Monument Sir John A. Macdonald, Montréal

You will be taking part in the survey of public memorial space in Montreal, conducted by PhD candidate Louis-Thomas Kelly under the supervision of Prof. James Symonds at the University of Amsterdam School for Heritage, Memory, and Material Culture. Prior to taking part in this research, please read this brief description of its context, purpose, and considerations.

Purpose: In recent years, conflict over the standing of monuments, especially ones remembering Canadian settler colonial heritage, prove to be divisive features of the city. However, monuments are not only sites of political conflict: they are also locations of everyday usage by the city’s inhabitants. This research hopes to learn more about these monumental sites and focuses its questions on how and why people use these public spaces in their daily lives?

Who can Participate?: Anyone capable of recognizing these monuments, whether in memory from a past encounter or through their current presence. The researcher behind this project will seek participants through a hybrid, impersonal, online manner, but also by personally, approaching individuals that are located at these monuments in question. The questionnaire is translated into both official languages to broaden the potential pool of participants, but also out of respect for the official bilingualism in Montreal, Quebec, and Canada.