It used to be one of the most beautiful vistas in Ontario’s capital city. Drive north up University Avenue, and you’ll see the stately pink-sandstone building that is the Ontario legislature. I’d submit there’s no other view in the entire province that combines these three things we should love: aesthetic beauty, Richardsonian Romanesque architecture, and the importance of our democracy. I’ve seen that view thousands of times, and it still inspires.
Or at least, it used to.
For the past three years, there’s been an ugly eyesore at the southernmost tip of the Queen’s Park precinct that has managed to do a couple of things. It’s ruined one of the great vistas the province has to offer. And it serves as a constant reminder of how indecisive and ineffectual some members of the legislature can be when they put their minds to it. Or in this case, don’t put their minds to it.
I’m referring, of course, to the statue of Canada’s first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald, which has been covered in ugly boarded-up cladding thanks to Ontario’s culture war over statues and place names.
If you walk by the encased Macdonald statue, you’ll see a posted statement that reads, “Though we cannot change the history we have inherited, we can shape the history we wish to leave behind.” (Steve Paikin)
If you’ve followed this, you’ll know that, over the past few years, there’s been a reckoning over many of this country’s most historic figures. That’s all to the good. History never sits still. It’s constantly being re-evaluated to ensure that newly discovered facts and analyses are included in our collective story. In Macdonald’s case, the narrative has changed from his being the indispensable player in the creation of Canada in 1867 to a man whose views on Indigenous relations don’t hold up well today.
As a result, statues of Macdonald across the country are being either vandalized by protesters or proactively taken down by authorities to prevent that. Three years ago, it got to the point that security at Queen’s Park concluded they could no longer ensure the statue of Macdonald wouldn’t be toppled or destroyed — thus the decision to hide Sir John A in plain sight.
Interestingly, there’s also a statue at the legislature of the great colonizer herself, Queen Victoria, sitting on her throne. (Queen’s Park itself is named after her.)
But that statue has never been vandalized, perhaps because it’s so close to the building and constantly illuminated; protesters would be asking for trouble with security so close by. Macdonald, on the other hand, is far away from the building, poorly illuminated, and would be a sitting duck for vandals.
If you walk by the encased Macdonald statue, you’ll see a posted statement that reads, “Though we cannot change the history we have inherited, we can shape the history we wish to leave behind.”
Speaker Ted Arnott. (Steve Paikin)
Eloquently said, and quite so. However, the statement goes on to say: “The Speaker of the Legislative Assembly is considering how the depictions of those histories in the monuments and statuary on the Assembly’s grounds can respect all of our diverse cultures and peoples.”
Having just spoken to Speaker Ted Arnott last week, I can report to you that’s not quite accurate. While the Speaker has traditionally been responsible for everything in “the precinct,” a new law has created a special subcommittee of the legislature — the Board of Internal Economy — that’s responsible for Sir John A’s predicament. And, as the Speaker himself told me last week, “there is no consensus on what to do.” (The committee is made up of one PC MPP, one NDP MPP, and the Speaker, who seeks consensus but doesn’t have a vote.)
However, the issue isn’t completely stuck in cement. The BIE has referred the matter to the Procedure and House Affairs Committee, which does have the authority to hold hearings and attempt to recommend a way out of the current impasse.
Even before the committee does a thing, three general options seem obvious. Legislators could:
- recommend removal of the statue’s cladding, beef up security, and restore the vista to its previous condition.
- recommend removing the statue altogether and either putting it somewhere out of sight or even destroying it.
- take a third path that increasing numbers of historians seem to prefer. It would see the cladding come down and a new plaque go up — one that contextualizes Macdonald’s record. The legislature could consult with historians, community, and Indigenous groups to find the words that would satisfy our new and better understanding of Macdonald’s entire record. The other statues at Queen’s Park have no accompanying plaques; this one could genuinely kickstart discussions among tourists and citizens as to Macdonald’s strengths and weaknesses — something that wouldn’t happen were the statue simply removed.
Jennifer French (NDP–Oshawa), who chairs the committee that just now had this issue dropped in its lap, says, “We haven’t turned our attention to it yet.” Tradition holds that, as chair, French can’t tell the committee members what to do; rather, she’s charged with trying to find consensus so “the committee can move forward and figure out next steps and timelines.”
Agenda segment, November 2, 2020: Does renaming restore or erase history?
Mike Harris, Jr. (PC Kitchener–Conestoga) is on the committee and confirms that “we look forward to hearing from many diverse groups and beginning initial outreach to make sure we have comprehensive hearings.” But, he adds, “It’s a bit too early to say what’s happening with anything quite frankly at this point, as we are just getting things started.”
My recommendation would be that the MPPs do something, because every day that statue remains boarded up, it’s a reminder of the indecisiveness and ineffectiveness of our elected officials. And do we really need more examples of that these days?