'We Are Hockey' exhibit goes beyond game, offering important conversations about culture, society

This is a column by Shireen Ahmed, who writes opinion for CBC Sports. For more information about CBC's Opinion section, please see the FAQ.

"You need to come to the 'We Are Hockey' exhibit," my friend said to me.

When it comes to hockey-related issues, I always listen to Dr.Courtney Szto. She is one of Canada's greatest hockey scholars — the managing editor of Hockey in Society — and an assistant professor of kinesiology at Queen's University.

She did her PhD on hockey culture and South Asian Canadians. Her research strengthened her connection to the South Asian Studies Institute (SASI) at the University of Fraser Valley in B.C. Prior to her project, the stories of people of colour and the contributions of cultural communities in hockey were seldom being told. Sure, there is Hockey Night in Canada Punjabi Edition, but what about the origin story of those broadcasters?

A collaboration with some dedicated academics, including Dr. Satwinder Kaur Bains of SASI and her team, resulted in the creation of an incredible exhibit called "We Are Hockey"that first launched in 2019 at the Sikh Heritage Temple in Abbotsford, B.C. When COVID-19 hit, the opportunity to share this important exhibit with the community was put on hold — until now.

The exhibit is currently on display at the Peel Art Gallery Museum and Archives (PAMA) in Brampton, Ont., just northwest of Toronto, and that's where I went this past Saturday. The exhibit is housed in one of the four historic buildings that make up PAMA. It is a special part of Brampton that exhibits history and has important conversations about culture and society. 

What makes this collaboration particularly special is the way that hockey is offered to the community through the lens of people of