The Museum of Human Rights in Canada awakens a sense of justice even in the most indifferent visitor. All thanks to the original idea, where instead of artifacts – human destinies, information from textbooks are replaced by real events in live sets and movies.
Be prepared for the whole gamut of emotions, and not the most positive. The Museum of Human Rights in Winnipeg makes you look at humanity from a different angle.
History and Concept of the Museum of Human Rights
Already during the construction phase, the museum gained fame. Only a lazy person was talking about it. You bet – a grandiose project with a budget of 350 million dollars, the use of innovative technologies and a completely unusual concept.
It took five years to create it. And in the fall of 2014, the first guests came in, after which the museum was talked about even louder as a unique object where every visitor becomes a researcher of human rights. And that’s exciting at the very least.
The main idea of the project was to move away from the usual commemorative museum. It does not mourn the events of the past, as it usually happens. It invites visitors to explore the evolution of inequality, rights laws, and at the same time to think about how to improve the world.
Features of architecture
The architecture was designed by the famous Anthony Predock. The appearance of the museum delights connoisseurs of modern architecture, in itself it is already a landmark, shrouded in symbols.
The author made full use of metaphor: in a “clear field” stands a stone “mountain”, which is embraced by the wings of a “white dove”. To get inside, one must first overcome the sloping mounds (as a symbol of the tree’s roots).
And finally, the cherry on the cake. Galleries and ramps lead to the top – the tall spire crowning the museum is called the Tower of Hope.
An interesting point: the building is designed for literally every visitor. The group discussing the project included people with different disabilities. All wishes were taken into account.
Expositions in the museum
The Museum of Human Rights tells the most complicated things in simple language. Moreover, the information is presented not in the form of individual exhibits, but in the form of theatricalizations, films, photos, and individual human stories from the first person. With the help of interactive expositions, you are willingly and unwillingly involved and experience the heroes of historical events.
Attention to details and particulars. For example, the story of two girls from Uganda, who were kidnapped and held captive by rebels, is shocking in its poignancy. Among the expositions there is a place for the fate of a particular transgender family, whose rights were hardly recognized by society.
Visitors pass through the 10 main galleries one by one. Here are some of the most curious ones:
Introduction to Human Rights.
A multimedia show with a hundred different perspectives on legal relations from ancient times to the present unfolds here.
Indigenous Perspectives.
A circular theater is set up in the gallery where four generations present Indigenous history.
Canadian Journeys.
A collection of dozens of historical moments about how rights were dealt with in Canada. Language issues, discrimination, freedom of conscience issues are collected.
Defending Rights in Canada.
A digital scoreboard traces the evolution of laws. Guests are also invited to sit at a roundtable to learn about high-profile court cases.
Breaking the Silence.
The exposition is able to shock any visitor, in the reviews tourists always emphasize just on it. Here lives a collection of the most terrible atrocities against entire nations: the Ukrainian famine, the Armenian genocide, the genocide in Bosnia and Rwanda.
Humanity’s turning points.
Huge monitors tell what people have achieved by working together to defend certain rights.
Like the world of human rights, the exhibitions are constantly changing, filled with new stories and things. That is why you can go to the museum endlessly.
Additional features
The Canadian Museum of Human Rights is a great place to spend an evening with your family or even a night out:
- There are frequent short films and live presentations;
- on Fridays people gather for themed evenings, usually free of charge. Jazz musicians, trendy and not so trendy DJs perform;
- board games, occasional giant dominoes competitions.
Inside the museum there is everything you need for a comfortable stay even all day long. The doors of the cafe and restaurant are open. Buffet tables are set for excursion groups.
Souvenir boutique invites you to make original purchases. The assortment includes thematic items: for example, cufflinks with the image of the wheel of medicine, puzzles “Children of the World”, necklace with a pendant in the shape of an ECG line. Many items are created especially for the museum, and they are also called exhibits.