A student newspaper at McGill University has dropped "McGill" from its name and says it wants the school to do the same. McGill University's campus is seen Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2017, in Montreal. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz
MONTREAL – A student newspaper at McGill University has dropped “McGill” from its name because the school’s founder enslaved people.
Madison Edward-Wright, a managing editor of The Tribune, says the university should no longer use the name McGill either.
She says her publication rejects the legacy of James McGill and wants to create a welcoming atmosphere for Black, Indigenous and other racialized students.
McGill University acknowledges on its website that its founder – a wealthy merchant from Scotland – owned at least five Black and Indigenous people, including two children who both died around the age of 10.
Edward-Wright says she doesn’t think a name change would erase the strong international reputation for research and higher education at McGill, which was founded in 1821.
The university, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment, removed a statue of McGill from its campus in 2021.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 14, 2013.
