In a world where human rights discussions often focus on distant conflicts and international disputes, we can sometimes overlook the important work happening right here in Winnipeg.
Throughout 2024, "Humans, on Rights" sat down with local advocates, leaders, and changemakers who are transforming our city from the ground up.
These conversations revealed a vibrant ecosystem of human rights work happening in our own backyard – from cultural reclamation to harm reduction, from economic justice to freedom of expression. Here are a few of our favourite discussions you might have missed:
Centering Indigenous Voices and Wisdom
When Laura Brandon joined us to discuss Ribbon Skirt Day, she highlighted how cultural sharing can drive reconciliation forward: "It's reciprocal, the reconciliation work and the understanding and sharing of our culture. It goes back and forth, and the more it goes back and forth the more it advances."
This theme of Indigenous leadership continued in our conversation with Diane Roussin of the Winnipeg Boldness Project, who shared how the Winnipeg Boldness Project is working to bring indigenous-led solutions to our city. The project's approach? "Centering Indigenous wisdom, Indigenous perspectives, Indigenous value bases, Indigenous views of the world" in both identifying challenges and designing solutions.
Community Care and Harm Reduction
We've spent a lot of time talking about harm reduction and taking care of our community since our podcast launched, and 2024 was no different.
At Sunshine House, Levi Foy demonstrated how human rights work often starts with a simple premise: "The core value of harm reduction is that everyone has the right to live. We should all agree on that...that everyone's life has value."
The work Sunshine House and the Mobile Overdose Prevention Site do shows how providing space and resources enables people to make the best decisions for themselves and their community - a key conversation as we head into 2025 discussing consumption sites and other possible supports for our city's substance abuse crisis.
Language, Education, and Censorship
2024 saw intense debates about censorship, representation, and the role of language in shaping human rights.
South Central Regional Library's Cathy Ching, winner of the inaugural Human Rights Book Award, stood firm in her commitment to inclusive library spaces. As she pointedly noted, "If your child comes across a book that you're uncomfortable with, maybe that's a teachable moment for both of you."
This conversation about censorship continued with adult filmmaker Kate Sinclaire, who highlighted how attempts to silence certain voices often backfire: "In an effort to, quote-unquote stop exploitation, some groups will actually create the space where exploitation can happen."
On the topic of education, SERC’s J Fiedler challenged us to think differently about sex education, noting that "silence doesn't protect children," and that early education about consent has far-reaching positive impacts.
Former CBC host Carol Off explored how language itself shapes our rights discussions, urging us to examine how terms like "woke" are being weaponized against inclusion and equality.
Looking Forward
These conversations remind us that human rights work isn't just about grand gestures or international declarations – it's about the daily work of making our city more inclusive, equitable, and just. Through reconciliation, education, harm reduction and many other avenues, Winnipeggers are working to show how local action can create meaningful change.
Want to dive deeper into these conversations? "Humans, On Rights" is available wherever you get your podcasts or at humanrightshub.ca/podcast.