The Sidney Museum & Archives just unveiled their travelling latest exhibit to be featured in their space.
The exhibit is called ‘Lost Liberties: The War Measures Act’ and it will be on display from August 5th until November 29th.
This exhibit will explore a period of time during the 20th century when the War Measures Act was enacted three times, during the First World War, the Second World War and the 1970 October Crisis.
During these times, the civil liberties of Canadians were suspended temporarily in the name of national security.
The Sidney Museum says that Lost Liberties focuses on minority groups who were targeted due to race or nationality during these times. One example of this was the internment of Canadians of European origin, the forced relocation of Japanese Canadians and the arrest of people in Quebec.
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Additionally, to help visitors to the museum make connections to how the enactment of the War Measures Act impacted the local region, museum staff have created a display of local connections.
This endeavour has been dubbed ‘Displacing Differences’ and it will show injustices such as the D’Arcy Island lazaretto, the imprisonment of Doukhobors on Piers Island, Japanese Canadians who were forcibly uprooted from Sidney and the forced displacement of W̱SÁNEĆ Peoples.
“Lost Liberties provides us with a unique opportunity to share historically under-represented narratives”, says Michael Goodchild, Executive Director of the Sidney Museum.
“The impact of the War Measures Act over the 20th century is not widely known, and we are honoured to pair the exhibit’s national perspective along with examples closer to home.”
The Lost Liberties travelling exhibit was developed by the Canadian Museum of History and was supported by a grant for the Endowment Council of the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund
Lost Liberties: The War Measures Act
- Where: Sidney Museum & Archives, 2423 Beacon Avenue
- When: Monday, August 5th to Friday, November 29th
- Admission: By donation
