History’s Two Solitudes: The Unequal Treatment of English and French Canada’s Giants From the Past

Sir Edgar Dewdney in 1883. Dewdney, who served lieutenant governor B.C and Indian Commissioner of the North-West Territories, is among several figures whose historic plaques recognizing their achievements have been removed by Parks Canada. Public Domain

Commentary

The pantheon of Canadian historical figures got a bit smaller last year.

In 2019, Parks Canada began scrutinizing thousands of bronze historical plaques scattered across the country commemorating nationally significant persons, places, and events. The review is part of an effort to “advance reconciliation and to confront the legacy of colonialism.”

To date, 229 subjects have been identified as problematic enough to warrant further investigation. Plaques might be revised, or in “exceptional circumstances” the designations could be revoked entirely. Despite reassurances from Parks Canada that “History is not being erased through the review of these designations,” some plaques have already begun to disappear.

Plaques were recently removed for Confederation-era senior administrator Edgar Dewdney, western Canadian journalists-cum-politicians Nicholas Flood Davin and Frank Oliver, plus Duncan Campbell Scott, the long-time deputy superintendent of what was then called the Department of Indian Affairs. They were all found guilty of “colonial assumptions” through their association with federal indigenous policy and Canada’s now-reviled Indian Residential Schools.

While it was claimed that these plaques were removed on a “temporary” basis, it was recently confirmed that “No new plaque will be prepared as the limited text of a plaque does not allow for adequately communicating the complex history.”

That is surprising, since many other federal plaques do describe events that are anything but simple. The “Winnipeg General Strike” or “Japanese Canadian Internment” involve complex themes and conflicting viewpoints.

While some plaques were being consigned to the dustbin, Ottawa was enhancing the reputation of another “settler-colonial” interloper.

Joseph Broussard dit Beausoleil recently received a new plaque and all the recognition that goes with it. According to Parks Canada, Beausoleil was a heroic resistance fighter rebelling against British oppression in what is now Atlantic Canada, despite committing many objectively horrible war crimes, including scalping and killing innocent civilians during a 1751 raid known as the “Dartmouth Massacre.”

How did Beausoleil escape Parks Canada’s revisionism? He was surely guilty of “colonial assumptions,” and polite society today tends to frown on scalping and murdering civilians. Perhaps the key difference lies in Beausoleil’s native tongue.

The statue of Sir John A. Macdonald is removed from a park in his hometown of Kingston, Ont., on June 18, 2021. The Canadian Press/Lars Hagberg

Consider also the contrast between the treatment of Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada’s founding prime minister, and Canada’s seventh, Sir Wilfrid Laurier, Canada’s first Quebec-born Prime Minister whom outgoing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau often heralded as an inspiration, frequently citing his “Sunny Ways” catchphrase.

Macdonald once enjoyed an even greater reputation. Today, that reputation lies in tatters with much of the animosity emanating from the federal government. At Macdonald’s former home in Kingston, Ontario, for example, a display describes him as “a monster” for his promotion of residential schools, and his immigration policy, including the infamous Chinese head tax, is similarly excoriated.

Yet everything Macdonald did, Laurier did the same or worse.

Laurier oversaw a vast expansion of residential schools and some of his other policies led to objectively worse outcomes for Canada’s indigenous people. His government also ignored reports detailing the deadly effect of tuberculosis in the schools. Laurier also instituted measures to limit black, Chinese, Japanese, and Indian migration to Canada.

Despite all this, Laurier’s reputation has remained untouched. He is not on a review list, his name is still on display across the country, and Parks Canada’s  Laurier House National Historic Site provides no signs alerting visitors to its former resident being “a monster.” Adding insult to injury, Frank Oliver served as a cabinet minister in Laurier’s government.

Statue of Sir Wilfrid Laurier, Canada’s seventh prime minister, in Dorchester Square in Montreal. Felix Lipov/Shutterstock

The difference in how English and French-Canadian historical figures are treated extends to others, including well-known explorer and “Father of New France” Samuel de Champlain, whose statue stands proudly in Quebec City but was removed in Orillia, Ontario. And the mid-20th century Quebec clergyman Lionel Groulx, who expressed a variety of problematic and offensive views but whose name continues to adorn numerous public facilities in the province.

Several factors might explain this linguistic divide. First, wokeism has been a mainly Anglo-centric fixation. At the height of the global statue-toppling craze in 2020 when most politicians went silent in the face of angry mobs, French President Emmanuel Macron took a strong and principled stand in defence of historical fact, stating that “The Republic will erase no trace or names of its history. It will not forget any of its deeds or take down any statue.” Quebec premier Franҁois Legault said something similar when Macdonald’s statue was torn down in Montreal. Gallic pride may be a defence against wokeist historical destruction.

It can also be argued that history matters more to francophone Quebecers than other Canadians due to their unique circumstances. As a small island of mostly French language and culture in a vast English-speaking ocean, Quebec’s French-speaking residents are more attuned to the significance of having, maintaining, and defending a common identity and heritage.

And finally, there is politics. Given the importance of culture and identity to Quebec, taking on the legacy of a Laurier or Champlain would be a risky proposition politically, particularly given the federal Liberals long reliance on Quebec voters.

Whatever the explanation, it still doesn’t make it right. The disappearing plaques were meant to spark curiosity and discussion and provided a modest but important contribution to communicating Canada’s history by highlighting the people, places, and events that shaped it for good or for ill and sometimes for both.

If Ottawa can find a way to honour Beausoleil despite his complexity, surely we can do the same for Dewdney, Scott, Davin, and Oliver.

Larry Ostola served as vice president of Heritage Conservation and Commemoration at Parks Canada. The original, longer version of this story first appeared in C2C Journal.

Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.