Community organizations are commending a book that takes a deep dive into hockey culture and hope it will spur meaningful conversations surrounding mental health, harmful behaviours, and consent.
The Book Keeper has organized an event with award-winning journalist Rick Westhead to discuss his book We Breed Lions: Confronting Canada’s Troubled Hockey Culture.
The event - held in partnership with the Sarnia Community Foundation, The Centre Sarnia-Lambton, The Male Alley Coalition, St. Clair Child & Youth, Face Off for Mental Health, and George, Murray, Shipley, Bell LLP - will be held at Great Lakes Secondary School on Wednesday, October 7.
St. Clair Child & Youth Executive Director Craig McKenzie said the book covers sensitive topics, particularly for Canadians who cherish hockey.
"But it's an important book. I think it speaks honestly and openly about the culture, where unfortunately, hazing, silence, and harmful attitudes towards women have been passed down, and some things need to change," McKenzie said.
Despite how difficult or uncomfortable it may be, McKenzie said it's important to have a community conversation.
"I think the important message here, it's really not attacking hockey. I think you can love the sport and still want it to be safe. Those two things don't necessarily clash with each other," McKenzie said. "At the end of the day, this is a shared responsibility and it's about hope and not blame."
McKenzie said one thing the book does highlight is the ways individuals and groups are trying to counter issues noted off the ice.
"Locally, I think we've been forward thinking in our community," he said. "St. Clair [Child & Youth Services] was proud to launch the Face-Off for Mental Health project a few years back and it's done a wonderful job of reaching out to hockey, to raise awareness about the importance of mental wellness and also trying to address the need to positively influence the culture that surrounds the game."
Another local organization trying to connect regularly with hockey groups - and sports clubs in general - is The Centre, a group dedicated to ending gender-based violence.
Executive Director Chantel Butterfield said while they already have a prevention program, they hope to get involved with clubs on a consistent basis.
"I really want men and boys to hear that being an ally doesn't mean being perfect," Butterfield said. "It means being willing to notice what's happening around you, speak up when something's not right and help create a culture where respect and accountability are actually looked at as strength and leadership."
Butterfield said the purpose of these discussions, and this specific event, is not about tearing down hockey.
"We're a hockey community, we love hockey. It's about loving our communities and our kids enough to ask the difficult questions about the cultures we create for them," Butterfield said. "A lot of the work we do at The Centre is preventative, and prevention isn't just talking to someone and teaching consent after harm, it's examining those systems and environments and behavior and the messages that allow the harm to be normalized in the first place."
Butterfield complemented Westhead's work in "unpacking the different kinds of hazing and trauma and tackling the systemic level of silence" sometimes involved within hockey organizations.
"Reading about what some of these young men had to go through, at times was graphic, but really eye-opening and necessary to understand that systemic level of injustice," Butterfield said.
Sarnia Community Foundation Executive Director Mike Barron said by reading the book, it's easy to see that change is needed.
“It is important to understand how hard it is to break a cycle of toxic culture and be comfortable with knowing you are doing the right thing,” Barron said in a statement.
The event with Westhead on October 7 will begin at 7 p.m.
Tickets are $30 and are available exclusively at The Book Keeper in-store, online or by phone. Tickets include a copy of the book.
The Book Keeper will also host an event with Canadian Olympic Curler Brad Gushue on October 31, and with sports broadcaster Hazel Mae on November 14.
The event with Mae quickly sold out.
