The statue of Sir John A. Macdonald is shown torn down following a demonstration in Montreal, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2020. Montreal does not intend to replace the toppled statue THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes
MONTREAL – The City of Montreal says it won’t replace a toppled statue of Canada’s first prime minister in a downtown park.
The city’s executive committee says it will instead partner with a local institution to display the statue of Sir John A. Macdonald in a different location with more contextual information for onlookers.
Erected in 1895, the statue was frequently the target of vandalism before protesters tore it down from its pedestal in downtown Montreal’s Place du Canada in August 2020.
Macdonald championed the assimilation of Indigenous people and is considered to be the architect of the residential school system.
The statue remained in storage while the city considered its future.
The now-empty pedestal, meanwhile, will remain in Place du Canada as a reminder of the statue’s history.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 30, 2023.
