Vancouver city council votes unanimously to change street named after colonial leader

Vancouver city council unanimously passed a motion Thursday night to rename Trutch Street because of racist policies against Indigenous people enacted by B.C.'s first lieutenant governor, Joseph Trutch. 

The street located in Kitsilano will instead receive a Musqueam name, chosen by the Musqueam Indian Band.

Mayor Kennedy Stewart said Musqueam leaders have been calling for the renaming of the street for over a decade, which inspired him to bring forth the motion last month. 

The motion also states that city council will also consider requests from the Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations to rename other streets.

The City of Vancouver became a City of Reconciliation in 2014 and promises to review Vancouver's colonial and racist past as well as make changes to reflect a reconciled relationship with First Nations people.

Stewart described the motion as the first step in continuing the city's journey toward reconciliation. 

"Joseph Trutch was a racist and chief architect of policies causing immense and long-standing harm to First Nations people. He doesn't deserve to have a street named after him," Stewart tweeted following the meeting.

Trutch was the lieutenant governor of B.C. from 1871 to 1876. Although he was one of the lead politicians that negotiated British Columbia's entry into Confederation, he also reduced the size of previously agreed upon reserves established by then governor James Douglas by 90 per cent, to a 10-acre maximum. He also denied First Nations' title to their lands and blocked their ability to acquire lands 'owned' by non-Indigenous people. 

In Victoria, calls were renewed to rename its Trutch Street in March when a group of university students launched a petition to make a change. In 2018, the name was stripped from one of the University of Victoria's buildings.