In a bold move by their leadership, the City of Kingston embarked on a reconciliation path around the history and legacy of Sir John A. MacDonald. With a focus on Indigenous peoples, ‘Engage for Change’ and ‘Your Stories, Our Histories’ projects were created in consultation with its citizens. First Peoples Group worked with dedicated and committed City of Kingston staff to develop positive and respectful ways forward that included in-person dialogue, a community-based surveys and forums as well as strategic advice and Indigenous awareness training for Mayor and Council.
While there remains much work to be done all across Canada, Kingston’s reconciliation initiative holds continued and great promise to lead the transformation of the relationship between Indigenous peoples and all Canadians.
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Reconciling the History and Legacy of Sir John A. MacDonald
In 2018, the City of Kingston embarked on a reconciliation path around the history and legacy of Sir John A. MacDonald. With a focus on Indigenous peoples, ‘Engage for Change’ and ‘Your Stories, Our Histories’ projects were created in consultation with its citizens. First Peoples Group worked with dedicated and committed City of Kingston staff to develop positive and respectful ways forward that included in-person dialogue, a community-based surveys and forums as well as strategic advice and Indigenous awareness training for Mayor and Council.
Here is what Kingston’s Mayor said about the work of FPG’s President Guy Freedman:
“I remember the moment that Guy Freedman walked into my office, in the middle of what was an incredibly difficult and challenging time where there was enormous pressure and certainly a lot of eyes looking to Kingston about how we were going to manage the situation. And I remember very much the conversation that we had that day and really had a lot of confidence that he and his team were bringing this with a degree of sensitivity and understanding that ultimately, we would bring people together.
It takes great skill when you take a polarizing issue and you can bring people together on it. And I think that is a leadership moment for Kingston. It’s very easy to quickly become polarized–you’re on one side or on the other– but when I see the recommendations before us, what I see is an attempt to bring the community together and to have us listen to each other to listen to those different perspectives, to challenge each other on how we might see things. I appreciate that this is a first step but I think it is a really good first step and so I am very happy to support the recommendations for that purpose.”
While there remains much work to be done all across Canada, Kingston’s reconciliation initiative holds continued and great promise to lead the transformation of the relationship between Indigenous peoples and all Canadians.