Remembering internment operations
The Internment Interpretative Center at La Ferme, Quebec, marked the 100th anniversary of the opening of the Spirit Lake Internment camp, the second largest of the 24 internment camps established across Canada during World War I. Now in its fifth year of operation, Spirit Lake Internment Interpretative Center (SLIIC) was established on the original grounds of the internment site. With 20,000 visitors to date, a feature of the Spirit Lake Center is its outstanding outreach educational program, which has now developed partnerships with Quebec school boards. On March 29, Spirit Lake volunteer board members, with James Slobodian as board chairperson, were presented with an award from the English Association of Quebec, Neighbors, in recognition of the center’s work in furthering awareness of Quebec’s heritage and ensuring the telling of the internment story. It should be noted that the center’s museum offers guided tours in French, English or Ukrainian. It was established with the help of a major grant released in installments over five years, from Canada’s First National Internment Recognition Fund.
On October 24, the UCC-Manitoba Provincial Council hosted a one-day symposium and unveiled a statue on the grounds of the Manitoba Legislature in honor of the victims of Canada’s internment operations. The commemoration in Winnipeg began with a symposium in the Manitoba Legislature. Five scholars presented papers on the internment operations. Peter Melnycky (Department of Alberta Culture) provided the historical background; Bohdan Kordan (University of Saskatchewan) focused on human rights during the internment operations. Prof. Iryna Konstantiuk (University of Manitoba) spoke on resource development for schools in social studies. James Kominowski (University of Manitoba) provided a bibliographical survey of publications, while Andrea Malysh (First World War Internment Recognition Fund) informed the audience of the projects underwritten by the Fund.
The statue unveiled on the grounds of the Manitoba Legislature was commissioned by the UCC-Manitoba Provincial Council and created by Ontario artist John Boxtel. The statue depicts an internee with fingers pointing to himself as if asking “Why me?”; similar representations of the statue are located at five other internment sites across Canada.