When Memorial student Cheyenne Michel spoke during a listening circle at Labrador Campus, she never imagined that her words would echo across the nation.
But the very next evening, Alex Neve, a human rights lawyer and the 2025 lecturer for the CBC Massey Lecture series, ended his national address in Happy Valley-Goose Bay by sharing Ms. Michel’s reflections about what human rights mean to her:
The right to belong.
“I’ve been in the human rights world for a long time and have had discussions with scholars, activists and government officials everywhere,” said Mr. Neve, “but what I heard from Cheyenne was one of the most thoughtful descriptions of human rights from anyone.”
A moving moment
Mr. Neve was invited to a listening circle that brought together women elders, students and community members who shared their lived experiences in Labrador.
What he heard resonated with the key points of his lecture so much that he found himself making last-minute additions.
He added wisdom spoken by Elizabeth Penashue, a woman iconic in Labrador and across the country for her contributions to human rights.
But it was Ms. Michel’s words, spoken at the end of the listening circle after nervously raising her hand, that he says moved him deeply.
“It was so beautiful to hear her own reflections about what universal human rights mean to her as a young, Innu woman living in her community in Labrador,” he said.
It was a fitting exchange, as Mr. Neve’s lecture focused on the role that people, activists, communities and social movements play in advancing human rights in our world.
“I am immensely grateful to the campus for pulling together what was an incredibly powerful listening circle. Extraordinary strength, resilience and vision were shared, and I couldn’t have asked for a more fitting and important way to have my introduction to Labrador.”
Life without fear
For Ms. Michel, a first-year student at Memorial’s Labrador Campus, the stories and perspectives the women shared in the listening circle made her realize how much they all carry, even if they may “stay quiet about it most days.”
“[The listening circle] reminded me that our voices matter more than we think.”
She says she felt grateful that everyone was open enough to talk about the everyday realities they face in their community.
“It showed me how powerful it is when you actually sit, listen and let people speak honestly. It reminded me that our voices matter more than we think.”
While she hadn’t intended to speak that day, she had written down her reflections throughout the three-hour session and, before it ended, felt compelled to share her thoughts.
“To me, human rights are about people wanting to belong and the basic idea that you should not have to fight every day just to be seen, respected or safe,” she shared. “It is the right to live your life without fear, without being pushed aside and without constantly having to prove your worth.”
Role of universities
Mr. Neve’s week-long visit to Happy Valley-Goose Bay was part of his cross-country Massey Lecture tour, a prestigious CBC and Massey College series that, each year, invites one leading thinker to explore an urgent national issue.
This year, the issue is the state of universal human rights in an increasingly fractured world fraught with challenges, such as the climate crisis, genocide and mass atrocities, and the rise of hate and authoritarianism, to name a few.
Mr. Neve’s time at Labrador Campus offered a first-hand look at how human rights concerns intersect with education, community and culture.
He also witnessed how Memorial’s presence in the region is helping to strengthen community-led research, foster partnerships and support emerging leaders, like Ms. Michel.
“Universities have a central role to play in advancing human rights, which begins in the communities where universities are grounded,” he said. “Memorial’s Labrador Campus, by nature of its location, history and the fact that it’s the only university in the region, has an incredibly timely and meaningful role to play.”
From his time on campus, he says it’s clear the university is currently playing that central role, in part, by investing in cultivating strong connections and relationships with the community.
“It’s about supporting and lifting up students, like Cheyenne. Her university experience and the support she gets will help to shape and enable that.”
Transformational conversations
Dr. Sylvia Moore, vice-provost of Labrador Campus, organized the listening circle with support from Heather Angnatok, co-ordinator of the Elders, Aunties and Uncles Program.
From Dr. Moore’s perspective, the Massey Lecture visit was an opportunity not only to meet and hear from Mr. Neve about human rights, but for Mr. Neve to hear about human rights from the perspectives of people with lived experience in Labrador.
“We were honoured to host Alex and the team and to participate in this year’s Massey Lecture series,” she said, “and we are grateful they came and listened to the stories and perspectives that were shared. It was both grounding and uplifting.
“We are equally grateful to the members of our campus and community who participated and shared their voices, which ultimately enabled the profound and transformational conversations that took place,” she added.
“Every major advance in human rights has started with people and communities at the front lines.”
For Mr. Neve, the conversations served as a reminder that real progress in advancing universal human rights begins locally with people in communities.
“Every major advance in human rights has started with people and communities at the front lines,” he said. “That’s exactly what I heard that remarkable afternoon.”
Weeks after his visit, Mr. Neve still carries Ms. Michel’s words with him.
He quoted them again in Ottawa, Ont., during the final lecture of his national tour, showing that sometimes the most profound understandings may not come from international conferences or courtrooms, but from young people speaking from the heart in their own communities.
Mr. Neve’s lecture from Happy Valley-Goose Bay, How People Power Makes Human Rights Real, is now available on CBC’s Ideas with Nahlah Ayed.
