Human rights museum is indifferent to some human rights

As the brainchild of the late Izzy Asper – his photo appears on the home page of its website – the newly-opened Canadian Museum for Human Rights was always bound to be controversial. I was friendly with Izzy and liked him a lot, but I was always concerned that some of his passionately-held views didn’t at all fit with a passion for human rights, a contradiction he never recognized.

But to be fair, with or without Izzy, controversy was built in to the Museum’s very raison d’etre, and I don’t envy some of the small-p political choices its officials had to make. (I am told I appear in the section on the Rwanda genocide.) The institution bit off a huge chunk of territory, much of it inherently sensitive, antagonizing vested interests, and inevitably leaving disappointed parties in its wake.

Palestinian-Canadians feel ignored in human rights museum

Some Palestinian-Canadians are upset that plans for the new Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg don’t include an exhibit with their story.

“As the opening comes closer, I become more and more concerned that the lessons of the Palestinian experience, nobody’s going to hear it,” said Rana Abdulla.

“Our story is an excellent story to educate Canadians about human rights. How would anyone take that museum seriously if they don’t hear the Palestinian story?”

Human rights museum staff leave amid interference allegations

The Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg has not yet opened, but there has already been an exodus of employees, amid allegations of indecision and political interference on the part of management and the board of trustees, CBC News has learned.

Of the 38 employees who have left the museum since it began hiring.

    Twenty-four have either quit or been fired.
    Contracts for another 14 have expired.
    In just the past four weeks, the museum has lost its director of finance, director of facilities, and manager of marketing and sales.