Aimee Benoit, Present Curator, and Wendy Aitkens, Past Curator
Galt Museum & Archives
Over the past two decades, the Galt Museum & Archives has tackled many sensitive and potentially controversial subjects for public presentation. They include exhibits on a local woman's survival in the Auschwitz concentration camp; the various influences in climate change; Indigenous people earning the rights to wear special clothing; the achievement, challenges and issues involved in sports; recent immigration to Lethbridge; and 2SLGBTQ+ histories.
Each exhibit and the associated programs involved experts in the field, support from the community, and solid research. Planning for feedback, both positive and negative, was a major part of each project.
With the Auschwitz exhibit, the mayor and city police were included in the planning as there was concern that Holocaust deniers might use it as a venue to promote their beliefs. Staff were trained to respond to that possibility, as well as the emotional response visitors may have to the horrific story told in the gallery.
The climate change travelling exhibit, curated by an environmental archaeologist and Curator Emeritus from the Royal Ontario Museum, explored the many possible contributing elements of climate change. Two people started a campaign to discredit the Galt even before the exhibit opened. They sent multipage emails to the Galt CEO, as well as local and provincial politicians, and demanded to present their concerns to City Council. Council and the community responded overwhelmingly in support of the museum.
When the Galt brought in five Niitsitapi (Blackfoot) shirts for exhibit and study, Traditional leaders discussed the importance of the ancient shirts being proof of the skills required to be providers and protectors of their community. An Elder encouraged today's Niitsitapi youth to stay in school to earn the right to wear a University graduation cap and gown, achieve a medical or dental degree and wear a white coat, or excel in a sport and put on a team jersey.
For the sports exhibit, sixteen members from all aspects of sports (athletes, referees, fans, coaches, sponsors, etc.) were interviewed and asked questions developed with the aid of the local sports council. These addressed the person's achievements and challenges, as well as issues such as financial constraints, physical enhancement drug use, and injuries in their sports. The exhibit also discussed concerns about children becoming overweight due to a lack of activity in sports or recreation.
Again, interviews were the focus of the exhibit about recent immigration to the city. Some thirty people were digitally recorded while they told their story of flight from danger or oppression and their time in refugee camps before coming to Canada or their journey as economic immigrants. Their struggles - to adjust to a new community and its cold weather, learn a new language, search for work, or study at college and university - were compelling and enlightening.
Inqueeries: 2SLGBTQ+ Histories of Southwestern Alberta, 2019 Galt Museum & Archives photograph.
Perhaps the most important strategy the Galt has used in exploring potentially sensitive topics is deep community engagement. The exhibition about 2SLGBTQ+ histories was a collaboration between five partnering organizations, a group of youth curators, and a steering committee of 13 2SLGBTQ+ community members and allies. The team made every decision together, from exhibit themes to wall colours; even the content was written collaboratively using a Google doc. We also developed a communications plan and agreed on key messages that could be shared consistently by all partners.
This style of deep engagement can be time-consuming and somewhat unpredictable. It takes time to build trusting relationships and to develop processes that work for everyone. But ultimately having the right people at the table, listening closely to their guidance, and sharing authority with them all help to ensure that potentially sensitive topics are identified, discussed, and addressed throughout the exhibition development process.
Another approach that we use at the Galt is community-centred storytelling. As curators, we are typically not the experts on any given topic, but rather facilitators who can bring together diverse perspectives from local academic experts, Traditional Knowledge keepers, community leaders, and people with lived experience. Many potentially sensitive topics can be depoliticized by centring on individuals' stories. As mentioned above, we regularly conduct oral history interviews and incorporate them into exhibitions. This allows participants to tell their own stories, in their own way, while offering a means for visitors to connect with the topic on a more personal level.
The Galt's mission is to inspire our communities to engage in the human history of southwestern Alberta, together, preserving and sharing collections and stories. We work closely with our communities to decide which stories are important and relevant - including potentially sensitive topics. We ask a lot of questions at the outset of each project: who has the knowledge to speak on this topic? How can we create space for different voices to be in dialogue with one another? How can we extend that dialogue to visitors so they can add their own opinions and experiences?
None of the topics mentioned above were chosen because of the controversial aspects. Instead, the stories were focussed on human interest within the community. Issues were dealt with using a respectful and balanced approach; potential negative feedback was discussed and plans made to address it. The Galt was confident in the research and participating community members' advice and guidance. Open discussion was encouraged with mediators able to accept alternative perspectives but willing to shut down those who would promote hate, racism, or conspiracy theories.
Because of the rapport the Galt Museum & Archives has cultivated over its many years of service to Lethbridge and the surrounding area, the community has a confidence in the museum's public offerings and looks to it for quality information and a safe place for discussion.
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