Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - February 27, 2022, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A3 A3SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2022 “When I get up on a dancing stage and hear the music, I can feel my grandparents on my shoulders,” Nicolas said. “And when this news came in, it just hits your very core, because it’s attacking everything that we are.” Kinasevych said if not for a spinal injury, he would want to go back to Ukraine to fight. “I would stand for my country. Even though I was born in Canada, this is my language, this is my culture,” said Kinasevych, whose first language is Ukrainian. “I hold my culture dear. And not just on a person- al level, on a global level. When have we seen an unhinged dictator start working his way into Europe overnight, threatening war?” Politicians from all parties and all levels of govern- ment attended the rally, including Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman and MP Dan Vandal. They pledged their support for Ukraine in front of a crowd that prayed for peace and called for action. Many held signs calling for Canada to do whatever it can, including closing airspace to Russia and sup- plying Ukraine with humanitarian and financial aid. “The world needs to look at that war and say, the cost of human life is so great that no sanction is too strict,” Shtoyko said. “What everybody can do today — and it has to be now because people are dying — what everybody can do is address our politicians. Say that it is important to us. Because these are our values that are being trampled on.” katie.may@winnipegfreepress.com I N a time of widespread isolation, a Manitoba teen decided to find a way to help other kids feel less alone. Fourteen-year-old Taliah Braun set up her own online social network — a website called Vision Village — for youth with visual impairments. Braun was born with pediatric con- genital microphthalmia, a birth defect that meant her left eye didn’t fully de- velop. She is blind in that eye and wears an artificial one, but she’d never met anyone else who could pop out their prosthetic — a special ability she soon learned some kids would interpret as creepy. Most would never know what it was like, for example, to take out their glass eye at the park and accidentally drop it. The Niverville teen wanted to talk to someone who knew exactly what it was like, as Taliah puts it, to have a “visual difference.” “For me, I would say, it just was a deep loneliness, and I think it was a struggle for years,” she said. Her parents and friends were sup- portive, but they hadn’t experienced blindness and could only imagine what she was going through. During the pandemic, Taliah realized the kind of platform she was searching for, one that would connect her to others with her condition, didn’t exist. “And then this idea kind of popped into my head: ‘Why don’t I make it my- self?’” So, after a couple of months of practis- ing web design, Vision Village was born. The site has been up and running since late May 2021. The Grade 9 student in- cluded a pen-pal-finder for like-minded kids, bios of herself and the team of ocularists who’ve cared for her, and her favourite section: the Inspiration Cor- ner. In it, she shares a short video of her own story along with photos of her pros- thetic eyes, and encourages other kids to get involved. (Kids aged six to 16 who have visual disabilities can become members of the site with their parents’ permission and can email to request a pen pal). “It’s supposed to be a safe place, so we try to keep it pretty kid-friendly and through the parents, mostly, so it’s safe for everyone to use,” Taliah said. Eight kids are members of the site now, with more in the process of join- ing, and Taliah has connected a couple dozen pen pals, most in Canada, and a few in the U.S. Since she started the site, she’s felt less lonely. “It has been a huge encouragement to me,” Taliah said. “I’ve definitely felt much less alone and connected to see that there are so many other kids, even around our area and Winnipeg area and Steinbach. There are so many kids liv- ing with different visual disabilities, and yeah, it has definitely encouraged me.” She’s been able to meet up with a few other kids in Manitoba since launching the website. Although her family and other friends tried their best to understand her ex- perience, it’s not the same as talking to people who’ve been through it. “There’s just something surreal about con- necting over the same thing. You really do feel seen and understood.” Taliah said she’s happy to answer common questions about her condition — she’s used to doing that — but she wanted to create a space where kids with disabilities could get to know each other, not for an outside audience. “I wanted to take something that was hard for me and help it not to be hard for others,” Taliah said. Her parents, Svea and David Braun, said their daughter’s project is just one example of the confidence and motiva- tion to bring people together that she’s shown since she was very young. “Taliah’s just a go-getter. She has more initiative than probably our entire family put together,” Svea Braun said with a laugh. They agreed the project has been an antidote to the loneliness that seems so universal right now. “It really is about focusing on other people, not focusing on myself, and I think whenever you do that, loneli- ness has less of an opportunity,” David Braun said. Taliah said she has big dreams for what Vision Village can become. “It’s been such a cool project to watch unfold,” she said. “I have lots of work that I put into it, but I still have lots of dreams of what I want it to become. Eventually, it’d be cool if there were (kids) all over the world who are able to connect there.” Vision Village is at: www.wearevision- village.org katie.may@winnipegfreepress.com NEWS I LOCAL / CANADA ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM POLICE INVESTIGATE HOMICIDE WINNIPEG police say a man has died following an assault at a residence in the 500 block of Toronto Street early Saturday. Police responded to a report of an assault at approximately 12:55 a.m. Upon their arrival, officers found an injured male who was taken to hospital in critical condition. He later died of his injuries. Earlier, at 12:20 a.m. Saturday, police responded to a report of gunshots in the 700 block of Sargent Avenue. Officers found a female in her 20s suffering from a gunshot wound. The woman was taken to hospital in critical condition and has since been upgraded to stable. Anyone with information is asked to call the Homicide Unit at 204-986-6508, the Major Crimes Unit at 204-986-6219, or Crime Stoppers at 204-786-TIPS (8477). Teen creates connections for youth with visual impairments KATIE MAY DANIEL CRUMP / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Many at the rally held signs urging Canada to do whatever it can to help Ukraine. Taliah Braun set up her own online social network — a website called Vision Village — for youth with visual impairments. RALLY ● FROM A1 THE Manitoba Liberal party apologized Saturday for an ad posted in its online store. The ad, which was removed Saturday morning, de- picted a sleeveless red dress printed on the backside with the words “Overthrow the government.” The party apologized in a tweet and blamed the ad on a volunteer. “The Manitoba Liberal Party would like to apolo- gize for the item that was placed in our online store by a volunteer without approval. That volunteer has stepped down from their role. We are very sorry and have strengthened our processes so that it will not happen again,” the party posted on Twitter. About 20 minutes before the party posted its apol- ogy, an NDP MLA criticized the dress ad in a tweet of their own, suggesting it was an example of appropriat- ing the red dress symbol of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women movement. “Really awful decision making by the @MBLiberal- Party,” tweeted Uzoma Asagwara, MLA for Union Station, alongside screenshots of the ad. “Trying to financially capitalize off of extremism, appropriating #MMIWG2S, clear objectification.” Manitoba Liberal party apologizes for online ad CANADIANS are opening their wallets to show support for Ukraine amid the Russian invasion, but observers say it pays to do some research before do- nating. Multiple organizations have launched emergency relief efforts for Ukraine, from registered charities and non-profits to crowdfunding for grassroots pro- jects and individual families. With so many options of where to give, charity in- dustry experts say Canadians should consider a few factors before making donations. “It’s marvellous to witness the generosity of Can- adians,” said Bruce MacDonald, president and CEO of Imagine Canada, an organization that acts like an industry association for charities. “But it’s a good idea to do a little bit of homework,” he said. “Make sure that your trust barometer feels really good.” It can be as simple as reviewing an organization’s financial statements or the impact of their programs on their website, he said. A website like canadahelps.org, which connects charities and donors, can help people find a charitable organization that fits their interests, MacDonald said. It lists a number of charities, including UNICEF Canada, the Canada-Ukraine Foundation, CARE Canada and Save the Children Canada. The federal government announced Friday it would match individual donations to the Canadian Red Cross up to $10 million to help bring humanitar- ian aid to Ukraine. Red Cross spokesperson MairiAnna Bachynsky said the Red Cross is “always encouraged by the gen- erosity of Canadians and this has been no exception.” “The Canadian Red Cross is able to work along- side the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement to sup- port to those impacted by this ongoing humanitarian crisis,” she said in an email. “The support provided will address immediate and ongoing relief efforts, long-term recovery, resiliency, and other critical hu- manitarian activities as needs arise, both in Ukraine and surrounding countries, including those who are displaced.” Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds and his wife Blake Lively committed to matching donations to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees up to $1 million. Kate Bahen, managing director of Charity Intel- ligence Canada, said while giving to charity is com- mendable “there is a limited role charities play in full outright war.” Meanwhile, unlike charities, crowdfunding projects have more leeway to fundraise for specific conflict- related needs such as body armour or even weapons. “I’ve never seen this before,” said Bahen, a vet- eran of the charity industry. Yet unlike with registered charities, she said it’s impossible to track the accountability of many of those crowd fundraising initiatives. Meanwhile, Canada has a rich history of private citizens sponsoring refugees, and some Canadians may opt to pool their support with others to help a family immigrate, Bahen said. “We can bring displaced Ukrainians into our coun- try through private sponsorship,” she said. “Church groups or book clubs can get together to sponsor a family.” — The Canadian Press Canadians contribute to relief efforts RUSSIAN airliners continue to fly through Canadian skies after several European countries shut their airspace to Russian carriers in response to Mos- cow’s invasion of Ukraine — but Ottawa is keeping all options on the table. “At this time, Canada’s airspace remains open to Russian carriers. However, the department is actively monitoring the current situation and working closely with key allies, includ- ing the United States,” Transport Min- ister Omar Alghabra’s office said in a statement to The Canadian Press on Friday night. Russia’s flagship carrier Aero- flot operates multiple flights per day through Canadian airspace en route to the U.S. and beyond. Aerospace consultant Ross Aimer says the passage marks a critical route for the airline, and that Russia would retaliate to flyover bans in kind. “It would add hours to the flight, and sometimes make it impossible,” he said of any Canadian airspace closure to Russian planes. “It’s also a very symbolic message … When they close it it’s devastating, because you’re basically telling your friends and neighbors, ‘You’re no longer welcome in my home.’” Western carriers routinely fly over Russia — the largest country on earth — en route to Asia and the Middle East, though passenger aircraft are current- ly steering clear of Ukraine and parts of Belarus and western Russia. On Thursday, the United Kingdom suspended Aeroflot’s foreign carrier permit, with Poland, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic following suit by closing their airspace to Russian pas- senger planes. Estonia, Latvia and Slo- venia said Saturday they would do the same. In a tit-for-tat response, Russia has banned commercial flights from the U.K., Poland, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic. Launched this week, Russia’s large- scale invasion of Ukraine closed in on the capital of Kyiv on Saturday. On Friday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Canada would sanction Putin, along with his foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, and other top Kremlin figures, holding them respon- sible for the “brutal, needless attack” on Ukraine. Trudeau also said Canada would sup- port the removal of Russia from SWIFT, the digital payment and messaging net- work that connects thousands of banks worldwide, which he said would make it even harder for Putin to “finance his brutalities.” The Conservatives on Saturday urged the government to do more. “This unprovoked attack, coming on the heels of a joint pact between the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China, is the most serious threat to the rules-based international order since 1945 — and because of that, a serious threat to global peace and se- curity,” interim Leader Candice Bergen said in an emailed statement. The party is calling on Trudeau to declare Russia’s ambassador persona non grata and expel him from Canada, recall Canada’s ambassador from Mos- cow and “isolate Russia internationally by seeking Russia’s removal from or- ganizations like the G20 and the Organ- ization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).” — The Canadian Press Canada keeps airspace open to Russian airliners CHRIS REYNOLDS IN BRIEF A_03_Feb-27-22_FP_01.indd 3 2022-02-26 11:27 PM ;