Over 150 experts issue statement in defence of Sir John A. Macdonald’s legacy

OTTAWA, ON (January 12, 2021): Those who see Canada’s history as little more than a shameful series of mistakes and failures have grown increasingly vocal in calling for the shunning of figures like our first Prime Minister, Sir John A. Macdonald. Macdonald, however, is owed not our contempt and derision, but our thoughtful measured thanks.

This is the message of more than 150 historians, policy experts, educators, business leaders, public figures, and thought leaders who have signed a joint statement in defence of Macdonald. This statement, a joint project of the Friends of Sir John A. Macdonald and the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, ran today in the National Post as a full-page advertisement to coincide with Macdonald’s birthday. The statement can be read in full here.

“All Canadians deserve to hear the full story about Macdonald, the founding of Canada and Canadian history generally,” reads the statement. “Only then can we form reasoned views about that historical record.”

Here's what makes Canada great: Brian Lee Crowley in the National Post

Macdonald’s legacy is one of remarkable accomplishments. He, alongside his contemporaries like George-Étienne Cartier, set themselves the task of creating Canada, overcoming sectarian and linguistic strife and years of mistrust and political deadlock. He led the original Confederation effort, persuaded three other provinces to join, hugely expanded Canada’s territory, dissuaded American expansionism, brought economic stability, promoted unity between Canada’s language and religions factions, and much more.

The statement’s signatories also note that Macdonald, like all national leaders, had significant failures. These include his policy establishing the residential school system – a decision with a dark legacy that hangs over the country to this day.

Macdonald’s undoubted errors must be weighed, however, against “an impressive record of constitution and nation building, his reconciliation of contending cultures, languages and religions, his progressivism and his documented concern for and friendship with the Indigenous peoples of Canada,” suggest the authors.

According to Professor Patrice Dutil, one of the organizers of this initiative, "the sustained attacks on monuments to Sir John A. Macdonald and the attacks on his good name in schools and at Queen's University in 2020 prompted many of us to simply say: Enough!" Professor Dutil goes on to note that while Macdonald's record is hardly without blemish, "his policy failures must be weighed against his phenomenal policy successes. This effort, I hope, will become a turning point in how Canadian society examines Macdonald, and its past generally."

As MLI Managing Director Brian Lee Crowley puts it:

“It is easy to criticize the past and the decisions made there. But it is a conceit of each and every generation that it alone is free from poor judgments, intellectual shortcomings and historical myopia.”

Read more on why Sir John A. Macdonald was "The Indispensable Politician."

“Macdonald was neither angel nor devil, but a fallible human being who accomplished great things. Looking solely at our past errors is not the right standard by which to measure Canada or Sir John A. and their great achievements,” argues Crowley, who was one of the signatories of today’s statement.

The signatories urge governments, historians, teachers, media and other engaged Canadians to ensure everyone has access to a balanced view of our common past and the people who made us.

“Looking at our history with a dispassionate eye will give us a much clearer vision of the future,” they write. “Let’s start with Sir John A. Macdonald.”

For more information, media are invited to contact:

Brett Byers
Communications and Digital Media Manager
613-482-8327 x105
brett.byers@macdonaldlaurier.ca

In defence of Sir John A. Macdonald’s Legacy:

Born on January 11th, 1815, he came here from his native Scotland in 1820. When he died 71 years later, Macdonald had become one of our greatest immigrant success stories, and the most respected and honoured Canadian of his era, having been Prime Minister for 19 of our first 24 years.

Sir John:

• Re-imagined British North America as Canada and did so with courage, wisdom and integrity.
• Dissuaded aggressive American expansionism. Macdonald, with Cartier, stared down opponents of Confederation in Quebec and Nova Scotia.
• Acquired territory that made Canada the second largest country in the world.
• Persuaded Manitobans, British Columbians and Prince Edward Islanders to join Confederation. Brought economic stability, with a farsighted Bank Act and an economic National Policy.
• Spearheaded the building of a railway to the Pacific.
• Championed unity between English and French, Protestant and Catholic.
• Promoted freedom of expression and the press.
• Launched policies that failed, as happens to all national leaders. This is certainly the case with the establishment of a national policy on Indian Residential Schools. Even though widely supported at the time, the schools had a dark legacy that hangs over the country to this day.
• Made many other mistakes respecting Indigenous peoples and policies Canadians today strongly disapprove; we understand the frustrations of the descendants of those affected by these mistakes. Macdonald’s failures must, however, be weighed against an impressive record of constitution and nation building, his reconciliation of contending cultures, languages and religions, his progressivism and his documented concern for and friendship with the Indigenous peoples of Canada.

All Canadians deserve to hear the full story about Macdonald, the founding of Canada and Canadian history generally. Only then can we form reasoned views about that historical record.

We urge governments, historians, teachers, media and other engaged Canadians to ensure everyone has access to a balanced view of our common past and the people who made us. Looking at our history with a dispassionate eye will give us a much clearer vision of the future. Let’s start with Sir John A. Macdonald.

Signed by:

1. Richard Alverez
2. Ronald Anderson
3. Thomas d’Aquino
4. John Arvanitis
5. Dianne Axmith
6. Tom Axworthy
7. Dean Baxendale
8. David Bercuson
9. Brenda Bisiker
10. Robert Bothwell
11. John Bragg
12. Pauline Browes
13. George Burger
14. Derek H. Burney
15. Charles Burton
16. Murray Campbell
17. Dave Caputo
18. Lincoln Caylor
19. C.P. Champion
20. Jean Charest
21. Duanjie Chen
22. Kenneth Coates
23. Louis Comeau
24. Sean Conway
25. George Cooper
26. James Cowan
27. David Crombie
28. Philip Cross
29. Brian Lee Crowley
30. Don Cummer
31. Ian Cunningham
32. Ken Cuthbertson
33. Ian Davidson
34. Peter Davis
35. Ramsey Derry
36. Leo Deveau
37. Mark DeWolf
38. Dorothy Dobbie
39. David Dorward
40. Steve Douglas
41. Christopher Dummitt
42. Patrice Dutil
43. John English
44. Amelia Farquharson
45. Brian Flemming
46. Bruce Flexman
47. Konrad von Finckenstein
48. Don Forbes
49. Yves Fortier
50. Benjamin Forster
51. Michael Francis
52. Dennis Freeman
53. David Frum
54. William Galbraith
55. Ted Glenn
56. John Godfrey
57. John Graham
58. Jack Granatstein
59. Charlotte Gray
60. Diana Green
61. Rudyard Griffiths
62. Carol Bishop Gwyn
63. Robert Hage
64. Roger Hall
65. Peter Hebb
66. Ralph Heintzman
67. Susan Hershman
68. John Honderich
69. Michiel Horn
70. Philip Horgan
71. Jean-Paul Hubert
72. Charles Huband
73. Michael Ignatieff
74. Robert J. Jackson
75. Mary Janigan
76. Stephen Jarislowsky
77. Jan Jekielek
78. Barbara Kay
79. Thomas Kierans
80. Philip Khaiat
81. Sanjeev Kumar
82. Katarina Glozic
83. Bill Laidlaw
84. Marjory Lebreton
85. Robin Lecky
86. Lewis Lederman
87. Christian Leuprecht
88. Anastasia Lin
89. Peter Lockyer
90. John MacDonell
91. Donald MacGregor
92. Lyman MacInnis
93. Peter MacKay
94. Vaughn MacLellan
95. Margaret MacMillan
96. Sandy MacMillan
97. Stan Maj
98. Shuvaloy Majumdar
99. Hubert Marleau
100. Duncan Matheson
101. Joe Martin
102. Larry J. Martin
103. Sandra Martin
104. Ernie McCullough
105. Brett McDermott
106. Michelene Brunet McDougall
107. Duncan McDowall
108. David McFadden
109. Darcy McGee
110. John McIntyre
111. Ken McLaughlin
112. Michael Meighen
113. Peter Menzie
114. Jim Miller
115. Jack Mintz
116. Garfield Mitchell
117. Alexander Moens
118. Douglas Moggach
119. James Moore
120. Reid Morden
121. William Morrison
122. Scott Munnoch
123. Kelvin Ogilvie
124. Joe Oliver
125. Bob Onyschuk
126. Richard C. Owens
127. Doug Owram
128. John Palmer
129. Mark Palmer
130. Christian Paradis
131. Tina Park
132. John Pepall
133. Rick Peterson
134. Greg Piasetzki
135. Bob Plamondon
136. Brian R. Porter
137. Raheel Raza
138. Gilbert Reid
139. Colin Robertson
140. John Robson
141. Noel Roddick
142. James Rodger
143. John Ryder-Burbidge
144. Mohan Sampath
145. Bill Saunderson
146. Shelly Scriver
147. Gail Scott
148. Graham Scott
149. Kaveh Shahrooz
150. Robbie Shaw
151. Jeffrey Simpson
152. Helen Sinclair
153. Britton Smith
154. Denis Smith
155. Don Stevenson
156. D. M. Stewart
157. Fraser Sutherland
158. Harry Swain
159. Richard Tattersall
160. Pamela Taylor
161. Sarah Teich
162. Mary de Toro
163. Ryan Touhey
164. Diana Tremain
165. Denis Tsarev
166. Ian Urquhart
167. Jonathan Vance
168. Ian Waddell
169. Gordon Walker
170. Sam Wakim
171. David Warrick
172. David Wells
173. Michael Weizman
174. Glen Williams
175. Shawn Whatley
176. Ed Whitcomb
177. Ken Whyte
178. Henry Wiercinski
179. Rob Wildeboer
180. ‘Red’ Wilson
181. Conrad Winn
182. Kai Xing
183. Shura Xu
184. Eric Zadro
185. Mona Zhang
186. Sabrina Zuniga

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(As of January 20, 2021, 4:00pm ET)