The Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario (ETFO) has approved a motion calling on school boards across the province to rename schools bearing the name of Canada’s first prime minister.
The motion, which was passed during ETFO’s annual meeting earlier this month, says school boards should rethink the use of Sir John A. Macdonald’s name “in recognition of his central role as the architect of genocide against Indigenous peoples, the impact that this has on the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students, parents and educators, and the ways in which his namesake buildings can contribute to an unsafe space to learn and to work.”
David Mastin, president of ETFO’s Durham local, says there was “a fair bit” of discussion on the motion and that he expects it to be controversial locally.
He says the Durham ETFO chapter plans to lobby the Durham District School Board to change the name of Sir John A. Macdonald Public School in Pickering — the only Durham District School Board (DDSB) school bearing the name of the first prime minister.
“The thought that there could be Indigenous children in our public houses of learning, who could be triggered by negative thoughts … that’s what really got to me,” Mastin says.
He acknowledged that some people might see this as a move to “erase history,” but stressed that it’s about creating spaces where all students feel accepted and safe.
Terry Simzer, communications manager for the DDSB, says trustees don’t have their first meeting of the school year until September and that the issue will need to go through them.
“We will need to consult with our trustees and the trustee’s provincial association to determine how we will respond to ETFO’s position,” he said.
There are many schools in Ontario named for Sir John A. Macdonald, including ones in Scarborough, Markham, Brampton, Kingston, Hamilton, Waterloo and Belleville.
Macdonald served as prime minister from 1867 to 1873 and again from 1878 to 1891.
He is often characterized as a nation builder who led Canada through its early growth — including helping to bring the country together under confederation and overseeing the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway.
However, critics have long raised concerns about Macdonald’s treatment of Indigenous people, notably his role in creating the residential school system and starving Indigenous communities to facilitate building the railway.
Mastin says removing Macdonald’s name from schools will leave no shortage of memorials.
Macdonald appears on the $10 bill and his name can be found on Ottawa’s Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway, and Highway 401, which is formally named the Macdonald-Cartier Freeway.
His grave has been designated a national historic site, and statues of Macdonald have been erected across Canada, including at Parliament Hill in Ottawa and Queen’s Park in Toronto.
https://www.durhamregion.com/news-s...-saying-canada-s-first-pm-committed-genocide/
The motion, which was passed during ETFO’s annual meeting earlier this month, says school boards should rethink the use of Sir John A. Macdonald’s name “in recognition of his central role as the architect of genocide against Indigenous peoples, the impact that this has on the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students, parents and educators, and the ways in which his namesake buildings can contribute to an unsafe space to learn and to work.”
David Mastin, president of ETFO’s Durham local, says there was “a fair bit” of discussion on the motion and that he expects it to be controversial locally.
He says the Durham ETFO chapter plans to lobby the Durham District School Board to change the name of Sir John A. Macdonald Public School in Pickering — the only Durham District School Board (DDSB) school bearing the name of the first prime minister.
“The thought that there could be Indigenous children in our public houses of learning, who could be triggered by negative thoughts … that’s what really got to me,” Mastin says.
He acknowledged that some people might see this as a move to “erase history,” but stressed that it’s about creating spaces where all students feel accepted and safe.
Terry Simzer, communications manager for the DDSB, says trustees don’t have their first meeting of the school year until September and that the issue will need to go through them.
“We will need to consult with our trustees and the trustee’s provincial association to determine how we will respond to ETFO’s position,” he said.
There are many schools in Ontario named for Sir John A. Macdonald, including ones in Scarborough, Markham, Brampton, Kingston, Hamilton, Waterloo and Belleville.
Macdonald served as prime minister from 1867 to 1873 and again from 1878 to 1891.
He is often characterized as a nation builder who led Canada through its early growth — including helping to bring the country together under confederation and overseeing the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway.
However, critics have long raised concerns about Macdonald’s treatment of Indigenous people, notably his role in creating the residential school system and starving Indigenous communities to facilitate building the railway.
Mastin says removing Macdonald’s name from schools will leave no shortage of memorials.
Macdonald appears on the $10 bill and his name can be found on Ottawa’s Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway, and Highway 401, which is formally named the Macdonald-Cartier Freeway.
His grave has been designated a national historic site, and statues of Macdonald have been erected across Canada, including at Parliament Hill in Ottawa and Queen’s Park in Toronto.
https://www.durhamregion.com/news-s...-saying-canada-s-first-pm-committed-genocide/
