The Law Society of BC and the New Westminster City Council voted to remove statues of Judge Begbie as a gesture to support reconciliation with aboriginal people.
The nation-wide Truth and Reconciliation Commission developed 94 carefully considered Calls to Action. None of them include removing statues and renaming places. The Chair said that such actions do not help reconciliation as they smack of revenge and anger.
Who was Matthew Begbie and what did he do to deserve such treatment?
Matthew Bailie Begbie was a successful and capable lawyer in London. Knowing his adventurous spirit, love of travel and commitment to justice, the Minister responsible for British Columbia Lytton tasked him with setting up a modern legal system here.
Begbie was the right one for the job as he travelled in the most strenuous circumstances and faced down hostile US miners.
The United States philosophy of Manifest Destiny encouraged them to think that British Columbia would become part of their country. Indeed, the original British territory of Columbia was centred around Fort Vancouver which had been lost to the US.
Judge Begbie played an important role in ensuring British Columbia did not become part of the United States, developing a just and multicultural society. Every year he traversed thousands of kilometres on foot, horseback and canoe sleeping in wet tents and hunting to feed his staff. He took great personal risk bringing British Columbia law to hostile US miners.
Judge Begbie was considered a defender of indigenous and Chinese people and he threw out racist legislation and advocated for equal rights. He allowed native people to swear oaths on sacred objects, had learned to speak some Shuswap and Chilcotin and was fluent in the aboriginal trade language Chinook Wawa. He overturned the conviction of a man who pleaded guilty to holding a potlatch saying the law was unfair.
Begbie's reputation was tarnished because he presided over a Court in which five Chilcotin people including two Chiefs were hanged. This was related to the Chilcotin War or Uprising. This involved the deaths of 19 people mostly on a road building crew which was working just outside their territory. Begbie did not sentence them to death. This was a decision of the jury. Because the people had been ambushed and their bodies mutilated and thrown in the river there were strong emotions.
The violence was not supported by the two Chiefs of the larger Chilcotin communities, Chief Alexis and Chief Anahim, who helped the men sent to make the arrests. Alexis Creek and Anahim Lake were named after them. Two Coast Salish men also helped as their people had also been massacred by the same group.
The call by non aboriginal people to go outside of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Calls to Action have caused concerns.
Are you concerned about this? You can sign the petition to ask that all such decisions be taken only after a formal process in which all information is considered:
actionnetwork.org/petitions/r...
Do you believe we need more public education of our history? You can support the creation of more public education of our history and get additional information that had to be edited out of videos in the interest of time by supporting the following Patreon Account
/ kumtuks .
The Narrator, Sam Sullivan is a Member of the Order of Canada, a former Mayor of Vancouver and Cabinet Minister and Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia representing Vancouver-False Creek.
Stay up-to-date by visiting the Kumtuks.ca website.
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