City council has voted to rename Trutch Street.
The street is named after Joseph Trutch, the first lieutenant governor of the province of British Columbia. He was also a racist, calling First Nations people on the west coast of North America "the ugliest and laziest creatures I ever saw" and "utter savages" among other things.
In addition, as lieutenant governor, he rewrote documents to significantly reduce the size of reserves, among other racist policies.
Trutch Street is located in Kitsilano, running from West 1 Avenue to West 18 Avenue.
The Musqueam Indian Band will choose the new name. They've also brought up the fact the street is named after Trutch before with the city.
The motion was brought forward by Mayor Kennedy Stewart and states that as Vancouver became a "City of Reconciliation" and promised to review the city's colonial and racist past, the change was due.
During the discussion on the topic during the July 8 council meeting, Kim Sicoli of Women Transforming Cities noted that street names represent the values of a society.
"This is not the only street or public space in Vancouver named after someone who promoted colonial, racist and sexist harm, but we hope this will be precedent-setting for other harmful colonial legacies," she said.
During the meeting, Stewart noted he's also spoken with the Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations about similar situations.
"It's not about removing people's history, it's about choosing who we celebrate," he said.
Council passed the motion unanimously.
