Canada's Human Rights History is a site dedicated to the history of human rights in Canada. The site explores all aspects of the history of human rights: law and state policy; social movements; key events, such as the espionage royal commission and the October Crisis; and key figures in history.

The site is divided into two parts: storyline and research.

The first part is a history of human rights in Canada, which includes a storyline as well as direct access to primary documents. The espionage commission, for example, was one of the most blatant abuses of fundamental freedoms perpetrated by the Canadian state against its own citizens. The second and only other time the federal government imposed wartime powers in peacetime to suspend civil liberties in Canada was October 1970, when domestic terrorists kidnapped a cabinet minister and a British trade commission to promote Quebec independence. There is also an entire section on the history of human rights activism in Canada. Other key moments in history include the Gastown Riot, Winnipeg General Strike, constitutional negotiations, Aboriginal protests, and many more.

The second part of the site offers a variety of resources to promote research and study on the history of human rights in Canada. For example, there are lists of key events, biographies and social movement organizations that include brief histories and links to resources for further research (e.g. books, articles and archival collections). There are also sections on leading scholars in the field in Canada, and recent publications. The archives is a complete database of all primary documents on this site. It is a portal to a vast array of original materials, including statutes and laws, documents produced by social movements (including posters), briefs presented to the constitutional committee (that led to the patriation of the constitution), and more. Another section, Further Reading, is a comprehensive list of books and articles relating to human rights and other developments in Canadian history. The section on Links includes sites for historical research, other history portals similar to this site, a list of human rights organizations, and more. Finally, teachers and students can take advantage of full developed assignments that focus on applying the primary materials in this site.

To continue, click on one of the links on the top or left navigation bars.

The site also includes regular updates on research funding (including scholarships), conferences, publications, new resources, research centres and initiatives such as the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.

Canada's Human Rights History is unique: unlike comparable websites, this portal is constantly evolving. New material is added every year, and pages are often updated. The interface and content of each section was recently edited and updated in 2011. As the author's scholarship evolves, more material will be included in the site. Please visit again in the future.