Angry protestors topple and deface statues of Queen and Queen Victoria in Canada amid fury over deaths of 1,000 indigenous children found buried in mass graves
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Violent protests in Canada on the country’s national day led to statues of Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth II toppled, desecrated and damaged.
The bronze sculptures of Britain’s current monarch and her great-great grandmother were hauled down, daubed with red paint and strangled with flags.
The vandalism took place amid fury over the gruesome discovery of hundreds of Indigenous children’s graves – with at least ten churches also desecrated.
Queen Victoria’s statue was toppled in Winnipeg, in the central Canadian province of Manitoba, before being covered in red paint with a message that read ‘we were children once. Bring them home’.
A smaller statue of Elizabeth was also toppled in the same area, with protesters insisting both royals are the face of Canada’s colonial history.
Queen Victoria’s statue was toppled in Winnipeg, in the central Canadian province of Manitoba, before being covered in red paint with a message that read ‘we were children once. Bring them home’
The Canadian flag on the Peace Tower in Ottawa was flown at half-mast to honour indigenous children, as was the flag on the central tower of the Quebec National Assembly.
‘This year, the tragic history of residential schools has overshadowed Canada Day celebrations,’ said Quebec premier Francois Legault.
But opposition leader Erin O’Toole defended Canada Day. ‘The road to reconciliation does not start by tearing Canada down,’ the Conservative leader said, admitting that Canada is ‘not a perfect country.’