Reaching for the Stars: A new model for a national museum

From the outset, Israel Asper saw the Canadian Museum for Human Rights as:

• A national museum, located in the centre of Canada, in Winnipeg, Manitoba;
• A partnership between the public and private sectors;
• An architectural icon, a tangible symbol of Canada’s devotion to human rights;
• An ”idea” museum – with an unparalleled, transformational visitor journey; and,
• A place to educate and inspire a new generation of human rights heroes, with a funded national student travel program at its core.

After Israel Asper’s untimely death on October 7, 2003, only five months after announcing the Museum project, his daughter, Gail Asper, O.C., O.M., L.L.D. and Moe Levy, Executive Director of The Asper Foundation, stepped into the breach to lead Friends of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights and carry the vision forward.

In his last interview before he died, Dr. Asper said, "We Canadians have a tendency to aim for the middle… With this Museum we are reaching for the stars." Friends has continued this commitment and passion to reach for the stars to ensure that the Canadian Museum for Human Rights would truly reflect its founding visionary’s grand dream.