{"id":8050,"date":"2014-10-03T00:13:52","date_gmt":"2014-10-03T07:13:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/?p=8050"},"modified":"2014-10-01T21:26:28","modified_gmt":"2014-10-02T04:26:28","slug":"asper-vision-spurred-action","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/2014\/10\/03\/asper-vision-spurred-action\/","title":{"rendered":"Asper vision spurred action"},"content":{"rendered":"

(photo by\u00a0Rebeca Kuropatwa)<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Miracle at the Forks: The Museum that Dares Make a Difference<\/em>, which chronicles the 14-year journey to plan, build and open the Canadian Museum of Human Rights (CMHR), was launched on Sept. 22 at the museum with Gail Asper, Moe Levi, Stuart Murray, and co-authors Peter C. Newman and Allan Levine. The 200-page book, released by Figure 1 Publishing, officially hit the bookstands on Sept. 23.<\/p>\n

In her remarks at the launch, Asper said that she was pleased with the volume\u2019s title. \u201cI love it because it is miraculous … being inside this museum we\u2019ve talked about for 14 years … this is a really great time for Winnipeg, Manitoba and the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

She continued, \u201cWe started on this journey to find a way to educate our youth about our human rights violations that occurred in our history and to inspire people to take action. This has been a long, often challenging, and many times miraculous journey from dream to reality. That\u2019s why we\u2019re thrilled that non-fiction writers Peter C. Newman and Allan Levine are here and have written a compelling book, recounting the story from the day Dad \u2013 Israel (Izzy) Asper \u2013 dreamed of a centre for human rights and gave Moe Levi the mandate to make it happen, to the completion of the building this year.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring the dark days after my dad\u2019s passing, it was Moe\u2019s support, his ridiculous optimism and resolve, that kept us going…. And, of course, thank you to the federal government under the leadership of Stephen Harper, this maverick person whose courageous decision to make this a national museum ensured our going forward. Also, thanks to our 8,200 donors who\u2019ve made this day possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Newman described the book\u2019s overarching purpose. \u201cCanada was built on dreams as well as appetites. This country was founded by waves of immigrants with big ideas and big dreams. The [Canadian] Museum of Human Rights will dramatically alter Winnipeg\u2019s skyline. But its name is a misnomer; museum is too limiting a description. That\u2019s a venue people visit to remind one another of past lives … memories that can light up a rainy Sunday afternoon.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis museum is to make a difference. This book is about how this idea, which seemed far too risky to be Canadian, actually came about. Its purpose is more significant than its contents…. If you consider this notion, it really defines what this is all about. Its existence will turn focus on its mission. The key to this great achievement is the image you get of a long time ago.\u201d<\/p>\n

Co-author Levine said, \u201cI was fortunate to spend a lot of time with Izzy Asper and listen to him talk…. He told me often, one of the secrets of success came down to perseverance. He just never gave up on anything he did.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe CMHR project gave new meanings to that. As Peter and I were researching and writing the book, I was struck by the amazing perseverance of Gail and Moe, and other members of the Asper family and foundation. They refused to quit, and are standing in the museum today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Levine read aloud excerpts from the book\u2019s section \u201cA Magnificent Conception,\u201d about the delay in getting the museum off the ground.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou see, Asper was not a journey-to-the-destination type of person. He was a just-get-to-the-destination kind of guy. So, if you\u2019d told him in 2003, prior to his death, that more than a decade later the Museum for Human Rights would not be open, he would have been appalled.<\/p>\n

\u201cBack in 2000, once the initial idea of the Museum of Tolerance, as it was first referred to, began to germinate, and after Asper had found a spot at the Forks where he wanted to build it, plans advanced methodically and purposefully.<\/p>\n

\u201cAsper\u2019s vision, although not clearly articulated initially, was to establish a museum that would teach the lessons of the Holocaust as well as examine human rights in a Canadian context against the backdrop of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. There was a part of Canada\u2019s history that had never been told, and he spoke really with as much passion about the Holocaust as he did about the Japanese, Chinese and Aboriginal societies, in particular.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe project Asper envisioned was unique for several other reasons, factors that would prove a stumbling block difficult to hurdle, the grandeur of the museum Asper had in mind was akin to the Guggenheim Museum in Spain.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne misconception that stands out is how people believe that he intended this to be a private museum … the opposite is true. Right from the beginning, he stated that he only wanted to spearhead this project, not run it or control the agenda.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the early years, Asper had underestimated the opposition he was to face from just about every corner \u2013 skeptical politicians who questioned the need for such a mammoth and expensive museum, academics and journalists who did not believe the museum of human rights could be done properly, or whether it was even necessary.<\/p>\n

\u201cOttawa bureaucrats protested loudly about placing a national rights museum anywhere but in Ottawa, and a collection of naysayers who questioned the use of the Asper Foundation\u2019s use of tax-payer money as part of an alleged scheme to advance so-called Jewish interests.<\/p>\n

\u201cYet, even if he had known of the obstacles that stood in his path, Izzy would never have quit. Always he had persevered. As Gail recalls about her father, there\u2019s a great quote that comes \u2018Do it: do or do not. There is no try. Let\u2019s just get the job done.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the same time, there had been times when he had tried and tried and tried, and he failed. But the bottom line is, if you keep trying, the perseverance will pay off somewhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

When finished reading the first book excerpt, Levine shared, \u201cIzzy, by the way, dictated things. Gail was instructed by her father that she was to dedicate half her day, every day, to the museum.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo this, I quote, from Izzy\u2019s letter to his daughter: \u2018You must get up and end every day and ask yourself, what did I achieve in finding 60 million needed from the private sector for the museum? You are not to take any calls, answer any letters, or have any meetings with people who are seeking donations from the Asper Foundation. That is Moe\u2019s job, and not to be duplicated.<\/p>\n

\u2018I\u2019m spelling all of this out because this is your opportunity to prove that you can act like a senior executive, and not to be distracted by everything that happens to go by. I hope you can exercise for us and discipline the outlined above.<\/p>\n

\u2018This is the way I\u2019ve operated all my life and, in my opinion, the only way you can accomplish things that everyone thinks can\u2019t be done.\u2019\u201d Levine added, \u201cAnd Gail obviously followed that [instruction].\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWorking with Allan and Peter has been one of the joys of putting this whole project together,\u201d Levi added in his remarks. \u201cIt made me reminisce with Gail, and many times we laughed and cried thinking back [on] this incredible journey. I think it\u2019s a great book. The key thing here is all the proceeds of this book go to the Friends [of the CMHR]. Anytime you buy it, you\u2019re helping a child come to visit the museum in Winnipeg.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rebeca Kuropatwa<\/strong> is a Winnipeg freelance writer.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(photo by\u00a0Rebeca Kuropatwa) Miracle at the Forks: The Museum that Dares Make a Difference, which chronicles the 14-year journey to plan, build and open the Canadian Museum of Human Rights (CMHR), was launched on Sept. 22 at the museum with Gail Asper, Moe Levi, Stuart Murray, and co-authors Peter C. Newman and Allan Levine. The […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8001,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[784],"tags":[2140,2134,2135,2136,2141,2142,2137,2139,2138],"class_list":["post-8050","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-books","tag-allan-levine","tag-canadian-museum-of-human-rights","tag-cmhr","tag-gail-asper","tag-izzy-asper","tag-miracle-at-the-forks","tag-moe-levi","tag-peter-c-newman","tag-stuart-murray"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8050","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8050"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8050\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8001"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8050"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8050"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8050"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}