Should the Statue of Sir John A. Macdonald Be Removed from Victoria City Hall?
Canadian history ranks John A. Macdonald as the first prime ministers serving for more than a decade and a half. Born on January 11th, 1815. Sir. Macdonald was the first prime minister of Canada and rose through the ranks by working hard as an advocate. His political career shaped Canada as a nation enabling them to become an independent country in 1867. A statue had been put up in honor of his great work to the people of Canada. There are however debates revolving the erection of the statue. This paper will discuss if the statue of Sir John A. Macdonald should be removed from Victoria City Hall.
The Arguments for Removing the Statue
The statue of Sir Macdonald should be removed from the steps of Victoria City hall. It is true that nothing will last forever and it is just a matter of time before everything ceases to exist. The stature of Sir. John A. Macdonald was a gift to commemorate the good work he did for Canada. The good job is appreciated but the gift should not be there to be a constant reminder of the wonderful deeds of Sir. Macdonald. Sculptor John Dann argues that the statue is a work of art that commemorates humanity but humanity can be commemorated in a better way Ferber).
Sir. John A. Macdonald had a questionable legacy that some people may not be aware about. Many people feel that his legacy is more negative than positive especially with the way he used to treat indigenous people and the Asians. One of the historians say that the Macdonald's were among the people who were extremists when it came to the treatment of other races (Ferber). In parliament he was very vocal terming the treatment of people such as the Chinese and the Aryans as people of a different species. This kind of arguments makes him a very controversial man. History is not easy to erase and this kind of behavior is not easy to forget. This is why the statue should be brought down.
His penchant for violence and the kind of treatment he had towards indigenous people has overshadowed his legacy as a railroad builder. Prior to the Era of Sir. Macdonald, the settlers and the indigenous society lived together in peace. This is because of the "Two Row Wampum Treaty" which enabled them to co-exist in peace (Ferber). Sir Macdonald rose to power and tore the treaty into pieces because of the kind of attitude he had towards the indigenous community. History is not easy to erase and people will not forget the things that you did. For this reason, it is okay to remove the stature from the steps of Victoria City Hall.
Further arguments based on the kind of person Sir Macdonald was is seen in the kind of war he waged against the indigenous communities. It is argued that he committed crime against humanity if not outright genocide. James Daschuk explains in his book "Clearing the Planes" that Macdonald forced the indigenous community into starvation so that they can retreat to the reserves (Daschuk). He would then withhold food rations so that the people can lack food and die of starvation. His actions led to the death of thousands of people through starvation and diseases such as TB. This kind of person does not deserve to be remembered(Ferber). His statue should be removed in front of Victoria City Hall because it acts as a painful reminder of his inhumane actions.
We need to reconcile the people of Canada and the statue has already proven to be a difficult choice to carry on with. We don't want anything that will remind us of the painful reality of our past. The City of Victoria had also voted for the motion and the majority feel that the statue should be removed. It should be removed in honor of the Lekwungen people and to foster reconciliation.
The horror of the residential school is another reason why the statue should be removed from Victoria City hall (Anderson). The kind of legislations that had been brought forth to start the residential schools was not thought of well. All this happened during the reign of Sir John A. Macdonald as the prime minister. These are some of the things that prove just how much he did not like the indigenous people. He had to make legislations that limited their ability to be educated. No words can convince the people trying to fight for the removal of the statue.
The Arguments against Removing the Statue
Despite the treatment Macdonald had for the indigenous people, it is not fair to put away everything he did. In history, we should remember everything that an individual did. To become better citizens, we should accept the path that the country had taken ever since and embrace it for a better future. This means that despite the atrocities committed by Sir. Macdonald, we should accept that they did happen. We should accept the wonderful things that he did too and embrace them. All this is in the past and we should try and forget the past and focus on the future. This is despite of the presence of the statue (Anderson). In short, there is no need of removing it as it will be a waste of resources trying to fight the past.
Sir. John A. Macdonald is seen as the father of the nation of Canada. He alongside George Brown and George-\u00c9tienne Cartier formed a coalition that would later see Canada become a confederation after three years. He drafted almost all the 72 resolutions discussed at the Quebec conference. In his time, he was chosen by the voters who felt that he should be the first prime minister of Canada. Three years later he was fruitful in bringing Manitoba to be part of the confederation. Apart from that, he is the one who negotiated into making the British Colombia the sixth province of the federation. These are major achievements that should not be forgotten especially when people are considering to bring down his statue (Anderson).
In Conclusion
I am of the opinion that the statue of Sir. John A. Macdonald should be brought down. Despite his achievements we should take a look at his personality before we decide on erecting his statue. He was the kind of men who had a lot of hate in his heart towards people who are not of his kind. It might be true that all he did, positive and negative, was to satisfy his own ego. He was the leader who watched as thousands of people starve to death and let thousands more suffer and die from TB. He condemned the indigenous people from having a better education. We don't want the statue of a person as selfish as Sir. Macdonald was; therefore, it should be brought down.
Works Cited
Anderson, Rick. "Should statues of Sir John A. Macdonald be removed? No." 20 August 2018. TheStar..
DasChuk, James. Clearing the Plains. Regina, Saskatchewan: University of Regina, 2013. https://uofrpress.ca/Books/C/Clearing-the-Plains2.
Farber, Bernie M. "Should statues of Sir John A. Macdonald be removed? Yes." 21 August 2018. The Star.
https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/thebigdebate/2018/08/21/should-statues-of-sir-john-a-macdonald-be-removed-yes.html. 25 October 2018.
