MANITOBA MUSEUM
“The museum is a living institution. Its artifacts and specimens are the keepers of stories.” – Dorota Blumczyñska, CEO of the Manitoba Museum
museum that is inclusive — that tells its stories in a multitude of ways, whether through technology or visual elements or audio recordings, and that honours the lives of all people. “If you feel a museum doesn’t honour your story, do you feel safe stepping into it?” she asks. Blumczyñska notes there’s a lot of work to be done as the museum brings important stories to light, though she’s committed to seeing it through. Among those stories were those told dur- ing Orange Shirt Days, a four-day event held in partnership with the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR). Visitors re- ceived complimentary admission to visit the museum galleries, where their attention was drawn to permanent and temporary exhibits focused on residential schools. They watched a short film produced by the NCTR and Parks Canada in the museum’s Winnipeg Theatre. They learned from interpretive staff. And they listened to oral history lessons offered through the museum, such as a recording by famed Anishinaabe artist and residential school survivor Jackson Beardy. “It’s very powerful to listen to his words as he talks about these moments that we are now understanding, how they shattered his
entire community and how they forever al- tered the course of his life.” The experience culminated with the Mani- toba Cares wall, covered in orange sticky notes filled in with visitors’ thoughts, feel- ings, lessons learned and promises to act. “When you stood in front of that wall and you saw the handwriting of very small kids, a lot of them writing, ‘I am sad,’ ” Blumczyñska says, pausing as her voice cracks, “that was really hard.” It was also moving to read what visitors committed to doing, says Blumczyñska. Some pledged to be kinder. Some wanted to learn more about the residential school system, while others planned to speak with their own children about it. The event was certainly a success, but more than that, it left people enlightened and inspired, and that is the goal when any visitor walks through the museum’s doors. “Even though we may be tired, I feel so incredibly hopeful,” Blumczyñska says. “I think of my own family and our picture in front of those bison. There are probably hundreds of thousands who have a photo in front of those bison, too. There are many more pictures to be taken and conversa- tions to be had and minds to be opened.” ■
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