A former professional hockey player who faced both physical abuse and racism on his path to the pros believes Hockey Canada’s summit on toxic masculinity falls well short of what needs to be done to address the issue.
In an interview with Global News, Akim Aliu says the two-day Beyond the Boards Summit, currently underway in Calgary behind closed doors, only scratches the surface of systemic problems.
“Until we fix a lot of these issues, these summits mean nothing to me besides the fact that they’re trying to get millions of dollars back from their corporate sponsors,” said Aliu, who played a handful of games with the Calgary Flames between 2011 and 2013.
“And we want to see meaningful action behind these things because I’ve been through this, other members on the HDA (Hockey Diversity Alliance) have been through this and it’s the next generation of kids that really depends on us in so many ways.”
Hockey Canada says the Beyond the Boards Summit focuses on “open conversations about how to make hockey more positive for all participants” and will look at “facets of hockey culture that exist in other areas of the sport such as elitism, gender-based violence, homophobia, misogyny, racism and sexism.”
Aliu says whistleblowers need reassurance that their concerns will be fully investigated and lead to change.
“We need to create a safe space for grassroots hockey for kids that are dealing with these issues,” said Aliu. “I keep going back to the (Greater Toronto Hockey League) because it’s the biggest league under the Hockey Canada umbrella and what they get with is essentially saying, ‘Hey, we’re going to be doing an investigation’ and then nobody ever follows up on these issues.
“We’ve got to keep their feet to the fire and Hockey Canada is where it starts.”
Hockey Canada underwent an overhaul of its leadership in the fall of 2022 with the departure of its CEO and the resignation of its entire board of directors.
According to Aliu, the hockey establishment — from the NHL to Hockey Canada to minor hockey associations — is steep with people who choose to surround themselves with others who won’t ask difficult questions in uncomfortable situations, keeping in place a structure that empowers those who abuse.
“They know they’re going to continue to be able to get away with these kinds of things and that’s kind of how the hockey establishment is,” said Aliu. “They protect their own internally and anybody that’s an ‘outsider’, quote-unquote, is essentially out on their own in the wild.”
Rookie Aliu and several of his teammates were targeted by other members of the Ontario Hockey League’s Windsor Spitfires in a 2005 hazing on the team bus. After Aliu stood up against the bus abuse, he was later physically attacked on the ice by a teammate during practice. An investigation into the matter resulted in fines against the team and suspensions of both the coach and general manager.
Aliu was also the target of anti-Black verbal attacks by his coach Bill Peters while with the American Hockey League’s Rockford IceHogs in 2009-10. “He would berate and embarrass me endlessly in front of the whole team on a daily basis,” said Aliu in a social media post.
Aliu spoke publicly of Peters’ racism in 2019, near the end of his playing days. Once the allegations surfaced, Peters resigned as head coach of the Calgary Flames.
This summer, Peters was hired as head coach of the Western Hockey League’s Lethbridge Hurricanes and began his tenure with an indirect apology to Aliu. The WHL confirmed Peters had undergone anti-racism training but Aliu says no one reached out to him.
“The Western Hockey League, one of the top three leagues under the Hockey Canada umbrella, and I didn’t hear anything from them regarding (Peters) being reinstated, didn’t hear anything from the WHL,” said Aliu. “So going about issues that are (as) serious as what happened with myself and Bill Peters, and to handle them that way, for me it’s unfortunate.
“It also shows that Hockey Canada and these leagues are not ready to make a real change, because real change starts with admitting fault as a league and taking guidance from those that have been affected by that hurt.”
Hockey Canada says plans are underway for additional Beyond the Boards Summit sessions in 2024.
— with files from Global News’ Jayme Doll