Below is a statement I've publicly posted on Facebook and Instagram. I'd like to share it with everyone who has signed or is considering signing this petition.
Last night I had to witness a friend deal with the aftermath of an ongoing campaign of harassment directed at her. Her only mistake was standing up for herself when they fired her without cause, (I'm a labour activist, union, I witnessed this and know it to be true). This is what Pitikwé is under it's current leadership.
There are very few if any people left that are working towards the greater good there. The ones that are still there are being pushed out as fast as the board and their current manager can remove them.
The behavior coming from that park this last week has been some of the most erratic and hateful stuff I've ever seen.
To the Board and their supporters, I genuinely hope that the more level headed of you can see through the gaslighting and do the right thing. There's a community ready to support you if it's a fear thing. It's never to late to become a better person.
Neil
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https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AfCkwv9gz/
My name is Neil and I’m a skater of four decades, one who actually still skates.
Skateboarding has always been a refuge for me, me and a lot of others from my generation and the generations to follow. It’s a place to go to work out the anger, to release creativity and to be amongst the freaks and geeks that just didn’t fit in anywhere else. We have each other’s backs unquestionably, when one of us falls we pick each other up.
Last year a call went out. Winnipeg needed an indoor space to house our skater community. The edge had failed to provide sanctuary for a really long time and change was needed. I answered the call in solidarity with my community to brute force this space into existence.
Pitikwé was born from this. In true skateboarding fashion we were all welcome. It was such an incredible feeling seeing that opening day and all the smiles that came with it, the excitement and the feeling of hope. I hit 50 years, riding the mini.
For the next year I gave my heart and soul to Pitikwé. I fundraised, lobbied and brought in much needed funding. I built relationships with likeminded organizations and saw people at their best. Last March I gave my left arm to it as well. I took a permanent disability in my volunteer work that has had a dramatic impact on my day to day life.
Until two weeks ago I had no regrets, but it was all an illusion. I’m guilty of being blind to the reality of some things and in hind sight it’s always so clear.
I was witness to some of the worst things I have ever seen in the skateboarding world. Campaigns of serious harassment and hate, labour violations, conflicts of interest, and pettiness at a level that I didn’t know could exist in humanity. This park has left such a shocking trail of tears and trauma. I’m still trying to process the testimonies I’ve heard in the last couple weeks.
I really don’t know how I didn’t see it sooner. I guess I just wanted it to be as real as it was in my mind.
I woke up to reality when this amazing person got fired in one of the worst ways possible. I’ve long been a staunch labour activist and this was the line in the sand.
This was Edge 2.0. A park that is inclusive to everyone. Just not you. Just not me. Just not the skateboarding community that was already a sanctuary to all us outcasts.
I’m so utterly heartbroken that I was a part of this.
For this reason I sought out and found a shockingly larger community than I expected, who were of like mind. We shared our experiences, we shared that bond that only exists amongst skateboarders who have well and truly lived it.
I then formed this community into a call of action and started the Pitikwé Skatepark Transition Committee. A community of many, dedicated to taking back our space, and if we fail we’ll make a new one. We’ve done it once, we’ll do it again.
We are organized, there’s structure, long term planning with expertise that will take us into longevity.
Sign the petition and share it as well, this is just the start. The Edge 2.0 has no place in our world.