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e-3516 (Culture and heritage)
E-petition
Initiated by Tanis Dagert from Nanaimo, British Columbia
Original language of petition: English
Petition to the Prime Minister
Whereas:
- John Alexander Macdonald became the first prime minister of Canada on July 1, 1867;
- Macdonald is considered the architect of the residential school system that removed First Nations children from their families and communities to assimilate them, between 1880 until the last school closed in 1996;
- The residential school system is considered to be a form of genocide because of the purposeful attempt from the government and church to eradicate all aspects of Indigenous cultures and lifeworlds;
- On June 11, 2008, Prime Minister Stephen Harper offered an apology on behalf of Canadians for the Indian Residential School System and recognized that this policy of assimilation was wrong, has caused great harm, and has no place in our country; and
- On May 27, 2021, Chief Rosanne Casimir from Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc Kukpi7 First Nation confirmed the remains of 215 children who were students at the Kamloops Indian Residential School in a press release.
We, the undersigned, citizens and residents of Canada, call upon the Prime Minister to publically remove the statue of John Alexander Macdonald from Parliament Hill as an immediate and symbolic act of deep humility, reconciliation and apology to Indigenous Peoples in Canada and all the children who have suffered from trauma because of the Canadian government backed residential school system policy, past and present.
- Open for signature
- June 22, 2021, at 3:12 p.m. (EDT)
- Closed for signature
- September 20, 2021, at 3:12 p.m. (EDT)
