At this museum, even building structure is about a journey to hope

Triumphs and tragedies told in stories at Museum for Human Rights

WINNIPEG — The young men and women in the photograph are smiling broadly. Some are laughing. One is playing an accordion. They’re clearly having a great time.

The dozen people looking toward the camera could be any group of people having boisterous fun. But their uniforms convey a darker truth — they are Nazi soldiers and support staff from the Auschwitz concentration camp.

The photograph, at roughly the halfway mark of an afternoonlong walk through the Canadian Museum For Human Rights, is a good example of how the museum looks at its subject matter. Whether condemning the horrific or celebrating the good, the stories told in this museum often revolve around how ordinary people played a part.

One exhibit includes the prom dress of Mareshia Rucker and the tuxedo of Brandon Davis, two of the American students who organized the first integrated prom at their high school in Wilcox County, Georgia, in 2013. Another shows a video of a 13-year-old Syrian refugee describing his harrowing journey across the Mediterranean.

An alcove that focuses on Canada’s residential schools features two classroom chairs and videos of former students telling of the abuse and separation from family they endured.

Trying to encompass centuries of human rights triumphs and tragedies in one building is a challenge. Looking at themes, instead of trying to list every event or issue, is the approach the museum takes.

“One of the first things we do is think about what are those takeaway messages that we want visitors to leave with,” says Jodi

CANADIAN MUSEUM FOR HUMAN RIGHTS VIA CP The Canadian Museum for Human Rights has become a major tourist attraction in Winnipeg since opening in 2014. The museum looks at human rights issues through personal stories of people who lived through historic events.