Dundas Street, a major thoroughfare in Toronto named after a Scottish politician who played a role in delaying the abolition of the slave trade, will have a new name.
Toronto City Council voted Wednesday 17-7 in favour of renaming street and other civic assets with the name Dundas, including parks, TTC stations, and Yonge-Dundas Square.
Before the vote, Mayor John Tory, who supports the renaming, told the council that stripping the name Dundas from city properties will reaffirm Toronto's values.
"This is the right thing to do. Because yes, it has symbolic importance to particular communities, but I think to all the people as a reaffirmation of what it is we're trying to build -- the kind of city we're trying to build, the kind of people we are, who we are, what we are here in Toronto," Tory said.
"It is a moment in history where we can say that simply -- all we're saying is we are not going to continue to recognize and to honour someone who took the actions that he took at the time he did it that are so inconsistent with the values that we're trying to build up and celebrate today. That's what we're saying."
Tory added that Dundas had no direct connection to the city, saying that the politician never visited nor did anything for Toronto.
City staff recommended last month the renaming of the street following an extensive study of academic research on Henry Dundas' role in abolition, which was found to be "in direct conflict" with Toronto's values of equity and inclusion. The push to rename Dundas Street began last year when nearly 14,000 people signed a petition to change the name.
"You have to ask yourself. If we were sitting here today, looking at figures in the history of this city in this country, would there be any chance whatsoever that you would even consider for a minute naming one of our most major streets after this man? And I think the answer to that is a resounding no," Tory said.
City staff are expected to put forward a selection of new names to the executive committee next year.
The city said a Community Advisory Committee made up of Black and Indigenous leaders and representatives from those living and working along Dundas Street, including Business Improvement Areas and resident associations, will lead the renaming process.
The committee will also develop a transition plan to support residents and businesses affected by the renaming.
The city said there are about 4,000 businesses along Dundas Street and around 60 of them have "Dundas" in their names.
A group started by Andrew Lochhead, who created the petition to rename Dundas Street, said in a statement posted to social media that the vote is an "important step" in ending "celebrations of white supremacy and colonial violence" in the city.
"Let's Rename Dundas Street is committed to holding city leaders and staff to their promises to prioritize Black, Indigenous, racialized and marginalized voices in the renaming process, the Recognition Review, and the development of a new commemorative framework," the statement read.
