The initiative to rename the street in front of Parliament Hill has nothing to do with the Duke of Wellington and everything to do with connecting our greatest PM and founder, Sir John A. Macdonald, with the country’s most important street. Our ancestral heritage is in no way threatened, given that most of Ottawa’s important central streets are named for Brits – Sussex Drive; Queen, Elgin and Albert streets; Gladstone Avenue – to name but a few. If we always left well enough alone, we’d still be flying the Union Jack or the Red Ensign, Ottawa would be Bytown, and Toronto would be York. So let’s give Sir John A. his street to inspire our parliamentarians, and all Canadians.
Bob Plamondon, Ottawa