acidhead Posted August 9, 2018 #1 Share Posted August 9, 2018 City of Victoria to remove John A. Macdonald statue from front steps of city hall 'No one’s erasing anything, but we have to understand the complexity of history,' says Mayor Lisa Helps Justin McElroy · CBC News · Posted: Aug 08, 2018 11:33 AM PT https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/john-a-statue-victoria-helps-1.4777810 The City of Victoria is planning to remove the statue of John A. Macdonald, Canada's first prime minister, from the front steps of city hall because of what it says is his role as "a leader of violence against Indigenous peoples." Council will be asked Thursday to endorse the decision of the City Family, a group created by the municipality last year to address issues of reconciliation, to have the statue removed on Aug. 11. ***** Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Wearer of Hats Posted August 9, 2018 #2 Share Posted August 9, 2018 It can't be easy balancing the demands of both parts of the community (the voices of pre- and the post-colonial descendants). It's like Cook, Philip, Banks etc here in Oz, they mean a lot to those of us of European descent, but mean something very different to those of Aboriginal descent. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kittens Are Jerks Posted August 9, 2018 #3 Share Posted August 9, 2018 4 hours ago, Sir Wearer of Hats said: It can't be easy balancing the demands of both parts of the community (the voices of pre- and the post-colonial descendants). It's like Cook, Philip, Banks etc here in Oz, they mean a lot to those of us of European descent, but mean something very different to those of Aboriginal descent. It's not easy, especially when both the good and bad of historical figures such as Sir John A have been lasting. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dark_Grey Posted August 9, 2018 #4 Share Posted August 9, 2018 Didn't John A Macdonald also found one of the friendliest, progressive and most prosperous nations in the West? How many refugees and immigrants have made a life for themselves and their children in Canada since it's founding? Should we just throw all of that away because of what happened to the indigenous people? I've said this before but if you want to start tearing down history on the premise that the individual did something wrong, history will become a vacuum. EVERY individual responsible for the free world has done something wrong because they were all human. On a broader point, I'm fairly sure erasing history is a tenant of Marxism. With no historical references, history can be whatever ((they)) want it to be. Erasing the negative parts of history doesn’t make it go away. Sanitizing the facts doesn’t mean that they never happened. It just means no one can learn from them. Shame on all of you swimming downstream because you are too much of a coward to swim against it. 4 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kittens Are Jerks Posted August 9, 2018 #5 Share Posted August 9, 2018 2 hours ago, Dark_Grey said: Erasing the negative parts of history doesn’t make it go away. Sanitizing the facts doesn’t mean that they never happened. It just means no one can learn from them. History has always been sanitised. That's the point. The issue is not about erasing it, it's about telling it — ALL of it. I personally couldn't care less whether statues of Sir John A or others are removed or not, but if they are allowed to remain, then both the good and the bad need to be told. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saru Posted August 9, 2018 #6 Share Posted August 9, 2018 Thread cleaned Could we keep the comments in this thread civil and respectful please. Thank you. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Wearer of Hats Posted August 9, 2018 #7 Share Posted August 9, 2018 5 hours ago, Dark_Grey said: Didn't John A Macdonald also found one of the friendliest, progressive and most prosperous nations in the West? How many refugees and immigrants have made a life for themselves and their children in Canada since it's founding? Should we just throw all of that away because of what happened to the indigenous people? I've said this before but if you want to start tearing down history on the premise that the individual did something wrong, history will become a vacuum. EVERY individual responsible for the free world has done something wrong because they were all human. On a broader point, I'm fairly sure erasing history is a tenant of Marxism. With no historical references, history can be whatever ((they)) want it to be. Erasing the negative parts of history doesn’t make it go away. Sanitizing the facts doesn’t mean that they never happened. It just means no one can learn from them. Shame on all of you swimming downstream because you are too much of a coward to swim against it. The same could be said of Arthur Philip in Australia - he even tried to establish relations with the local Eora people, except he did via kidnap and keeping them chained up in his garden. We need a history that speaks with all voices, not just the one that's in vogue now, and not one that backs down in order to be seen as inclusive. Inclusive means telling the same truth to everyone and treating everyone the same way. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aztek Posted August 21, 2018 #8 Share Posted August 21, 2018 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GlitterRose Posted August 21, 2018 #9 Share Posted August 21, 2018 If people did a lot of bad things, maybe they shouldn't be honored for it. It doesn't mean rewriting history. Actually, it kind of acknowledges history. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SHaYap Posted August 21, 2018 #10 Share Posted August 21, 2018 I don't know why there's such a big deal made with any of this, people has been tearing down Sculptures and Icons of notable Historical figures since recorded history ~ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glorybebe Posted August 21, 2018 #11 Share Posted August 21, 2018 We can't change the past. We can learn from it and make sure we don't make the same mistakes again. That means we do not clean it up, we learn all the good and bad, not ignore it. There has been numerous societies that tried to overtake others. There was always war for land, greed and power. We need to remember our history, not pick and choose 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aztek Posted August 21, 2018 #12 Share Posted August 21, 2018 world is not black and white, same people that do good things also do bad things, 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Wearer of Hats Posted August 21, 2018 #13 Share Posted August 21, 2018 4 hours ago, GlitterRose said: If people did a lot of bad things, maybe they shouldn't be honored for it. It doesn't mean rewriting history. Actually, it kind of acknowledges history. To quote Stannis Baratheon - the good a man does doesn’t undo the bad, nor the bad undo the good. If the good he did was amazing, keep the statue. If the bad he did was bad enough, mention it clearly in the man’s history. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Hammerclaw Posted August 21, 2018 #14 Share Posted August 21, 2018 After what,Phillie has put Rocky's statue through, nothing surprises me, anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Hammerclaw Posted August 21, 2018 #15 Share Posted August 21, 2018 "The evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones. So let it be with Caesar." 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now