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Patrice Dutil: Champlain statue removal an embarrassment for the country

Champlain was lauded for his close relationship with First Nations, yet his statue was taken down in the name of 'reconciliation'

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The forces of historical ignorance and vandalism have once again struck in Ontario. This time, the freshly spray-painted statue of Samuel de Champlain, inaugurated in Orillia in 1925 in honour of the 300th anniversary of his visit to the area in 1615 has been removed, even though most people apparently want it kept in place.

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Champlain was once an integral part of the history of Ontario. He was an expert navigator, a brave commander of men, a courageous explorer, an extraordinary cartographer and, even better, a writer and deeply observant anthropologist who left the world with the best and most complete descriptions of the Indigenous peoples of the Ottawa Valley and Georgian Bay. Students learned about him in history classes.

Patrice Dutil: Champlain statue removal an embarrassment for the country Back to video

The renowned American historian David Hackett Fischer concluded his massive biography, “Champlain’s Dream,” by hailing Champlain as the founder of a generous and humane colony, one of the great........

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