Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise again to talk about this legislation, especially after following such a disrespectful speech to the people who are in charge of Canada's national museums, who are charged with the task of updating a museum that has not been updated for a long period of time. Only the opposition would criticize a $25 million investment in such an important national institution as the Canadian Museum of Civilization, which will become the new Canadian museum of history.
In his speech, the hon. member touched on the important landmark the Museum of Civilization currently is. We agree that it is a very important landmark. It is something we should be very proud of. That is why we were proud when the architect Douglas Cardinal, who the member mentioned, said that he supported the conversion of this museum to the new Canadian museum of history and how excited he was that the museum can continue to grow.
There was a time when the museum was called the Museum of Man. Times changed, and we updated it to become the Canadian Museum of Civilization.
Let me refer to the museum president's testimony at committee. He said this about the museum:
“In the Canada Hall, the regions of the country presented are frozen in time and exist entirely under themselves. Whole categories of endeavour, politics, sport, culture, our contributions to the world among others, are poorly covered or not covered at all. Women's history is, at best, peripheral and the journey through time ends in the 1970s, so almost half a century of our history is left unexplored”.
He goes on further to say:
“As a result of this, while walking through Canada Hall you will learn about life in New France, but you will find no mention of the Quiet Revolution, or anything else about Quebec. You'll learn about the early whaling industry in Newfoundland, but nothing about why, how or when the colony joined confederation. You'll see recreations of grain elevators and oil rigs, but you won't learn about the phenomenon called Western alienation.
Although modules on the rebellions of Upper and Lower Canada have been added very recently, Confederation itself is reduced to a multimedia timeline. You'll find no mention in Canada Hall of the Flag Debate or Constitution, no mention of Paul Henderson's goal in Moscow, or the wartime internment of Ukrainian or Japanese Canadians. You'll find no reference to the residential schools or peacekeeping, or Terry Fox and his Marathon of Hope. No meaningful reference to the Great Depression, the Conscription Crisis, or even a hint as to where Canada might be headed. But perhaps the most egregious flaw in the Canada Hall itself is its starting point. If you've been there you will know that its telling of our national story begins not with the arrival of the First Peoples in time immemorial, but with the arrival of Europeans in the eleventh century. Colonization as a term or concept is not mentioned in Canada Hall”.
As proud as we are of the museum, if one has gone through it, it becomes quite clear that it needs to be updated. That is why, in addition to the enormous resources we have poured into arts and culture, with some $142 million for our museums, we are investing another $25 million in this museum to update it.
Some opposition members have referred to research. They have said that as a result of some of the changes, the museum will no longer be doing research. Had they actually read the bill, as we have been saying through second reading debate in this place, and I will say it again, they would see that it is actually right in the act that research will continue to be important to the museum of Canadian history. I will say it again. Paragraph 9 (1)(f) states “undertake or sponsor any research related to its purpose or to museology, and communicate the results of that research”.
It is on the second page of the bill. One does not have to read that far to get to the fact that the museum will continue to do research. I know that opposition members do not typically read bills. All I am asking is that they read to the bottom of the second page, and they will find that the museum will continue to do research.
Again quoting the statement of the president of the museum:
“[W]e will continue building our national collection and undertaking scholarly and other types of research, despite claims from some to the contrary. In fact, our national collection fund now totals $9 million and in consultation with academics across the country the corporation has developed a research strategy, the first in the museum's history. This strategy will guide the work of the museum in its research activities over the next 10 years”.
It is one of two things. Either they have not read the bill, in which it specifically talks about research, and do not believe the museum president who talks about how important research will be going forward, or they are deliberately trying to confuse Canadians into thinking that a museum of history will not actually do research.
It goes even further.
I see that my time is actually running out, Mr. Speaker.