We’re back today with everyone’s favourite series, Historian’s Histories! If you’d like to see more posts from this series, you can do so here. Today we’re joined by the wonderful Carly Ciufo!
Carly Ciufo is a doctoral candidate of the LR Wilson Institute for Canadian History in the Department of History at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Prior to returning to academia, she held positions at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR), the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21. Tentatively titled, “Can Museums do Human Rights Work? Human Rights Museums and the People who Build Them,” her dissertation investigates the degree that those who work in, with, and against human rights museums are, in fact, doing human rights work. She is also the elected graduate student representative on the Canadian Historical Association Council, with shared responsibility for the teaching and learning portfolio.
What is your background (education, life experience, etc..)?
I completed my BA Honours at McMaster University in History and Political Science, with a minor in Peace Studies. I then did my MA at Queen’s University in History, where I focused on Catholic theology and the Front de libération du Québec. I funded both degrees on my own by working as a day-camp counselor and a customer service representative at a furniture store. Once I had my MA in hand, I worked in Winnipeg, Toronto, and Halifax at a variety of libraries, archives, and museums.
Currently, I’m based back in my hometown of Hamilton, Ontario for my PhD research at McMaster University, which means a lot to me. It’s where my family is, and my family is growing a lot. When I returned home to start the degree in 2016, it was just in time for my brother’s wedding. I also, quickly, met the man that I’ll soon marry. We were around the breakfast table in April after my nephew did his first Easter egg hunt when someone said, “There’s a lot of McMaster around this table.” None of us really thought of it before, but by the time I defend my dissertation, my two brothers, my sister-in-law, my fiancé, and I will have a combined eight degrees from McMaster. My family is incredibly supportive. I’m really proud of who they are and where I’m from. And I think it’s important to recognize that those foundations have made me into the historian that I am.
What drew you to history in the first place?
I usually point to a couple of coffee table books that my parents had in the house growing up. One was a Life publication, and the other one was by Time. Both were centred on the 1960s. Growing up, those books were where I’d go to find interesting topics for school projects. But my family is full of storytellers, too. You never knew if you were quite getting a true history, whether it was the tale of a relative’s lost luggage on the Titanic or some reminisces about a particularly rowdy evening in an Etobicoke bar. But it was always a learning experience all the same.
Whenever I’m in a classroom or a lecture hall nowadays, a lot of people tend to think I’m uninterested because I don’t ask a lot of questions. I’m not really a quiet person, and I’m very opinionated, so it seems to surprise people when I’m not the talkative student in class. But I also know when it’s time to just listen. Growing up, I browsed texts on my own; when I was around other people, I did my best to listen to their stories. The more that I learned that those were skills that a historian uses in their work, the more the discipline seemed like a good fit for me.
Why did you decide to become a historian?
Historian is actually a label that’s taken me some time to get comfortable with. I remember coming back from a trip before starting my PhD. I was in line at the check-in counter behind a band, patiently waiting my turn. The attendant asked me if I was with them. I was wearing my favourite, worn-in Levi’s jean jacket, so I guess I fit in better with them than on my own. “Not this time,” I said, because there have been moments in my life when I have been with the band, whether it was selling merch or dragging amps. I think that might be the moment that I decided to grasp onto being a historian, though.
I don’t wear the jacket anymore. It’s safe and sound, in the back of my closet. But I still think of myself as a historian in a jean jacket rather than one in a tweed sport coat. Figuring out that I can be myself as a historian—and not what other people think of when they picture a historian—is a big part of being able to identify myself as a historian.
Why did you decide to focus on your particular area of study?
I did a combined honours undergraduate degree thinking that I’d be working at a non-profit, doing some kind of social justice work somewhere else. But the more I thought about it, the more uncomfortable I was with doing so. I always got worse grades in History than in any of my other courses, but I stuck with the discipline because the things historians do suit my skill set best.
When you study the history of something like human rights, you find yourself immersed in an always important and constantly changing global conversation. Human rights are applicable to everyone, everywhere; they affect them all in distinct, yet connected, ways. So everyone can somehow engage in the work that I am doing. They all have something to say about it, or feel something around it. That museums are reacting to human rights history is a fascinating, incredibly relevant thing. And it needs to be paid attention to.
What did you want to be when you were growing up?
A music journalist. Hands down.
What kind of work do you do as a historian?
I’m rarely hidden in an archive, I can tell you that much. Sometimes I get to teach undergraduates or high school students. Other days, I get to fill out funding applications, schedule site visits, or return to my never-ending pile of emails. But my main sources for my dissertation research are multimedia outlets, built exhibits, and oral histories. So I scour the news and visit galleries, for sure. But I also get to talk to a lot of people. I get to listen. And it’s my favourite part of the job.
Special thanks to Carly Ciufo for contributing to this series! If you are interested in participating in this series, please get in touch by emailing me at unwritten histories [at] gmail [dot] com or by sending me a message on Facebook or Twitter.
We hope you enjoyed this week’s blog post! If you did, please consider sharing it on the social media platform of your choice! And don’t forget to check back on Sunday for a brand new Canadian history roundup. See you then!
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