On Sept. 25, 1975, the Franco-Ontarian flag was officially unveiled for the first time at the University of Sudbury. That historic moment is commemorated on Sept. 25 every year with Franco-Ontarian Day.
Now there's a permanent reminder of the flag's history on the University of Sudbury's campus, where the Ontario Heritage Trust has installed a plaque about the topic.
“It just encapsulates that piece of history and makes it very present in everyday life,” said University of Sudbury president Sophie Bouffard Sept. 25 after unveiling the plaque.
“I think it's a reminder of our commitment to the francophone community.”
The plaque explains how Laurentian University history professor Gaetan Gervais and student Michel Dupuis came up with the flag's concept, which was then sewn by student Jacline England.
There were actually six students and staff members involved in the Franco-Ontarian flag project, said Donald Obonsawin, who was a part of the group. At the time, he was the secretary to Laurentian University's board of governors.
“We worked on that during the summer of 1975, and on Sept. 25, 1975, we decided it was time to publicly unveil the flag,” he said. “We decided that a flag didn't belong to six people, it belonged to the broader community.”
The Franco-Ontarian flag was officially recognized by the provincial government in 2001 as the emblem of the Franco-Ontarian community.
At times, though, the flag has become the subject of controversy.
An example was in 2003, when Greater Sudbury's city government voted against flying the flag at Tom Davies Square, claiming it would be inappropriate to display a flag representing only a portion of the city's population.
Former Mayor John Rodriguez reversed that decision in 2006, upon being elected.
Obonsawin said he hopes that when students see the historic plaque, it gives them the inspiration to take action if they have big ideas. “You never realize what impact that idea or action could have,” he said.
