In Winnipeg’s downtown area, a group of volunteers came together to create a space uniquely their own. Carla Taylor, Nix Cristobal Calma, and Bre Cristobal Calma co-founded Matter Manitoba. The volunteer-run organization has the mandate to promote and celebrate Two-Spirit, Queer, and Trans Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (2SQTBIPOC) art and community.
Taylor says this mandate was their top priority, with 2SQTBIPOC individuals historically underrepresented in art and literature.
“Well, to our knowledge, there are no other dedicated spaces in the community that centre around art, literature, and community space. And one of the things we said was, why not? Why not more? Why not another space? Why not something centring and celebrating a community that has so many extremely talented and gifted individuals who are often marginalized or overlooked or just do not have the same opportunities as some of the folks who are white or straight?”
Although change has occurred, physical and systematic barriers continue to exist for those in the 2SQTBIPOC community. Here in Canada, research indicates that lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals earn lower incomes, have greater rates of workplace discrimination, and encounter obstacles in securing and advancing in employment compared to those who identify as heterosexual.
Taylor says that representation and community spaces can alleviate some of these barriers and open new opportunities.
“Growing up, there really weren’t a lot of queer spaces and certainly, not a lot that centred around my Indigenous identity at the time. Even the term Two-Spirit wasn’t really used at the time. And so just the idea that there could be something like that was so revolutionary to all of us,” shares Taylor. “Nix, Bre, and myself spoke about the idea of creating something that we’ve never seen, that we could have only wished. And then we realized, well, we can, we can do that now. We can offer that to the community.”
The plans for a community art gallery and library are just the beginning, explains Taylor, with plans for queer community programming led by the community itself.
Programming led and chosen through community consensus is incredibly appealing for France Richards. Richards is new to the Winnipeg community and says having a place like this as a Red River Métis and queer individual is empowering. Recently getting involved with beadwork, their mind is spinning with ideas of community engagement through art.
“I’ve worked in galleries before and different kinds of spaces where I find it so difficult not to touch or interact with art, or you see something that has movement, and you just want to play with it. I think art can be inherently playful, but it’s always kind of so stifled by certain spaces,” says Richards. “Like, come play with it, come mess it up. Let’s just do it in a way that everyone can get involved and build on it and see, see where it goes.”
At its holiday market, Matter Manitoba had a community engagement table asking people interested in facilitating teaching workshops, teaching skills, running classes, and volunteering in some way. According to Taylor, there is significant interest in people running programming and individuals asking for things they would like to see. Taylor says their next steps will be coordinating to make some of these requests a reality.
Whether someone has lived in Winnipeg their whole life or is new to the country and looking for a connection, Taylor encourages them to reach out, share their ideas, and come to events. They are welcome at Matter Manitoba.
– Ryan Funk, U Multicultural
