Alexander Wood Statue
How will we be accountable?
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The Church-Wellesley Village BIA is calling for removal of the Alexander Wood statue [see attached letter]
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The Church-Wellesley Village BIA Board commits to addressing racism in The Village by
a) The full Board receiving the City of Toronto’s Confronting Anti-Black Racism Training to be completed by December 2021
b) The full Board to receive Indigenous teachings around the history of Anti-Indigenous racism and the treatment of Indigenous Peoples in residential schools in Canada to be completed by February 2022 -
Continue to uncover the truth of this situation and share our findings with the community (ongoing)
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Publicly acknowledge the damage done to Indigenous culture and apologize for putting this monument in place
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Use the space for a project that is 2 Spirit-advised with the cost shared by the Church-Wellesley Village BIA and The City of Toronto and begin the planning stages by October 2021
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Encourage other BIAs, towns, and cities across Canada to question what is in their community and to learn about those stories in light of the truth of Canada’s history
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Create sexual assault and bystander intervention awareness literature to distribute and post publicly this summer
Updates
As of March 2022, we have hired a contractor who will remove the Alexander Wood statue. 3/4 of our board members have received Confronting Anti-Black Racism Training and Indigenous teachings around the history of Anti-Indigenous racism and the treatment of Indigenous. In June 2021 we installed a mural at 512 Church Street. At this mural, there are resources for people who have experienced sexual assault and information on informed consent.
In November of 2021, we hosted an Introduction to Indigenous Culture for Local Businesses in Barbara Hall Park. Kelly Brownbill facilitated this introduction. Our staff and local business owners were in attendance. On February 16th & 17th 2022 we hosted two 2 hour sessions on the Foundation to Indigenous Cultural Competency. Kelly Brownbill led this webinar. Business owners and BIA staff were in attendance.
As of April 2022, the Alexander Wood statue has been removed.
