Join us Thursday, March 14 from 6 to 7 p.m. for Bletcher Hour, the Gallery’s monthly critical reading group.

Readings explore key themes of the exhibitions and current events, with the intent to deepen our understanding of the artworks and their context within our community. This month we will be reading the essay “Welcome to Winnipeg: Making Settler Colonial Urban Space in ‘Canada’s Most Racist City’” by Heather Dorries. Heather Dorries is of Anishinaabe and settler ancestry and a member of Sagkeeng First Nation in Treaty 1. She is an Assistant Professor jointly appointed to the Department of Geography and Planning and Centre for Indigenous Studies at the University of Toronto. In the essay, Dorries analyzes the controversial 2015 McLean’s Article “Welcome to Winnipeg: Where Canada’s Racism Problem Is at Its Worst.” The article analyzes the article itself and the reaction to it, exploring the limitations of damage-focused reporting of racism. This essay is featured in the book Settler City Limits: Indigenous Resurgence and Colonial Violence in the Urban Prairie West. This book was recommended by curator Noa Bronstein, who curated our current exhibition Structural Integrity. This program is free to attend.

Please contact Heather Kehoe, Program & Event Coordinator, to register. Readings are sent as PDFs in advance of the event. If you cannot make it in person, online attendance options are available. Please note that this month's essay discusses injustices done to Indigenous peoples in Canada, including racism, enforced social and economic inequality and the ongoing human rights crisis of missing and murdered indigenous women - specifically the death of Tina Lafontaine. If you would like to discuss any content in advance of the program please contact Heather Kehoe.