The Canadian Museum for Human Rights invites community groups and individuals to apply to have their human rights‐inspired visual pieces displayed in the Community Corridor. This space provides a platform where community members can share their work and lead meaningful dialogue on human rights. Please note this location is a community display space, not gallery space.
Submissions must meet certain criteria in order to be considered for display in the Community Corridor.
A visual piece may consist of several separate elements so long as the full piece does not exceed the following limitations:
Maximum height: 150 inches (380 cm)
Maximum length: 150 inches (380 cm)
Maximum individual weight for a single element: 50 pounds (22.7 kg)
Maximum combined weight: 250 pounds (113.4 kg)
Durability: The successful applicant’s visual piece will be placed in an open environment where the public will be in contact with the piece. All elements of the piece must be securely attached.
Applications Open
June 4, 2024
Applications Close
September 3, 2024
The work of the successful applicant will be displayed starting in December 2024.
Arlene Last‐Kolb and Janis Gillam, two mothers who lost their children, explain the significance of Gone Too Soon.
This work honours those gone too soon from a poisoned drug supply.
On the poppy petals, you will find messages written by community to their loved ones. They were made at a national harm reduction conference in November 2022 held in Manitoba, with more created in April 2024 at the Annual Planning Meeting for the Winnipeg Harm Reduction Network.
The poppies have been placed in the form of a flowing river. This river of poppies represents the many thousands of people who have died too soon.
From 2016 to 2023, 42,494 individuals are known to have died from opioid toxicity deaths in Canada. Their rights to life and security of person were not protected.
People who use drugs are entitled to basic human rights and dignity. Substance use is a public health matter, not a moral failing. However, stigmatization, inadequate access to healthcare and systemic mistreatment persist. Advocacy for proven harm reduction methods, like safe supply initiatives and decriminalization, is imperative. Preventable deaths continue to rise in Canada, highlighting government inaction.
This river of poppies is not just a tribute to those who are gone too soon. It sends a clear message to governments and policy makers that we must have a safe supply for everyone. These deaths are preventable, and our loved ones deserved better.
Their memory endures, guiding our path forward.
THEY ARE MISSED.
Past Installations
Woman, Life, Freedom
CMHR, Annie Kierans
Hajar Moradi, creator of the Woman, Life, Freedom banner, explains the origin and significance of the banner
This collectively made banner features the famous feminist Kurdish slogan “Woman, Life, Freedom,” which became the rallying cry of the recent uprising in Iran, along with 100 solidarity messages. The banner was carried and displayed at Toronto’s International Women’s Day (IWD) rally in March 2023, and later completed by the artist.
Hajar Moradi, an Iranian Canadian artist, designed and created the banner to amplify a collective message, bringing together women’s voices across borders. The English translation of the Kurdish slogan “Jin, Jian, Azadi” (Woman, Life, Freedom) is featured in the centre in raised black letters. Surrounding it are colourful fabric squares displaying messages of support and solidarity in various languages. Volunteers, including Azadeh Pirazimian and Saeedeh Niktab Etaati, assisted the artist in completing the banner.
Moradi made the slogan letters from braided fabric strings, symbolizing women’s hair strands, the cutting of which became a global act of solidarity with Iranian and Kurdish women throughout the 2022–23 uprising in Iran. The 100+ participants in Toronto’s IWD rally wrote their solidarity messages for the banner in different languages, including Farsi, Kurdish, Turkish, Chinese, Hindi, Anishinaabemowin, Spanish, French and English. The Iranian activist group Feminists4Jina carried the banner at Toronto’s IWD rally in March 2023 and at the Alternative Pride March in June 2023.
The banner’s main message seeks to raise awareness about the ongoing struggles faced by Iranian, Kurdish and Afghan women in their tireless pursuit of rights and freedom. The banner also aims to cultivate international allyship by highlighting the shared challenges women encounter worldwide.
Awasisuk
CMHR, Aaron Cohen
From February 22 – September 4 2023 Awasisuk was displayed in the Community Corridor.
Awasisuk is about intergenerational healing and the process of moving forward to create a better future for ourselves, our children and future generations. It was inspired in part by the “Every Child Matters” movement, which acknowledges the intergenerational trauma that residential schools and colonization have caused. In residential schools, children learned to suppress their emotions to protect themselves. This passed on through generations and interfered with healing. The artist, Amanda Grieves, embraced traditional dressmaking as a path toward healing and connecting to her culture. Awasisuk seeks to share not only the difficult history of Indigenous people, but their resilience and the beauty of their culture.
Métis Memories of Residential Schools: A Testament to the Strength of the Métis
CMHR, Aaron Cohen
From July 2022‐ January 2023 Métis Memories of Residential Schools A Testament to the Strength of the Métis was displayed in the Community Corridor. This project shares 24 impactful stories about this neglected chapter in Canadian history. It honours the unique experiences and impacts of Métis survivors and families in colonial schooling systems and showcases how to share authentic Métis community voices in an ethical and collaborative way. Métis Memories invites the viewer to engage in a deeper understanding of the injustices brought to all First Peoples in Canada.
New Beginnings
CMHR, Aaron Cohen
From December 2021 to July 2022, New Beginnings was displayed in the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. Organized by U SHINE Movement, the exhibit shared the experiences and dreams of immigrant and refugee youth through photographs. It was the result of a photography project called “Youth Lens” that took place from September 2020 to June 2021 with 72 young refugees and immigrants in Ottawa.
A Thousand Paper Cranes
Photo: CMHR, Jamie Morneau
In 2021, the Japanese Cultural Association of Manitoba encouraged their members to fold paper cranes to show support for the children who died while attending Indian residential schools across Canada. By September 2021, they had received more than 6,500 colourful origami birds which they used to create five senbazuru (mobiles of 1,000 cranes) one of which was put on display at the Museum.
National Story Blanket
In 2018, the National Story Blanket was displayed in the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. This blanket represents the visions of Indigenous and non‐Indigenous youth for reconciliation and decolonization in their communities. In order to create this blanket, youth across Canada took part in the Youth Reconciliation Initiative leadership program with Canadian Roots Exchange, an organization that aims to build relationships of respect and cultural exchange between Indigenous and non‐Indigenous youth. Together, participants organized dialogue events aiming to meaningfully connect youth across Canada.
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