Members of London’s Black community have started an online petition that’s gained hundreds of signatures, urging city politicians to reverse their decision to not rename Plantation Road.
Council voted 9 to 6 against renaming the street, located in a subdivision in the Oakridge neighbourhood, to Larch Road at its May 13 meeting. However for petition signatories, the decision undermines a painful history and runs contrary to the city’s anti-Black racism plan.
“It’s not simply about a name, the term plantation itself evokes a painful legacy of enslavement, colonialism and anti-Black violence,” said Neisa Long, a Master’s student in Public History at Western University, who launched the petition earlier this week.
“London has a powerful legacy and history as a place of refuge for Black freedom seekers, so to keep a name like Plantation Road in our city that once represented a space of hope, liberation and freedom for so many …