There is a Japanese concept known as ikigai, which describes the rare but wonderful phenomenon of a person’s vocation, profession, life mission, talents, and passions all coming together at once to give a person joy and true meaning. In 2022, I had the privilege of experiencing that concept firsthand.
What many of my clients and colleagues may not know about me is that long before I was a lawyer, I was an elite gymnast. Unfortunately, the last three years of my gymnastics career were marred by daily verbal and physical abuse at the hands of my coaches. Two years ago, in the wake of the #MeToo movement and following the release of the Athlete A documentary about the Larry Nassar scandal, I decided to write a blog post about my own experiences. What I thought was a piece of writing for my own catharsis, which no one outside of my immediate circle of friends and family would read, set me on a completely unexpected path into athlete advocacy. My blog circulated the internet and, to my great surprise, I was flooded with hundreds of messages from other current and former gymnasts across Canada, who shared their own stories of abuse with me. Many of them asked the question that now plagued me: What can we do to stop it?
My experiences as a gymnast informed my decision to become a lawyer. From a young age, I knew firsthand what injustice felt like – to have wrongs done to you and to have the system that is supposed to protect you not only fail, but seemingly actively cover up those wrongs. I became a lawyer, first and foremost, to help others in similar situations. It’s no coincidence that I’ve generally worked in areas of the legal profession that allow me to do that. Whether it’s helping an injured person receive fair compensation from ICBC, an employee fight for their rights after being wrongfully dismissed, or a person fleeing an abusive marriage regain their voice, I’ve always been grateful that I can use my professional knowledge to help people who are in vulnerable circumstances.
But in 2022, it became much more personal. Through the connections I made after my blog post was published, I became friends with two other survivors who were eager to do something to create change. Early this year, we co-founded Gymnasts for Change Canada, an organization dedicated to advocating for culture and policy changes in the sport system to eradicate abuse. In March, we released an open letter, calling on the government to initiate an independent, third-party judicial inquiry into abuse in gymnastics. That letter now has over 600 signatures, many of which represent survivors, who have shared hundreds of personal stories with us over the last 8 months.
In May, a class action lawsuit was launched against Gymnastics Canada and most of the provincial gymnastics federations, alleging systemic negligence as a result of the abuses suffered by so many over the course of decades. In large part because of my professional background as a lawyer, it was decided that I would be the most well-suited to be the named plaintiff in that action. Becoming the face of a large lawsuit, and turning from counsel to client, has been a humbling experience and given me even more empathy for those I represent in my daily work.
In October, the documentary from Rick Westhead, Broken: Inside the Toxic Culture of Canadian Gymnastics, produced in partnership by TSN, CTV/W5, and Crave was released. This piece documented my story, among many others, and has helped to raise public awareness about the systemic abuses that have plagued this sport for decades.
Finally, in November, I was invited to testify in front of the Parliamentary Status of Women Committee, as part of their study into the abuse of women and girls in sport – a study that was initiated in large part due to the advocacy efforts of survivor groups such as Gymnasts for Change Canada throughout the year. Once again, I found myself in the reversed position of witness, rather than lawyer, telling my truth to those in power that we hope will listen to the growing calls for change. You can watch the testimony here: House of Commons Canada – Standing Committee.
2022 has been a year where the various threads of my life have woven together and come full-circle in ways I never imagined. But none of this would have been possible without the incredible support I’ve received from my firm, Sorensen Smith. I cannot adequately describe the depth of my gratitude for their unfailing encouragement for this advocacy work. At every twist and turn of this unexpected year, they have offered incredible support and the freedom for me to use my legal skills to help campaign for changes in the sport system, well beyond my mandate as an associate lawyer. I could not be prouder to work for a company that champions the cause of justice and demonstrates such incredible compassion. To be able to use my professional skills in these unique ways this year, while still managing a legal practice that I love and working for a company full of incredible, kind, and talented colleagues, has been a healing, empowering, and humbling. It has been the embodiment of ikigai.
As this year comes to a close, my hope for all of our clients, colleagues, and friends is that we all can experience a little ikigai in 2023, where our passions and professions can collide, creating beautiful chaos and bring us all some much-needed joy. – Amelia Cline