Letters

Canadian Peace Museum an important development for Bancroft

August 31, 2023

To the Editor,

I found myself devouring the recent article in Bancroft This Week, in which the case was made for developing a world-class peace museum. Wouldn’t this be an incredible opportunity for Bancroft, to draw national, even international attention to arguably the most important issue facing humankind? As Mr. Houston touched upon in the article, war is a bi-directional feedback loop, in which inequity (itself having many contributing factors such as climate issues) is both a contributor and a result.

It could be pretty easy to take Canada’s relative pearcefulness for granted and to rest on our international legacy of being peace-keepers, but we never know … we never know when this could change.

I have been privileged to visit the Human Rights Museum in Winnipeg and some United Nations Centres, I left them feeling a new sense of urgency and with some new insight. If lasting peace has a chance to succeed, it will depend on educating ourselves and our children, so that we are aware of issues at the ballot box, with our donation dollars, and with how we conduct our day-to-day lives.

I have heard the stories of soldiers, if they are able to speak of their experiences, and seen the effects of war on their (and their families’) lives. I have heard the from family what it was like living in England during the blitz. I remember the terrible fear I felt during the 1980s when all I could think about was likelihood of nuclear war. Bancroft – let’s make this museum happen for all our sakes.

Marilyn Jones, B.A., M.S.W., RSW
Social worker

Bancroft