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Letter: Take a stand against do-gooders trying to change history

Reader takes issue with teachers union's stance against John A. Macdonald
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Letter-writer Tony Sottile says he's "dumbfounded" by the Elementary Teachers Union of Ontario's stance that the name of Canada's first prime minister should be removed from Ontario schools. (Supplied)

I was not only dumbfounded and shocked, but also angry that the Ontario teachers union demanded that Sir John A. MacDonald be removed from our schools.

Sir John become premier in Canada in an unstable political system. In 1864, it was agreed that the two parties in Ottawa unite in a coalition to seek federation and political reform. Macdonald was the leading figure in the subsequent discussions and conferences, which resulted in the BNA Act. And the birth of Canada as a nation on July 1, 1867. Sir John A. was our first prime minister.

Without his  political and diplomatic persuasions, Western Canada would have been swallowed up by the Americans, which includes British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and also the Yukon. It was John A. Macdonald who was influential to have the Canadian Pacific Railway built connecting Canada from the Atlantic to the Pacific. 

The teachers either don’t know their history of Canada or do not realize the importance of our  historic past. The do-gooders want to change our history and destroy the past. They are creating chaos and havoc in our society

I quote Mr. J.D.M. Stewart in the Globe and Mail, “Too many people launch into debates about the past, assuming it is black and white, filled with winners and losers, heroes and villains. The reality is much different. History is painted with grey, it is filled with ambiguity, conundrums and perplexing evidence to reconcile.

And it takes time, knowledge and consideration to figure it out.

“History is even more challenging when dealing with its characters, real people with human foibles and strengths. Take a peak into your own family to see some of the complexity.

“A further concern is that there seems to be a race right now to see how many historical figures can be knocked down by applying our own standards of justice and morality to the past.”

Since the teachers' union represents all teachers in our province, we should all be concerned with their ambiguity and bias when teaching our future generation. We must take a stand against the do-gooders in our society who attempt to change history.

Tony Sottile
Sudbury