News release details

As part of the Museum's ongoing public engagement efforts, several of my colleagues and I met with Canadians for Genocide Education (CGE) on Wednesday, March 7th, 2012. As champions for human rights education, the Museum and the CGE share a desire for greater understanding and reflection on the lessons that can be learnt from the struggle for human rights here in Canada and around the world.

During our meeting, I provided an update on the development of content, galleries and programming for the Museum's inauguration in 2014. Additionally, I took the opportunity to address some of the concerns raised by CGE in regards to the Museum's exhibit plans.

In speaking with CGE, I reaffirmed the Museum's commitment to fulfill its mandate of enhancing the public's understanding of human rights; encouraging dialogue; and inspiring action. I shared the Museum's plan to address large scale human rights violations, genocides, and mass atrocities in the inaugural exhibits. Three interrelated galleries will speak to these issues, each looking at human rights on the international scene. Together, these galleries explore the growth of the international human rights movement, looking at both successes and failures as part of the same complex reality. 

As a national institution, I was pleased to highlight changes made by the Museum to content and planning that were a direct result of our public consultation and the engagement with Canadians from coast to coast to coast. The Canadian Museum for Human Rights is Canada's museum; we are proud that our exhibition plans to tell a truly Canadian story with an explicit focus on human rights. We will continue the work of capturing a story that unites Canadians towards the common goal of advancing the cause of human rights.

The Museum remains committed to public engagement and consultation as we work towards our inauguration in 2014.

Stuart Murray
President and CEO
Canadian Museum for Human Rights