John A. Macdonald Road is now miyo-wâhkôhtowin Road

After several years in the making, John A. Macdonald Road in Saskatoon has officially been renamed to Miyo-wâhkôhtowin Road.

The decision was made in recognition of the ongoing harm experienced in the community due to residential schools. John A. Macdonald, the first prime minister of Canada, played a role in the development of Canada’s Indian residential school system. The City was approached by several community leaders, including Saskatoon Tribal Council Tribal Chief Mark Arcand, to change the name, and the process began.

A renaming committee weighed its options and engaged with various Indigenous leaders and survivors in order to decide on a name that was more inclusive and signified reconciliation. The name Miyo-wâhkôhtowin (pronounced mee-yo-wah-KOH-toh-win) means good relationships in Cree and was originally suggested by City Councilor David Kirton.

Saskatoon Mayor Charlie Clark says despite a few members of the public voicing their disapproval at City Hall, many will be positively impacted by the change.

“I just talked to a long time leader who told me that she lived in this neighborhood, and it was one of the proudest moments that she has ever had in her life,” Clark stated. ” When you think of all the young people growing up here, having it help them feel like who they are matters, and their lives matter, and that we want to celebrate and nurture good relationships, not harmful policies. That’s pretty powerful.”

One of the old street signs was taken down, and the new one was hung on Thursday. Clark adds that he hopes services such as Google maps will change the road’s name in the near future.

“We are realizing how powerful street naming can be, and (we) are undertaking a whole review, because the policies we have of how streets have gotten named is outdated and can be updated to better reflect our community.”