Fort Frances – NEWS – While Fort Frances town council considers a process to rename Colonization Road, an online panel discussion has been planned for Wednesday, November 25 from 6:30 to 8:00 PM to provide residents with additional perspective and resources on the topic.
The panel, organized independently and moderated by Councillor Douglas Judson, will discuss what colonization is, what impact colonization has had on people who live in the Fort Frances area, and ultimately, why our community’s commitment to reconciliation with Indigenous people should include removing names like ‘colonization’ from local streets.
The panelists will be:
- Lloyd Napish, a councillor with Eagle Lake First Nation who has been part of the effort to rename Colonization Avenue in Dryden;
- JoAnne Formanek Gustafson, a labour leader and educator who lives in Fort Frances is a member of Couchiching First Nation; and
- Jeff Denis, a professor of sociology a McMaster University, whose work has explored settle-Indigenous history in the Rainy River District.
A local Indigenous youth and an elder of a local First Nation have also been invited.
Information about the panel is available at www.facebook.com/JudsonDW/events. It will be live-streamed on Judson’s Facebook page and viewers are encouraged to ask questions to the panelists in the comments section.
