#ThreadingOurStories

Haq and History Travelling Exhibit 

Phase 1 Indo Canadian Sawmill Pioneer Family Oral History Collection Project

Haq and History is a bilingual (English–Punjabi) travelling exhibit first developed (2014-2017) through a partnership between the Royal BC Museum (RBCM) and the South Asian Studies Institute (SASI) at the University of the Fraser Valley. The exhibit was created as a result of the Punjabi Canadian Legacy Project (Part 1 and 2), with the goal of expanding the collection, preservation, and public understanding of South Asian Canadian histories across British Columbia.

  • The Punjabi Pioneer Food History Project which resulted in a new collection and the development of educational material on the Royal BC Museum Learning Portal in 2014–2015.
  • The establishment of the Punjabi Canadian Legacy Project Advisory Committee in 2015.
  • The province-wide Community Consultation including a gallery intervention event and seven consultations, in 2015–2016.
  • The South Asian Historic Places Project in partnership with the province of British Columbia in 2016–2017.

In this stage, personnel from the SASI and RBCM visited 7 regions in BC and conducted research about early migration, settlements, and contributions of South Asian Canadians (SAC’s). The RBCM invited about 100 persons for an “intervention” at the RBCM to “correct” the history of SAC’s in BC in November 2015. This intervention led to the naming of a future exhibit – Haq and History.

Phase 2 Punjabi Canadian Legacy Project

Some of the content matter for Haq and History was developed from the regional consultations that took place from 2017-2018. Community members gathered at the Royal BC Museum on May 4, 2019, to view the cumulative result – the bilingual Pocket Gallery exhibit Haq & History: Punjabi Canadian Legacy Project.

Phase 3 South Asian Canadian Legacy Project

From 2020 to 2022 Haq and History exhibit was created as part of the broader South Asian Canadian Legacy Project (SACLP) by the SASI and the RBCM. The Province of British Columbia provided $1.14 million to support the creation and delivery of a multi-faceted legacy project.

Phase 4 Exhibit Circulation and Travel

  1. Debut at Royal BC Museum, Victoria, 2020
  2. Surrey Centre Library – 2022
  3. Sikh Heritage Museum Abbotsford - 2022
  4. BC Forest Discovery Centre (Duncan) 2023
  5. Golden Museum and Archives - 2023
  6. Port Moody Station Museum 2023
  7. Nikkei National Museum, Burnaby - 2024
  8. Chilliwack Museum and Archives 2025
  9. Sikh Heritage Museum, Abbotsford 2026-27

View and Request the Haq & History travelling exhibit

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See where the Haq & History exhibit has travelled to since 2022

View the Exhibits
Request an Outreach Kit for your classroom or community.

Haq and History Outreach Boxes provide materials, images, and activities that bring content about the community of Paldi to life. There are archival documents, photographs, and games that helps users think critically about what it would have been like to live there in that community and what the significance of that community today. 

No matter where you are in BC, there will be materials ready to be accessed. Six copies of the Outreach Box have been produced. Some will circulate throughout the province with community partners while others will be permanently available at the Royal BC Museum.

Request an Outreach Kit