QAHN POLICY STATEMENT
RE: Musée national de l’histoire du Québec
QAHN Annual General Meeting
(Via Zoom, June 15, 2024)
Be it resolved that the following statement be adopted as QAHN policy:
QAHN acknowledges the recent decision by the Government of Quebec to create a Musée national de l’histoire du Québec. We should celebrate and showcase Quebec history and create, at every chance, venues to share the story of our past with both citizens and the world.
However, QAHN has serious concerns that the vision and plan for the new museum may be focused on an understanding of Quebec history that is narrow, unresponsive to the diversity of this province, and possibly ethnocentric.
In announcing the new museum, Premier François Legault has stated the proposed museum would celebrate the history of the "Quebec Nation" and will begin with the arrival of Jacques Cartier in 1534 and the subsequent colonization of New France.
QAHN rejects this position and contends that the vision for the museum must transcend a single language and culture and recognize that the history of this province is a story of diverse peoples, cultures and languages, and must include prominently our First Peoples (i.e. Indigenous nations), and the so-called "Anglophone" and "Allophone" communities.
QAHN also contends that investments in a Musée national de l’histoire du Québec must not come at the expense of support for existing institutions, particularly those that showcase and celebrate the history and heritage of Quebec’s many and diverse regions.
In the context of our mission, QAHN commits to working with representatives of the Government of Quebec to ensure that the history of all of Quebec's peoples is accurately and fairly represented in the creation of the Musée national de l’histoire du Québec.
The above resolution was proposed by Janice Rosen (on behalf of the Alex Dworkin Canadian Jewish Archives) and seconded by Sheila Eskenazi. Adopted, with 1 vote in opposition (Lorne Huston)