Thursday, March 28, 2024

Majority of Canadians say statue of John A. Macdonald in Victoria should remain in public view (SURVEY)

Share

A recent poll conducted by the Angus Reid Institute concluded that 55% of Canadians do not support the removal of Sir John A. MacDonald’s statue from Victoria City Hall.

In general, a full 70% believe that the name and image of Canada’s first prime minister should remain in public view.

Sir John A. Macdonald is largely known as being Canada’s first Prime Minister, but his legacy is made complicated by his instrumental role in implementing Canada’s residential school system, in which thousands of Indigenous children lost their lives.

On August 11th, the Statue of John A. MacDonald was removed from outside Victoria City Hall.

The decision to remove the statue came after a year-long process in which the city council made a City Family, and met with First Nations community members monthly.

The meetings ultimately lead to the Victoria City Council voting 7-1 in favour of removing the statue.

By the Numbers

While more than half of Canadians were opposed to the removing of the statue, opinions on what to do with it are mixed.

The largest amount of respondents, at 44%, think it should be placed in a museum, while 37% want it to remain in its original spot. Lastly, 13% of respondents think it would be best to place the statue somewhere else publicly.

Additionally, over half of the respondents, 57%, think that Canada “spends too much time
apologizing for residential schools.” In contrast, 31% of respondents think “the harm from
residential schools continues and cannot be ignored”, while 12% are “unsure”.

Unsurprisingly, age and political affiliation correlate to views on the issue. 81% of previous Conservative Party voters opposed the removal of the statue, while 53% of previous Liberal Party voters approved of the statue’s removal.

 

See also

 

mm
Victoria Buzz Staffhttps://www.victoriabuzz.com
Your inside source for Greater Victoria happenings. Established in 2012.

Read more

Latest Stories