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Special announcement.

Free admission on Sundays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. | Free admission March 23-31 for kids 12 and under

Museum welcomes Canada Summer Games with Indigenous Voices

This release is more than two years old

This release is more than two years old. For additional information, please contact Amanda Gaudes from our Media Relations team.

News release details

Extended hours, family programs inspire empowerment through sports 

The Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR) will welcome the Canada Summer Games to Winnipeg with a celebration of Indigenous music and culture.

On Saturday afternoon, the Canadian Journeys gallery will be transformed into a venue for "Indigenous Voices, Songs and Sounds," featuring a star‐studded line‐up of performers, organized in partnership with award‐winning musician and producer Vince Fontaine, the creative talent behind bands Eagle & Hawk and Indian City.

Indian City's new song about missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, "Through the Flood" will be performed live for the first time, featuring lead vocals by Juno‐nominated Winnipeg musician Don Amero and Fontaine on lead guitar, with special guests Shannon McKenney and Gabrielle Fontaine, who contributed to the creation of the song.

"This was a very difficult song to write, but it's very important to continue the dialogue around this tragic issue," Vince Fontaine said. "We want to remember those who've been lost. We'd like to see a future of healing and positive change. We want the violence against women to stop."

Other talented artists performing at the event include Dauphin country‐pop singer Desiree Dorion, the Chuck Copenace jazz quartet from Winnipeg, and Portage la Prairie fiddler Melissa St. Goddard. David McLeod, general manager of NCI radio, will emcee. The recipient of a Canadian Aboriginal Music Award for his contributions to promoting Indigenous music, McLeod is also a member of the Winnipeg Aboriginal Writers' Collective, and a board member of the Manitoba Audio Recording Industry Association (MARIA).

WHAT: Indigenous Voices kick off Canada Summer Games
WHEN: Saturday, July 29, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
WHERE: CMHR, Canadian Journeys gallery, 85 Israel Asper Way
COST: Included with Museum admission

The CMHR will stay open until 9 p.m. on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays during the Canada Summer Games. Family programming that inspires empowerment through sports, the right to play, and the rights of the child, takes place daily from July 31 to August 4 and August 7 to 11. Visitors can make their own soccer balls from recycled plastic bags and discover how young people around the world find creative ways to exercise their right to play. In an activity called "Show Me Your Rights," families will learn about the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in a fun and engaging way. Visitors can also take part in a program where they share how sports and physical activity have empowered them to make a difference for themselves and others.

On August 3, hear Summer Games torch bearer Tracy Garbutt – who has twice qualified for the Boston Marathon as a blind runner and competed as a rower in the national qualifier for the 2008 Paralympics in Beijing – speak at 2 p.m. about the role of sports in empowering people who live with disabilities. Garbutt is a certified vision rehabilitation therapist with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind.

The Museum's Boutique is also ready to welcome the Summer Games, with ethically made Canada Summer Games baseball shirts, limited edition pins, certified fair‐trade soccer balls and toy versions of Games mascot Niibin, who's travelled all the way from Manitoba's Spirit Sands desert!

This release is more than two years old

This release is more than two years old. For additional information, please contact Amanda Gaudes from our Media Relations team.

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