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Letter: New West councillors 'dictating our morals' with Begbie motion

Editor: Re: New Westminster politicians want to remove the Judge Begbie statue , Record online, May 3 Plans to remove Judge Begbie's statue is another recent example of our New Westminster city council dictating our morals and erasing our history.
Mr Olson
Begbie
Having removed the Judge Begbie statue from Begbie Square in July, city council is now poised to consider a motion that would see Begbie Square (shown here, in front of the law courts on Carnarvon Street) and Begbie Street in downtown New West renamed Chief Ahan Square and Chief Ahan Street.

Editor:

Re: New Westminster politicians want to remove the Judge Begbie statue, Record online, May 3

Plans to remove Judge Begbie's statue is another recent example of our New Westminster city council dictating our morals and erasing our history.

Those (Indigenous) men were sentenced to hang for murdering unarmed, non-hostile road workers. Begbie was following the law in their sentences.

Just as our first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald, has been dragged through the mud for doing what he thought best and honourable to assimilate our Indigenous peoples via residential schools - it was not his intention to destroy them. That is a tragedy.

Councillors Chuck Puchmayr and Nadine Nakagawa appear intent on destroying the heritage of our fine city and the people who built it. 

MR Olson, New Westminster