Inspired by a group of citizens campaigning to rename the University of Moncton, a group of residents is asking Quebec City to rename Moncton Avenue.
Gaitan Roost, who graduated from the University of Moncton in the late 1960s, was the one who instigated the movement to erase the name of British officer Robert Moncton from the landscape of the Quebec capital.
If his name is controversial today, this colonel played an active role in the deportation of the Acadians and participated in several battles in Quebec. Robert Monckton wreaks havoc from Gaspé to Quebec. He fought together James Wolfe In the Battle of the Plains of Abraham. It devastated the south shore of Quebec. He burned houses, sheds, and crops
Gaëtan Ruest explains.
Gaëtan Ruest was mayor of Amgi for 19 years.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Jean-Francois Descens
According to a spokesperson for the Quebec group, their request is not a wish
. You shouldn't be afraid to take action to free yourself. We have long been walking on all fours, bending our knees, bending our backs, to please those who heap contempt upon us.
He continues.
The group is preparing to present its grievances to the Commission de Toponymy du Québec and hopes to change the name of the avenue from Chemin Saint-Foy to the Plain of Abraham, passing René-Lévesque Boulevard.
Among the group's members are Jacques Joly-Coeur, who was deputy mayor of the Quebec capital in the early 2000s, and Marie-Anne LeBlanc of the Acadian Association of the Quebec region.
A Quebec spokesman notes that this is the fourth time in 25 years that a group has tried to change the name of Moncton Avenue, which was named in 1932.
Edited by Beausoleil Broussard
The team does not come empty-handed. He proposed to change Monckton's name to Beausoleil Broussard National Historical Significance
.
Joseph Broussard's visit to Louisiana as head of the Acadian group, Robert Dafford's artistic interpretation was produced in 1995.
Photo: Acadian Memorial Foundation/Robert Dafford
It holds a special place in the collective memory of indigenous peoples and Acadians. He was an Acadian leader of resistance against exile. His behavior was the opposite of that of the genocidal Robert Monckton.
Announces the mayor of Aamgi for 19 years.
Visitors interested in Acadia
The movement is closely followed by a citizens group for a new name for the University of Moncton, whose latest request was rejected by the institution last December. The university's name has been debated at least 13 times since its creation in 1963.
Lise Ouellette, the group's co-spokesperson, finds the Quebec approach interesting.
It shows that we are not alone. […] This is part of the trend towards decolonization and the affirmation of linguistic identity.
she says.
Both groups explain that they do not have a unified strategy and that neither group supports the other. If the Université de Moncton team would like to support us, we would gladly accept
Gaëtan Ruest underlines.
“Music geek. Coffee lover. Devoted food scholar. Web buff. Passionate internet guru.”