Dear editor,
I write today to the council and citizens of Fort Frances about why it is crucial and necessary to change the name of Colonization Road. I write from my personal capacity, but from the lens of the work, I am doing as Chair of the City of Thunder Bay’s Anti-Racism and Respect Advisory Committee and my work as the former Chair of the largest Pride organization in the region.
I have followed closely the discussions around the road renaming and find it hard to understand the resistance to changing this roadway’s hurtful name. Knowing what we know about the Truth and Reconciliation Commission – Calls to Action, by building inclusive and diverse communities, full of opportunity for Indigenous and racialized people, along with supporting the most marginalized population, the road leading in or out of your community references Colonization.
Having spent my childhood summers between Thunder Bay and Fort Frances, I saw the best of the community. I loved Fort Frances summers, swimming at The Point, Shopping on Scott Street and enjoying time on Rainy Lake. As I grew older, I always wondered why a community so close to five First Nations communities and on the lands of Treaty 3, would not consider renaming a hurtful and dark part of the history of Canada. Now, after far too many years to make a difference, to acknowledge the painful past of Colonialism, it is time to take swift and meaningful action to change the name of the road.
Recognizing the painful past is important but the steps we now take to build vibrant, inclusive and welcoming communities is more important than ever. I implore council not to waste another second debating the merits of a name change, discussing the “costs” of a change when you cannot accept the painful nature of what that name means to our Indigenous people, the first people of the land we now occupy. The time is now to accept and learn from our past.
Fort Frances Town Council’s privilege should be used for good, for making a difference in your community, for all people not just those whose skin colour is white. Breaking down colonialist arguments is far more urgent today. I would encourage consultation with Treaty 3 and the Indigenous community on meaningful names that should be presented to council as a positive step towards real and true reconciliation.
Jason Veltri
Thunder Bay
