Museum for Human Rights CEO quits after allegations of racism
WINNIPEG — The president and CEO of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights has resigned following recent allegations of systemic racism, discrimination and claims of sexual harassment at the Winnipeg facility.
The museum’s board of trustees says John Young has agreed that it is in the best interest of the museum that he step down, effective immediately.
“These allegations were not properly escalated to the board of trustees,” board chairwoman Pauline Rafferty said Thursday in a statement.
“Now that we have a more complete understanding of these events, we are taking immediate action and will undertake longterm steps to address these issues.”
The board said a third-party review of the museum is already underway. The board said the review will focus on experiences with systemic racism and other forms of discrimination, along with the censorship of LGBTQ2+ content shared by current and former museum staff up until June 22.
This initial review is to be followed by an institution-wide examination of all museum policies and practices and will enable current and former staff to share additional experiences.
The preliminary findings of the report are to be received by July 31 and provide recommendations for “meaningful cultural change within the museum.”
Earlier this month, leadership at the museum apologized for censoring displays about LGBTQ history at the request of some school groups.
Six members of the executive team signed an apology that said the practice was contrary to everything the museum stands for.
A week earlier, the museum announced it would conduct an external review following social media posts alleging a racist and discriminatory work environment.
The controversy became public after the museum posted images of a Justice for Black Lives rally and current and former employees began responding that it was hypocritical because of racism they faced working at the museum.
Other current and former employees also posted online how they were asked to avoid showing displays of LGBTQ history to certain school groups.
The museum says it stopped the practice of hiding content in 2017.
The Public Service Alliance of Canada, the union that represents staff at the museum, said these issues have been raised with management since 2018.