After years of chanting, rallying, petitioning and begging for a name change, Ryerson University’s board of Governers has approved for the school to be renamed.

For years and years, groups of students, and communities like indigenous and other ethnic groups have come together to protest Egerton Ryerson and his historical actions.

Over the past few months, many have come to know the tragedy and loss of the indigenous community in Canada. Residential schools in British Colombia and many other provinces have discovered unmarked graves of thousands of young boys and girls who went to these schools.

Toronto Star

Egerton Ryerson was a founder of the residential schools in Canada. The residential school were a place that indigenous children would go and be removed and isolated from the influence of their home, families, traditions and cultures, and to assimilate into the dominant culture.

What can be assumed is that many of these children at the time died from diseases like influenza or tuberculosis, but from many/all of the graves being unmarked it is assumed that other reasons for death occured.

This summer over 1,300 and counting unmarked graves  have been discovered at these residential schools. With this emotional discovery people including indigenous and activist went down to Younge and Dundas where Ryerson University is located and started to protest and take down the statue that is of Egerton Ryerson. As they became successful, and made a statement for Canada and the rest of the world to see, Ryerson’s board of governors finally opened their eyes, and their hearts and have signed off the petition to rename the school, and remove the name that caused a lifetime of pain.