'We have so much to learn': New CMHR educator-in-residence brings passion for representation, anti-racism

Winnipeg -

The Canadian Museum for Human Rights has a new educator-in-residence who is hoping to bring her passion for representation, anti-racism and diversity to the role.

“Coming to the museum as an Albertan as the educator-in-residence is so exciting because I get to bring a whole host of what I do in my classroom into the museum,” said Sarah Adomako-Ansah on Tuesday morning.

“I love technology and representation, so those are some things I want to be able to bring to the museum for the youth in Manitoba.”

As educator-in-residence, Adomako-Ansah will support and foster human rights education for youth with a focus on developing anti-racism resources and programs.

She said it’s a position that encompasses all of the things she’s truly passionate about.

“Representation, anti-racism, diversity, the rights of others. I think all of those things are what make me the teacher that I am right now,” Adomako-Ansah said.

She noted that when it comes to human rights, people still have a lot to learn and a long way to go, adding that there’s many things young people can learn from past.

“I think bringing in some of what we know and some of our lived experiences, those of us that are Black, Indigenous and people of colour across the nation. I think bringing those to the table will help the next generation make a lot of better decisions than what was made previously,” she said.

When it comes Indigenous human rights issues, Adomako-Ansah said there are “red flags” that Canadians need to start speaking up about, including the lack of accessible clean water in some parts of the country.

“I think that’s a true shame, because it’s a basic human need,” she said,

“It’s a basic right that we all have access to clean water. So being able to shed some light on things like that for students at an age-appropriate level I think, again, is going to help propel us forward in a lot of the issues that we see.”

Adomako-Ansah is currently still in Edmonton, but will be heading to Winnipeg soon. She noted that she’s only ever visited the CMHR virtually.

“I’m very excited to come see the structure myself,” she said.

- With files from CTV’s Michael Hutchinson.