Re: "Statues are symbols, not history" on page 4 of the Aug. 28 Sundre Round Up
Claiming that removing statues of historically controversial figures is not removing reminders of our history is frankly, highly disingenuous.
Removing a statue whitewashes the subject. Without statues, what would remind people to look up a person’s history. Who would know that as soon as John A. Macdonald’s parents could afford to, they sent him to a residential (boarding) school, as it provided a better education than he could receive in a rural area.
We cannot judge historical figures by today's standards; every famous person from more than 60 years ago held at least one idea we would find repugnant today.
If you want people to be educated, put a plaque outlining the person’s accomplishments, both good and bad, in front of the statue. Don’t whitewash it so that we forget it.
The Russians didn’t destroy history when they tore down Stalin’s statues. They tore them down the day he died. One day in the past, is not significant history. If you see a statue, you wonder when it was erected. What was the person thinking when they erected it? Often statues were erected 20-80 years after a person’s death. You can tell a lot about a time period by the statues they erect.
Clearly Sir John A. Macdonald was not a saint, but neither was he a demon. He was a product of his generation. P.E. Trudeau used to ride around on a motorcycle, wearing a Nazi German helmet and greatcoat. Should we remove all statues and rename everything named after Trudeau? If we followed that policy, there would not be one historical figure left.
Removing names and statues means we are attempting to cover up how people felt at the time. Read Fahrenheit 451, Brave New World and 1984 if you want to see where changing history can lead. Statues aren’t meant to be celebrated, they are meant to be reminders. Don’t tell me that it is bad to be reminded of MacDonald’s faults and accomplishments by placing a plaque in front of it.
We continually rewrite history through today’s eyes. When you add new information it is good; when you delete old information, it is bad.
Bob Wilson
Calgary
