A C T U A L I T É S • N E W S VULGAR PHONE TROLLS GRUMBLE ABOUT RUSSELL NAME ISSUE
GREGG CHAMBERLAIN gregg.chamberlain@eap.on.ca
should focus on other issues. There is also another online petition advocating that the municipality leave the name situation as it is and focus on other concerns. Vanessa Leman, a former Russell resident launched the original petition calling for the name change out of concern about how the township’s namesake could tarnish its image as a community. She has noted the mayor’s suggestion about finding a new namesake for the township as an alternative. “I think it would be unnecessary (now) for me to speak on the subject,” Leman stated in an email to the Reflet-News. Mayor Leroux has provided his cellphone contact number with an offer to listen to any calls from critics of the name change issue. “We are better than this,” said Mayor Leroux. “I believe we can have an open and honest discussion, without the need to attack each other. Do not attack our township employees. They care about this community as much as you do.” WATCH OUT FOR TICKS IN THE WOODS EAP NEWSROOM news@eap.on.ca The summer season is also tick and Lyme disease season. The Eastern Ontario Health Unit (EOHU) is providing free tick removal cards to residents and visitors to use if needed after they go hiking or cycling in the woods or in fields with tall grass. The specially-designed cards make it easier to remove any ticks that may have attached themselves to legs, arms, or other areas of the body. The card fits inside a wallet, and is available at local pharmacies within the EOHU region. A list of pharmacies that will have the cards, while quantities last, is available on the EOHU website at www.eohu. ca/lyme. There are also suggestions on reducing the risk of attracting ticks. Ticks, like mosquitoes, draw blood from their hosts. Removing ticks must be done with care to avoid leaving the head still attached to a person’s body. The black-legged species of tick is also a carrier of Lyme disease and there are some areas within the EOHU region where hikers may encounter black- legged ticks. The symptoms of Lyme disease may appear within three to 30 days after a tick bite. The symptoms include fever, headache, muscle and joint ache, stiff neck, decreased appetite, fatigue, swol- len glands, and a possible rash. Immediate removal of a black-legged tick within a 24-hour period reduces the risk of Lyme disease infection. Amyone affected by any symptoms should contact a doctor. If not treated right away with antibiotics, Lyme disease symptoms can reoccur and may create problems affecting a person’s heart, nervous system or joints.
Mayor Pierre Leroux stepped in to defend Russell Township staff from the attacks of anonymous trolls and their telephone complaints about the township name change issue. “I know this topic can be very emotional,” Mayor Leroux said in a video post June 17 on his municipal Facebook page, adding that he is “saddened” at the behaviour of a few people in the community. During the last few days, Mayor Leroux noted, staff at the municipal office have received “very vulgar messages” from anony- mous callers who scream and curse over the phone about the name change issue, then hang up without giving their own name or phone number. In a few instances, the verbal abuse was so bad that the staff member who took the call ended up disconnecting first. The township’s namesake, Peter Russell, a slave owner who was administrator for Ontario two centuries ago, has become a social issue in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement. An online petition exists for having the township name changed. Mayor Leroux has introduced a motion to council during its July 15 session for a process to find a new namesake for the
Mayor Pierre Leroux came to the defence of municipal staff who endured attacks from anonymous phone trolls and their “very vulgar” verbal complaints about the Russell Township name change issue. —archives
Public feeling Most of the response through social media to the mayor’s proposal is favourable. Some online critics declared that a name change is not necessary and the township
municipality, which will involve public consul- tation. Detailed discussion of the motion will take place during the July 6 special session of council.
LES COMTÉS UNIS DE PRESCOTT-RUSSELL DEVRAIENT-IL CHANGER DE NOM ? GREGG CHAMBERLAIN gregg.chamberlain@eap.on.ca
municipalité. Cette proposition est le résultat d’une pétition en ligne lancée au début du mois par Vanessa Leman, une ancienne résidente du canton, qui est consternée que Peter Russell ait été propriétaire d’esclaves et défendeur de l’esclavage lorsqu’il était administrateur provincial il y a deux siècles. Outre le canton, le comté de Russell est aussi nommé en hommage à l’escla- vagiste et, par extension, les Comtés unis de Prescott et Russell, ainsi que les circonscriptions fédérale et provinciale de Glengarry-Prescott-Russell. M. Parisien a noté qu’aucun des huit maires du conseil des CUPR ne l’a contacté pour lui proposer de mettre la question du nom de la région à l’ordre du jour d’une
future séance du conseil. Il a également fait remarquer qu’un changement de nom n’est pas simple. «Il faudrait que beaucoup d’eau passe sous les ponts avant que cela n’arrive», a-t-il déclaré, concernant les exigences légales et autres pour effectuer un changement de nom. Pour l’instant, a-t-il indiqué, le conseil et l’administration des CUPR pourraient attendre et voir comment le canton de Rus- sell parvient à traiter la question.
Les Comtés unis de Prescott et Russell devraient-ils revoir son nom pour éviter tout lien avec Peter Russell, un ancien propriétaire d’esclaves dans les pre- miers temps de la province de l’Ontario? «Honnêtement, je ne sais pas», a déclaré Stéphane Parisien, directeur général des Comtés unis de Prescott et Russell (UCPR) lors d’un entretien téléphonique le 22 juin. Le conseil du canton de Russell étudie une proposition du maire Pierre Leroux visant à mettre en place un processus pour trouver un nouvel homonyme à Peter Russell, en hommage de qui est nommée la
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Peter Russell, un politicien ontarien qui a vécu il y a deux siècles, était également un propriétaire d’esclaves et défendeur de l’esclavage. Le canton de Russell a été nommé en son honneur et la municipalité étudie actuellement les moyens de rompre le lien avec son homonyme d’origine. Les Comtés unis de Prescott et Russell doivent- ils se prêter à un exercice similaire? -archives
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