Welcome to Bawating? First Nations leader calls for Sault to be renamed
The area where the City of Sault Ste. Marie now sits was once known as Bawating, and a local Indigenous leader would like to see the city to go back to its original name.
Batchewana First Nation Chief Dean Sayers said such an action would go a long way toward undoing the area's colonial history.
Sayers said the name Bawating refers to the rapids in the St. Marys River. With regard to changing the name of Sault Ste. Marie to Bawating, he said Kitchener, Ont., used to be called Berlin, but was renamed in 1916 because of anti-German sentiment during the First World War.
"The people of that day didn't want to be associated any longer with some of the things that were happening over in Europe," he said. "I don't think there's much difference here. I don't think (anyone) wants to be embracing the colonial history in the area. So, let's turn the page and start fresh."
Sayers said there have been formal discussions on the matter, and he is open to speaking with Sault Ste. Marie city council.
"Just like decisions in my villages, we have to have the leadership onside -- a majority of them onside," he said. "So if any of those councillors, any of the senior people at the city, even the mayor, wants to have discussions, by all means, give me a call."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.