Friday July 2, 2021 | VICTORIA, BC [Updated at 2:50 pm, 3 pm, 3:25 pm, and 2:45 pm July 3, 2021]
by Jalen C Codrington and Mary P Brooke, Island Social Trends
The bronze and granite sculpture of one of the most famous British colonial explorers — Capt James Cook — no longer stands at the Inner Harbour in downtown Victoria, where it once faced the Fairmont Empress Hotel.
Protesters pulled down a statue of Capt. James Cook and threw the pieces into Victoria’s Inner Harbour on Thursday night, across the street from the iconic colonial-era hotel in the 700-block of Government Street in the old section of the city.
At approximately 8:30 pm last night — the evening of Canada Day, a group of activists toppled the statue with ropes, before tossing it into the harbour. That was after a demonstration that started at 6 pm.
The remaining pedestal was smeared with blood-coloured paint, and cutouts of red dresses that were to represent missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.
The Greater Victoria Harbour Authority owns the statue, and had it pulled out of the harbour.
The protest:
This incident came on the heels of an anti-colonialist gathering on the lawn of the BC Parliament building, after the organized protest. The level of organization for destructive activity appeared to be well organized.
About 200 people had moved from the peaceful protest on the BC Legislature lawns over toward a statue of Queen Victoria but were diverted by police. The group then moved over to the Captain Cook statue.
A resident of the west shore who attended the peaceful organized protest with orange shirts on the steps of the Legislative Buildings told Island Social Trends today: “The well-attended sea of orange was then devastated by how the evening ended with a few destructive people.”
Canada Day protests:
Yesterday there were protests across Canada, many of which saw orange (the colour that has come to represent the process of reconciliation with Indigenous peoples) in place of red. People wore orange, placed orange shirts and other items at various sites, and even the Canadian flag’s red maple leaf was displayed in orange for the day.
All of this made this the first Canada Day not about celebrating, partying, travelling and relaxing. It was a day of reflection for many. Political statements and social media were filled with statements of reflections and hoping for the Truth and Reconciliation Report calls to action to be learned about in detail by all Canadians.
“Safe, peaceful and lawful protests are permitted under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Property damage is not,” wrote Victoria police in a statement today July 2. There are several suspects in this incident which remains under investigation.
Police released photos of two of the suspects, both of whom appear to be young male adults.
The famous captain:
Captain James Cook of the British Royal Navy, is known most famously for his three voyages between 1768 and 1779 in the Pacific. During that period he navigated and surveyed numerous uncharted territories across the globe.
While Cook was not directly involved with the Indian Residential Schools in Canada, activists argue that Cook was an enabler of British colonialism throughout the Pacific. On the other side of Canada he surveyed and mapped much of the entrance to the St Lawrence River, opening commerce to the regions that are now the commercially powerful areas of Quebec and southern Ontario. There have been numerous campaigns for the return of Indigenous artifacts taken during Cook’s voyages.
Cook was killed on the Island of Hawaii in 1779 during an altercation with with Indigenous peoples, after Cook’s crew removed wood from a native burial ground.
Cook did leave a legacy of scientific and geographical knowledge that influenced his successors well into the 20th century, and numerous memorials worldwide have been dedicated to him.
Locally the explorer is recognized by Cook Street through Victoria (and daily in reference to Cook Street Village in the James Bay area of Victoria near the Dallas Road waterfront), as well as the statue that is no longer.
The Cook statue in Victoria was unveiled almost 45 years ago on July 12, 1976 by then-premier Bill Bennett (1932-2015), to mark the 200th anniversary of Cook’s departure from Plymouth, England, on the voyage that brought the explorer to Vancouver Island where the Nuu-chah-nulth people resided.
Photos of suspects:
The Victoria Police Department has released two photos, of who they feel are suspects in the damage to the statue. It is unknown whether the suspects were protesting colonialism or just out to impart damage.
===== LINKS:
Canada Day: a chance to brush up on Truth and Reconciliation (July 1, 2021)
Premier Horgan on Canada Day: pandemic, First Nations, heat (July 1, 2021)
Recognition of Kamloops Indian Residential School tragedy at BC Parliament Buildings (June 8, 2021)
Powerful words on Indigenous healing & reconciliation from BC’s top doctor (May 31, 2021)
Premier Horgan’s statement on the ‘horror and hearbreak’ of the Kamloops discovery (May 28, 2021)
