University of Manitoba

CDN-1000 -D01-Introduction to Canada

Reflection Paper – 1 (Human Rights Museum)

Human rights reflect the minimum standards necessary for people to live with dignity. Human

rights provide people the freedom to choose how they live, how they express themselves, what

kind of language to speak, and what sort of government they wish to support, etc. In order to

fully benefit from these opportunities, people are also guaranteed the means to meet their

fundamental requirements, including food, shelter, and education. Human rights also shield

people from abuse by powerful individuals by ensuring their right to life, liberty, equality, and

security. Having a museum dedicated to Human rights significantly results in inspiring and

educating the young generation about the sacrifices made by our ancestors for getting us these

rights. Thus, by realizing the importance of these rights, we can protect the people from

injustice irrespective of their age, sex or color and live together in peace and harmony

everywhere across the world.

The Canadian Museum for Human Rights at Winnipeg conducts a lot of exhibitions telling

different stories in this diverse world of human rights. I also had a chance to visit some of these

exhibitions virtually which helped me gain significant knowledge about some of the historic

battles and achievements associated with human rights. First, I visited the “Explore Canada’s

Proclamation through Augmented Reality” exhibition under Protection of human rights. The

whole augmented reality journey gave me chills and made me realize the importance of this

day on April 17, 1982, when Queen Elizabeth II signed the Proclamation of the Constitution Act,

1982, which established Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms as part of the country’s new
Constitution [Canadian Museum for Human Rights, 2023]. Implied rights were no good to

Japanese Canadians as they didn’t provide strong legal protections to them. Everyone deserved

a fair treatment and thus after this proclamation was signed, the Canadian Charter of Rights

and Freedom provided people with equal rights which can be expressed as the supreme law of

the country. There was another example where a non-Christian shopkeeper from Big M drug

mart had to face charges for selling merchandise on Sunday. When he took this case to

Supreme court, it was the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom that gave justice to this man

and allowed him to sell on Sunday as well by providing freedom from such religious obligations.

Therefore, this Charter makes sure that these rights and freedoms aren't arbitrarily taken away

by the government or anybody acting on its behalf. I feel that laws that discriminated against

people based on their traits or preconceptions have changed as a result of this Charter. With

the Charter, Canadian society is better able to recognize and uphold human rights and

freedoms by providing a sense of equality among all Canadians. This becomes the beauty of this

country as it allows people from different nationalities and religions to live together in peace

and harmony.

Next, I explored the inspiring story of Viola Desmond through a virtual video tour of the

Canadian Museum for Human Rights. Viola Desmond was an African Canadian woman from

Nova Scotia who owned her own beauty salon. Once, she faced racism and segregation at a

theatre in New Glasgow and was denied a seat on the main floor because of her color

[Canadian Museum for Human Rights, 2020]. She was later charged with tax evasion for raising

her voice against it and was found guilty. But Viola’s case brought people together across Nova

Scotia to fight for equal rights and therefore in 1954, the province finally got rid of all such laws
where black people were treated different from white people. This was truly an inspiring fight

against racism which still motivates everyone across the world today. I feel that it takes a lot of

courage and effort to step up against injustice and most of the time, people just accept it as

their fate and suffer because of it. This results in the growth of that injustice in different sectors

of the world which results in even more people suffering from it. Therefore, it’s very important

to fight for our right because it will not just protect us but also motivate others to do the same

and eventually, we can get rid of racism or any injustice from this world.

I also experienced a virtual tour of the “Indigenous Perspectives” gallery where the focus is a

circular theatre of curved wooden slats, some of which include original works of art. A 360-

degree film about Indigenous rights and responsibilities is shown in the theatre, told from the

perspectives of four separate generations [Indigenous Perspectives (CMHR), 2023]. I found the

spirit panels very interesting as they depicted each province with a beautiful message and art. I

realized that we should also make some time to gather with our friends and family to discuss

the concepts of human rights and our responsibilities towards them. This will allow everyone to

feel grateful for these rights which help us live happily with equal opportunities in this world. It

will also encourage us to make sure everyone around us enjoy these rights and it is our duty to

educate and aware people about these rights if they ever fear to speak against injustice. I truly

believe that together we can make this world an amazing place to live where it doesn’t matter

if we are rich or poor, black or white, Christian or Hindu, we will be respected and treated fairly

by everyone because we all our humans and we have access to the same Human Rights.
References: -

Canadian Museum for Human Rights. (2023). Explore Canada’s Proclamation through

Augmented Reality. Winnipeg, MB.

Canadian Museum for Human Rights. (2020, March 19). Virtual Museum Tour: Stay Home, Stay

Safe [Video]. Virtual Museum Tour: Stay Home, Stay Safe - YouTube

Canadian Museum for Human Rights. (2023). Indigenous Perspectives. Winnipeg, MB.