessment of the city's encampment policy is blunt: the map of where people can't go covers nearly the whole city, and the recent sweeps at Main and Logan broke trust in the very place Winnipeg told people to come for help. In this episode, Kate discusses: The city's encampment policy map: nearly all of Winnipeg marked red with places people can't goWhy housing people faster than "the speed of trust" fails, sometimes within four hoursThe recent sweeps at Main and Logan, and why Kate calls them indefensibleHow decades of government pullback built a sector expected to perform miracles on underfunded budgetsFrom the AIDS crisis to the toxic drug supply: the quiet movement keeping Winnipeggers alive Get involved: Get trained on how to administer naloxone - Nahuen Consultation is running community drug poisoning training sessions this summer.Learn more about the Right to Housing CoalitionSupport Resource Assistance for Youth (RaY)

What does it mean to "age out" of a support system? For Manitobans with disabilities, it means renegotiating your entire life at 18, at 21, at 65 - arbitrary ages set by government departments that don't talk to each other. David Kron, executive director of the Cerebral Palsy Association of Manitoba, joins Stuart Murray to talk about “Equality, Dignity, and Belonging: Building a Better System for People with Disabilities in Manitoba” - the landmark report he helped steer through a five-year pilot project born from a human rights complaint that started a decade ago. The report's conclusion is blunt: Manitoba's disability support system is failing many of the people it was designed to serve. David, who has cerebral palsy himself, doesn't frame this as a funding fight. It's an access fight - and a human rights problem. In this episode, David shares: • How an IQ score of 70 became the gatekeeper for support in Manitoba, and why David argues you shouldn't test for services based on IQ, period. • The difference between a resource problem and an access problem - and why David refuses to have the funding conversation until people can even get on the list. • Charity versus rights: what changes when disability supports stop being something you have to prove you deserve. • What happens after December 16, 2026: the deadline that decides whether this report becomes generational change or a human rights hearing. Nearly 29% of Manitobans identify as having a disability. As David puts it, if we all live long enough, we're all going to join the club - and services shouldn't depend on how well you or your parents can advocate. Read the report Learn more about the Cerebral Palsy Association of Manitoba

\When Harvest Manitoba opened in 1985, it was meant to be temporary. A stopgap for a rough economic patch. Today, they serve 1,200 families a day, and 30% of them have jobs. Stuart Murray sits down with Vince Barletta, President and CEO of Harvest Manitoba, to talk about what that shift means, and what it would actually take to build a Manitoba where the food bank isn't a permanent fixture. In this episode, Vince shares: Why 30% of people coming to food banks in Manitoba today are employed, and what that shift means for how we understand food insecurityHarvest Manitoba's journey toward indigenous reconciliation, including serving nine remote fly-in First Nations communities and a new indigenous-led urban food bank coming soon in partnership with the Ma Mawi Wi Chi Itata CentreThe scale of Canada's food waste problem ($50 billion annually) and the Manitoba Food Transformation Centre Harvest is working to build As Vince puts it: "It takes a province to feed a province." Get Involved: Visit harvestmanitoba.ca to volunteer, donate, or learn more about partnering with Harvest Manitoba.Read Harvest Voices, Harvest Manitoba's annual community survey on food insecurity.

When governments can override the Charter before a court even looks at it, who's left to protect the people who can't protect themselves at the ballot box? Winnipeg labour and human rights lawyer Dayna Steinfeld joins Stuart to break down one of the most consequential constitutional debates in Canada right now: the expanding use of the notwithstanding clause, and what Manitoba's Bill 4 is trying to do about it. Provinces like Alberta and Saskatchewan are invoking Section 33 to push through so-called "parental rights" legislation: restricting access to gender-affirming care, controlling names and pronouns at school, limiting sports participation. Legislation that physicians say causes measurable harm. And some governments aren't waiting for courts to weigh in. They're invoking the clause preemptively, with the argument that courts aren't even allowed to look at it afterward. Manitoba's Bill 4 is a direct response to that. It would make court review mandatory any time the province invokes the override, keeping the judiciary in the conversation even when government has the last word. We're talking: What the notwithstanding clause is and how its use has shifted dramatically since 2018Why Alberta's "parental rights" legislation almost certainly violates the Charter — and why the government invoked the clause anywayWhy this isn't only a trans rights issueWhy "just vote them out" fails when the people most affected are children, or minorities without electoral powerWhat Bill 4 does, and why it matters that a future government could repeal it Dayna also shares how growing up in Winnipeg and studying the General Strike — particularly the role of immigrant and Jewish communities, and the women who helped sustain it — set her on the path to labour and human rights law.

As we move into Pride month, Ralph Bryant returns to Humans, On Rights. This time, the Rainbow Resource Center's Manager of Stewardship sits down with Stuart to dig into The State of 2SLGBTQ+ Communities in Manitoba 2026 — the first report of its kind in Manitoba. This report surveyed 623 queer Manitobans alongside 1,000 members of the general public. It provides, for the first time, a true snapshot of the experiences, needs and priorities of queer Manitobans, as well as the state of allyship among straight Manitobans. The findings paint a picture of a community that is resilient and connected — but still navigating serious gaps in mental health, safety, and acceptance. We're talking: Why mental health ranked as the number one issue facing 2SLGBTQ+ communities in Manitoba by a wide margin, and what's driving itWhat it means that 54% of Manitobans believe gender ideology has "gone too far"The striking gap between soft and strong support for 2SLGBTQ+ legal protectionsThe candid "In Their Own Words" section of the report, where queer Manitobans name systemic exclusion within queer spaces themselvesThe single data point Ralph most wants to see change when the survey is done again The full report — including key findings and complete data — is available at rainbowresourcecentre.org/reports Get Involved: Download and share the State of the Queer reportConnect with Rainbow Resource Centre's Learning and Change department if your organization wants to work toward a more authentic and inclusive cultureVolunteer with Camp Aurora (sleepaway camp) or Spirit Day CampAttend or support Rainbow Resource Centre's community programs and social groups

Following Red Dress Day earlier this month, Stuart sits down with KC Adams, a Cree and Anishinaabe relational maker, curator, writer and educator based in Winnipeg, whose work uses photography, installation and public art to explore identity, cultural reclamation and the ongoing impacts of colonialism. KC brings both lived experience and creative practice to a rich conversation about Red Dress Day, the evolution of Jamie Black's iconic installation at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, and what it really means to make art as an act of advocacy and community uplift. We're talking: Why national recognition of missing and murdered Indigenous women, Two Spirit people, and men matters so deeplyWhy KC prefers the term "relational maker" over "artist," and how Western art terminology fails to honour Indigenous ways of knowing, creating and being in relationshipThe story behind the reimagined Sky Woman installation at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, and how KC and Jamie Black collaborated to shift the conversation from awareness toward action and ceremonyWhat meaningful allyship looks like, and why KC believes moving forward requires bringing people into the circle, not pushing them away Learn more about KC Adams and her work at kcadams.net Learn more about the Red Dress Project by Jamie Black Visit the Canadian Museum for Human Rights to see the Sky Woman installation in person.

Adrian Alfonso has been building trails in Winnipeg since he was a kid ripping around on a BMX bike in South Osborne. Today, he's a cyclist, trail builder, Indigenous advocate, and founder of Clear Paths, a program that uses cycling routes and green spaces as a framework for Truth and Reconciliation education. Stuart sits down with Adrian to talk about what trails can teach us, what it means to be a contemporary First Nations person in Winnipeg, and why the land beneath our wheels has a lot more to say than most of us realize. We're talking: How Adrian's childhood on the "monkey trails" became the foundation for a life of advocacy What Clear Paths is, and how it leads participants through a guided experience of language, relationship, and reconciliation The idea that a good trail connects the best places together, and how that philosophy shapes his approach to community building His concept of "my truth plus your truth equals reconciliation," and what active listening actually looks like in practice Connect with Adrian on Instagram Connect with the Clear Paths program on Instagram

Stuart Murray sits down with Winnipeg writer, filmmaker, and environmental advocate Erna Buffie. After more than two decades producing science documentaries for CBC's The Nature of Things, Erna has turned her attention closer to home — documenting why Winnipeg's urban forest is in crisis, and what it will take to save it. Her book Out on a Limb makes the case that trees aren't a civic amenity. They're essential infrastructure. We're talking: Why Winnipeg — despite its iconic canopy of elms — scores among the lowest of major Canadian cities for greenness, and what's driving that declineThe health benefits of urban trees and the argument for treating trees as infrastructure: for every $1 invested in a tree, the city sees $6 in benefitsWhy "we'll just plant more" isn't the answer — and why it takes a minimum of 10 years for a sapling to deliver even a fraction of what a mature tree providesThe case for a private tree bylaw — why more than 700 cities have passed them, and why Winnipeg has been reluctant to follow As Erna puts it, trees aren't just a pretty way to beautify a city. They cool the air, capture pollutants, absorb rainwater, support biodiversity, and help us build the kind of climate resilience we're going to need. The science is clear. What's missing is political will. “Out on a Limb” is out now. There will be a book launch event on Wednesday May 20, 7:00 pm, at McNally Robinson in Grant Park Check out Out on a Limb Learn more about Trees Please Winnipeg

On this episode of Humans, On Rights, we sit down with Suzanne Winterflood, Program Manager of WISE Kinetic Energy — Manitoba's largest STEM outreach program. What started over 35 years ago as a small group of professors working to bring more girls into science and engineering has grown into a province-wide initiative reaching over 43,000 young people a year. And yet, Suzanne is the first to admit: the needle hasn't moved nearly as far as it should have. This conversation gets into what equitable access to STEM education actually looks like — and what keeps getting in the way. We're talking: Why early exposure to STEM matters most, and why grades 8 and 9 are such a critical turning point for girlsThe barriers specific to Black and Indigenous youth in accessing STEM education and careersWhy WISE Kinetic Energy is building toward land-based, culturally specific programming for Indigenous youthThe role of undergraduate students as near-peer role models — and why that model worksHow AI hype is pulling government funding away from the foundational, youth-focused work that actually builds the next generation of workers WISE Kinetic Energy website

On this episode of Humans, On Rights, we sit down with Bruno de Oliveira Jayme, a Brazilian-born artist, educator, and community arts practitioner who has spent 25 years making Canada his home. Now a full professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba, Bruno brings together curriculum theory, arts-based research, and a deep commitment to social justice. His work explores what happens when art stops being decoration and starts becoming dissent. Bruno introduces us to the concept of "artivism" — the intersection of art and activism — and makes the case that creative expression is not a softer substitute for protest, but a distinct and powerful tool for surfacing stories, building collective identity, and opening space for conversations that more traditional forms of advocacy often can't reach. We're discussing: How Bruno's upbringing in Brazil during the end of a military dictatorship first opened his eyes to art as a political forceThe roots of community art and artivism in the social movements of the late 1960s and '70s — from the Black movement and second-wave feminism to the landless movement in Latin AmericaWhy art is uniquely capable of addressing difficult issues "in a light manner" — and why that accessibility matters for movements like environmental justiceHis advice to aspiring artivist students: start with what you know, what you're struggling with, what you're hopeful for. Bring that to your community, and think together, collectively, about what you can do next. Bruno's website (edited)