It's All So 'Spiritual' and 'Inspirational' You Could Barf
When people cease believing in something they end up believing in...the "spirituality" of a silly shrine to mush-brained feel-goodism. That allows them to pay lip service to the concept of "human rights" while ignoring the steady erosion of real human rights (the kind that don't come from "Charters" and the UN). From the Winnipeg Free Press (h/t BCF):
Sunny skies and sunny smiles beamed at The Forks on Sunday, as Gov. Gen. Michaëlle Jean wrapped up her whirlwind Winnipeg visit with a tour through the skeleton of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.
Dressed in a sharp grey suit, a bright fuchsia shirt and a white hard hat, Jean and her husband, Jean-Daniel Lafond, joined a contingent of about 20 museum organizers for a 30-minute tour through the construction site.
After emerging from the looming concrete shell, Jean told the museum's president and CEO the building's metaphorical design -- which includes elements such as a central "tower of hope" -- was "very inspirational."
"It's a dream come true!" Jean exclaimed, leaning out the window of her car to wave goodbye to organizers.
The Governor General did not take any questions from media during the visit.
Before the tour, a larger group of museum staff and supporters met with her to discuss the museum's vision and design.
Among those who met Jean for the hour-long meeting were representatives from the Graffiti Gallery and First Nations elders Barb and Clarence Nepinak, who are acting as spiritual advisers to the museum.
After seeing Jean's motorcade off, CMHR president and CEO Stuart Murray said Jean, who is a patron of the museum, even had some suggestions for organizers, highlighting the need to communicate about commitment, and to "not only educate, but empower people," Murray said. "That was something she reaffirmed for us."
The visit, Murray said, was "awesome... a very powerful meeting."
It also served as a preparation, of sorts, for an even bigger royal spotlight: On July 3, the Queen will visit The Forks to dedicate the museum's cornerstone and make a short public address at a concert in the museum's honour. She will not tour the construction site, however...
Smart cookie, that Queen. Why get your duds all dusty traipsing through a "skeleton" (a "skeleton," mind you, that has hoovered up mega-millions of our tax dollars--and will cost us even more before it's been fully fleshed out).
6 comments:
"The Cult of the Supreme Being", the French Revolution's attempt to replace religion with pseudo-religion, had the same vaguely infantile aroma...
Made possible by a generous contribution from the Desmares Family owners of France-based Total Oil happily providing major cash infusions to prop up the Burmese military dictatorship in Burma.
NB. The Desmaraies' are also major donors to U of O and own most of Liberal Ottawa.
Nothing reeks more than hypocrisy
I'd like to know what the Graffiti Gallery is all about. Presumably, no scary markers of doom are involved.
Also--why does a museum for "human rights" need "spritual advisors"? The idea strikes me as a sop to natives, who are upset about the museum's location (on top of the bones and artifacts of long-dead natives), that manages to be both preferential and condescending. Preferential because no other religion has been asked to provide "spritual advisors"; condescending because the thinking is that the native religion is so innocuously New Age-y(and Canadians feel so guilty about what happened to native ancestors way back when) that no one could possibly object to it.
... being French and all, it's in keeping with Desmariaes' affinity for comedic farces.
Like the CBC, it's another one of those Canadian cultural heritage-y things concocted by a committee of bureaucrats.
(cuz we must all be total idiots to have our own culture, so it needs to be a government job)
... but let's not get started on the suspension of belief about reservation culture re: Natives / Aboriginals / First Nations People / Indians and Eskimos (I'm totally confused what they even want to be referred as).
I am so moved by the whole event....toward a place to throw up.
""It's a dream come true!" Jean burbled.
Why does it seem so much more like a nightmare come true to me? Orwell, perhaps?
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