BRIEFING NOTE
PROPOSED PERMANENT TMM CANADIAN MILITARY CHRONICLES
AIM
1.
The aim of this brief is to propose to The Military Museums (TMM) of Calgary, that they
take over the Afghan Legacy Project web site www.afghanistanacanadianstory following
publication of the book “Afghanistan: A Soldiers’ Story” and expand it to capture the personal
accounts of those who have served Canada in conflicts going back to the Boer War. Such a
dynamic collection would give Canadians a much needed insight into the human face of conflict
as experienced by those lived it. The collection would also be a good fit in the Founder’s Gallery
and would lend itself well to showcasing the stories specific to the anniversaries of past conflicts
throughout the year.
BACKGROUND
2.
The Afghan Legacy Album Project has interacted with soldiers and civilians alike since
its inception in 2010. While Canadians, as a rule, know very little about their own military, there
is a consistent desire to know more. Members of the Canadian Armed Forces, however, are
reluctant to share their stories. Ironically, there are many Veterans who have asked when we will
do the same for our forgotten wars like Korea, Medak and Somalia. With time and distance, the
desire to tell their stories seems to grow past the initial soldiers’ reticence.
3.
The Afghan Legacy Album Project began building a collection of boots on the ground
stories from the Canadian Afghan Mission in 2010 and currently has about 150 pages of content.
Publication for “Afghanistan: A Soldiers’ Story” is fully funded and set for November 2014. The
launch of the book, furthermore, may very well be the only public recognition of this twelve
year mission as there do not appear to be Federal government of Department of National
Defence (DND) plans to mark the occasion of the end of the mission in March 2014 beyond the
touring Memorial Vigil that was launched this year.
4.
Historically, the Canadian public has had limited awareness of or interest in the Canadian
military unless or until there is a domestic or international crisis that calls for the involvement of
our soldiers, sailors and air men and women. This has resulted in a corresponding ebb and flow
of public and government support for the military that has made it difficult, between crisis and
conflicts, to maintain a credible, flexible, combat capable, rapid response, deployable military in
accordance with Department of National Defence policy and mission statements. A credible and
capable military is also essential to Canada’s relevance as a nation in a twenty-first century
global community that is repeatedly challenged with acts of terrorism and piracy that fall outside
the traditional and outdated rules of state versus state conflict.
5.
The CF was at the most robust and capable it has been for decades at the conclusion of
the Combat Mission in Afghanistan. Even before soldiers began withdrawing from Kandahar,
however, media and public interest turned away. The Canadian Afghan Mission was particularly
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defining for Canada’s military and showed our troops to be more than competent combatants,
well trained and well prepared to punch above their weight in the twenty-first century battlespace. Canadians do not, as a rule, know this.
6.
The establishment of a dynamic, accessible, and interactive collection of “soldier’s
stories” is very much in keeping with the TMM commitment to help Canadians “discover the
victories, tragedies, and sacrifices of the Canadian Forces”. While it’s important to present
Canada’s military past and show how it has shaped our country, it’s also important to balance the
historical and academic narrative with the more immediate and human perspective.
7.
By offering this personal perspective TMM will help Canadians to better know their
military as ordinary men and women doing extraordinary things for Canada, for Canadians, and
for less fortunate people in shattered communities anywhere facing the horrors of violent conflict
or natural disaster. Until Canadians know their military and include it as a part of day-to-day
Canadian identity, the Canadian military will continue to fade from view and drift to the
background of the Canadian community landscape between conflicts, to resurface every
November 11 or when a domestic crisis or international conflict emerges to remind them we
have a military.
8.
The Department of National Defence maintains a Public Affairs Branch that includes in
its mandate a commitment to tell the story of the Canadian Armed Forces. As such they are well
positioned to assist and support TMM in the development of a dynamic collection of Permanent
Canadian Military Chronicles that reflect the human experience of war.
9.
Defence Administrative Order 2008 – 0 states that
“the role of Public Affairs (PA) is to promote understanding and awareness among Canadians of
the role, mandate and activities of the CF and DND, and of the contributions that the CF and
DND make to Canadian society and the international community.
Canadians expect and deserve to know what the men and women of the CF and DND do on their
behalf. Public support for the CF and DND follows from public understanding of how the CF
and DND make a difference at home and abroad. Public confidence, in turn, is enhanced by the
ability of the CF and DND to achieve its mandate in a manner that is open, transparent, and
consistent with Canadian values and expectations.”`
10.
The establishment of a dynamic collection of Permanent Canadian Military Chronicles
would do more than raise consistent public awareness of and support for the Canadian Armed
Forces. It would also provide TMM with a popular, virtually accessible, and dynamic feature in
the Founders Gallery that could easily take its place as a must-see not only for the diplomatic,
military and media populations of Canada, but could also become an integral and living part of
Canadian History classes across Canada.
DISCUSSION
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11.
The proposed dynamic collection of Permanent Canadian Military Chronicles would help
TMM share with Canadians the human history and debate that is associated with Canadian
military participation in conflicts and emergencies at home and abroad. The announcement of the
transfer of the web site www.afghanistanacanadianstory.ca to TMM could be included in the
launch events when the book “Afghanistan: A Soldiers’ Story” is published November 2014. It
would also mark a significant and lasting tribute on the part of TMM to those who served, not
only in Afghanistan, but in Medak, Korea, Rwanda, Somalia – the forgotten wars and
peacemaking efforts of our men and women in uniform.
12.
The web site for the Afghan Legacy Project has been done in Word Press so it will be
very easy to transfer ownership, and then adjust, update, and maintain as required and desired.
This would make it possible to engage high school and university students as provincially and
federally funded interns to work on the site, add new material, respond to and redirect queries,
and provide the regular maintenance any successful web site requires.
13.
Once the transfer and redesign of www.afghanistanacanadianstory.ca is completed, it
would not be difficult to make it accessible, as a Word Press Blog/Web Site, through registration,
to schools, museums, and Branches of the Royal Canadian Legion across Canada. Registration
could be free or for a nominal annual fee that could cover TMM costs.
14.
The proposed dynamic collection of Permanent Canadian Military Chronicles could also
become a valuable resource for Canadian film makers looking for human stories as the basis for
films that would help them tell the story of the Canadian Military through documentary and
fictionalized feature films. This audience has significant income potential for TMM beyond the
registration fee to access the material, as the development of any film will also require access to
TMM based subject matter experts and the design and fabrication of authentic looking uniforms
and weapons.
RECOMMENDATION
15.
TMM should give consideration to taking over the Afghan Legacy Album Project web
site www.afghanistanacanadianstory.ca following publication of the book “Afghanistan: A
Soldiers’ Story” and evolving it into a dynamic collection of Permanent Canadian Military
Chronicles for virtual access and a place in the Founders Gallery. I am prepared to help with
such an undertaking from my home in Vancouver and would see the announcement of the same
as a welcome addition to the launch events planned for the November 11, 2014 publication of the
Afghan Legacy Album “Afghanistan: A Soldiers’ Story”.
Prepared 31 October 2013
For: KC Richards, Communications and Marketing Coordinator, The Military Museums
Foundation, 4520 Crowchild Trail SW, Calgary, Alberta, T2T 5J4, kc@themilitarymuseums.ca
By: Melanie Graham Lt (N) Retired 604-628-7967, graham@mywrdwrx.com
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