As the Toronto District School Board moves to rename three schools dedicated to Sir John A. Macdonald, Henry Dundas, and Egerton Ryerson, critics of the plan say that the school board’s decision is wrongminded and based on a distortion of historical facts.

Earlier this week, the TDSB’s special committee dedicated to purging “offensive” school names sent a recommendation to trustees urging the board to strip three schools of their names – Dundas Junior Public School, Ryerson Community School, and the Sir John A Macdonald Collegiate Institute.

The committee rationalized the decision by claiming the three figures reinforce Canada’s “systems of oppression,” “legacy of colonialism,” and “histories of discrimination.”

“This recommendation is based on the potential impact that these names may have on students and staff based on colonial history, anti-indigenous racism and their connection to systems of oppression,” reads the committee’s recommendation.

However, descendants of the figures in question and historians number among the critics of the TDSB’s decision. They say that the board is making a vacuous decision based on a misunderstanding of the legacies of Macdonald, Ryerson, and Dundas.

Jennifer Dundas, a retired Crown prosecutor, told True North that she is frustrated with the renaming of Dundas Junior Public School and the way Henry has been portrayed by the school board. According to Jennifer Dundas, Henry Dundas is a forebear of hers and was a third cousin of one of her ancestors.

“I am pretty fed up with highly educated administrators ignoring the scholarly literature on Henry Dundas, and perpetuating the lie that he delayed abolition,” said Jennifer Dundas.

Henry Dundas was a prominent minister for British Prime Minister William Pitt who worked with abolitionist William Wilberforce to abolish hereditary slavery immediately and gradually abolish the slave trade overall within the British empire. 

Jennifer Dundas says that the academic literature does not support the argument that her ancestor was pro-slavery, despite what the TDSB may say.

“Three recently published peer-reviewed articles have exonerated Henry Dundas, and Scotland’s most eminent historian has denounced the accusations against him as ‘bad history.’ The most recent peer-reviewed article reveals new evidence that he was an abolitionist.”

Jennifer Dundas is referring to a 2023 article in Scottish Affairs by Angela McCarthy, a professor in Scottish and Irish history who argues that, contrary to the claims of progressive activists who misrepresent his views, Henry Dundas was an abolitionist.

Jennifer Dundas says that people who get offended by the Dundas name are misinformed and that her ancestor should be remembered as a staunch abolitionist.

“If children and staff are offended as a result of misinformation, that’s no basis for renaming a school,” Jennifer Dundas told True North.

“TDSB has a duty to provide reliable and accurate information so that children and staff are not emotionally harmed. They have a duty to educate. Their failure accurately to inform their students is a dereliction of duty.”

Toronto Metropolitan University professor and author of the latest biography “Sir John A. Macdonald & the Apocalyptic Year 1885” Patrice Dutil denounced the TDSB renaming Sir John A Macdonald Collegiate Institute.

Macdonald was the primary architect of Confederation, serving as Canada’s first and third prime minister for a total of 19 years.

Dutil told True North that the renaming of the Sir John A Macdonald Collegiate Institute is a “terrible idea” and a “slap in the face of Canada.”

“It is a terrible idea. Macdonald’s record is as clear as it could be: he was a champion of all minorities and his legacy has always been honoured until now,” said Dutil.

“To remove the name Macdonald from that school is a slap in the face of Canada.”

Dutil contends that Macdonald treated Indigenous Canadians fairly and that he should be remembered as a “champion.”

“When he was in power, Macdonald saved indigenous lives by providing them with medicines and food. Nobody else did that. To pretend otherwise is simply to be ignorant of history,” said Dutil.

“He remains to this day Canada’s most important individual: he never stopped believing in it and in the potential of its people. He defended it and did everything in his power to keep it united. He was its undying champion.”

Lynn McDonald, a 1980s NDP MP and professor emerita of sociology told True North that the former Ryerson University was renamed to Toronto Metropolitan University for the same faulty logic that the TDSB is using.

“There is no good reason for renaming. Ryerson University was renamed on the basis of false accusations, which have been detailed since,” said McDonald.

In 2022, Ryerson University’s board of directors voted to change the institution’s name after the legacy of the university’s namesake began receiving blowback from progressive activists for allegedly being the architect of Canada’s residential school system.

Ryerson was an early Canadian educator who was an advocate for universal, free public education and is credited for the creation of Ontario’s public education system.

“Ryerson was a friend of Indigenous people, a missionary at first, and he helped them with farming and carpentry. He supported their land and fisheries claims. That is why an Ojibwe chief named him a ‘brother,’ and gave him an Ojibwe name. All of this is well documented. People in education should be able to read!”

When asked how Ryerson should be remembered, McDonald noted Ryerson’s contribution to pioneering Ontario’s public education system and his work supporting Indigenous Canadians.

“For his pioneering work in getting free schools for all, when few children went to school, no teachers were trained and all schools charged fees. This is hard to understand now, when we take free schools for granted. He should be remembered no less for his support of Indigenous people.”