The sole Jewish trustee on the board of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights has stepped down, citing the institution’s management of an upcoming, controversial Palestinian Arab exhibition slated to launch next week in Winnipeg, The National Post reported.
Mark Berlin, a board member since 2018 who previously directed international development for the Department of Justice in the Palestinian Authority from 2006 to 2010, directed his resignation notice to Heritage Minister Marc Miller.
In the letter, Berlin cautioned that presenting the 1948 Palestinian Arab displacement narrative without proper historical background “can only deepen the distrust and animosity that currently exists between Jews and Muslims in this country.” He added that “a story detached from the surrounding factual details is not the truth, it is just a story.”
The exhibition, Palestine Uprooted: Nakba Past and Present, is scheduled for a June 27 opening at the Winnipeg site. It highlights individuals impacted by the “Nakba” – Arabic for “catastrophe” – which is how the Arabs view the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.
Prominent advocacy groups – including B’nai Brith Canada, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), and the Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada – fear the showcase could exacerbate antisemitism by omitting critical historical context.
Noah Shack, CEO of CIJA, stated that Berlin’s departure speaks volumes about the situation.
“The resignation of the museum’s only Jewish board member is a clear indictment against the museum’s handling of the controversial ‘Nakba’ exhibit,” Shack said in a statement.
Shack further alleged that the museum locked out Jewish organizations while cooperating with political activists, including one who reportedly characterized Jewish community identity as “a disease to be destroyed.” He told the Winnipeg Sun that the project has been “grossly mishandled,” pointing to a total lack of “meaningful consultation with the Jewish community or transparency about who the museum consulted.”
B’nai Brith Canada CEO Simon Wolle labeled Berlin’s letter a vital warning for both the minister and the residual trustees, arguing that the federal government has actively evaded the issue.
“It is the government’s job to step in when a trustee resigns and speaks out about a federal Crown corporation’s internal governance,” Wolle said.
The museum’s board is appointed by the Governor in Council and reports to Parliament via the Minister of Canadian Heritage. In defense of the institution, CMHR CEO Isha Khan noted that the museum has introduced distinct antisemitism programming over the last two years and pledged to cover Jewish displacement narratives down the line.
The institution conducted internal and external evaluations following community pressure, but ultimately left the exhibition unaltered. The dispute has caused widespread fallout; the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg, represented by CEO Jeff Lieberman and chair Paula Parks, noted that its faith in the museum “has been shaken” after multiple attempts to open a dialogue were ignored.
The friction comes amid a local spike in hate crimes, with Winnipeg police data showing 112 hate-motivated incidents in 2025 – a jump of over 150 percent – where 32 out of 37 faith-based offenses targeted Jewish individuals.
Shack implored the federal heritage minister to step in, invoking a recent warning from national leadership.
“Prime Minister Carney recently warned that when the covenant between Canada and its communities fails Jewish Canadians, it ultimately fails all Canadians,” Shack noted. “We call on the Minister of Canadian Heritage to hold the museum’s leadership accountable and ensure that national institutions are not weaponized against Canadians to serve a one-sided political agenda.”
When pressed in the House of Commons regarding the dispute, Heritage Minister Marc Miller declined to intervene, telling CBC News, “It is not the place of the minister or any member of the House to dictate museum policy and what is curated and what is not.”
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