Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps has released an apology for not including more people in the decision to remove a statue of former prime minister John A. Macdonald from out front of VictoriaB次元官网网址檚 City Hall.
B次元官网网址淎s mayor of Victoria, I apologize for not recognizing that the city familyB次元官网网址檚 process might make some people feel excluded from such an important decision,B次元官网网址� she said in a statement on her campaign website. B次元官网网址淚 didnB次元官网网址檛 recognize the great desire of Victoria residents to participate in reconciliation actions. The process going forward will enable this.B次元官网网址�
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Helps initially announced the statue would be removed on Aug. 8, and crews were on scene during the early morning hours of Aug. 11 to complete the job.
This caused immediate outrage both locally and nationally, and sparked a rally later in the day where hundreds gather either in opposition or support of the statueB次元官网网址檚 removal.
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The decision was made in July after roughly a year of dialogue between the City Family and the Songhees and Esquimalt nations and was endorsed by council in August. The City Family was created in June 2017 to guide the CityB次元官网网址檚 reconciliation actions and includes representatives of the two First Nations, Helps and councillors Marianne Alto and Charlayne Thornton-Joe.
B次元官网网址淩econciliation means following Indigenous leadership. It means listening carefully to how symbols and monuments that might be meaningful to many can create barriers for others,B次元官网网址� Helps said. B次元官网网址淎nd it also means being in dialogue and creating opportunities for true learning and conversation among Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities. But it is complex, and so we will make mistakes as we navigate and try to walk this road together.B次元官网网址�
Helps added that moving forward, she has made a public commitment to bring forward the wishes of council and the public for a wider community conversation about reconciliation and the new location for the statue.
She said that as a part of this, she has already arranged a meeting with the John A. Macdonald society and the statueB次元官网网址檚 sculptor, John Dann.
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B次元官网网址淭he statue in its original location was a barrier to Indigenous communitiesB次元官网网址� engagement with city hall,B次元官网网址� Helps said. B次元官网网址淲ithout relocating the statue, we were not able to invite First Nations to city hall in good faith and respect. Reconciliation needs to take place in the real world, not just in our hearts.B次元官网网址�
To see the full statement, you can visit her campaign website at
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