New street signs put Toronto's Indigenous history front and centre

The signs on some of Toronto's best-known streets are getting a makeover, but the names they bear aren't new in fact they're thousands of years old. It's a movement that began at the height of the Idle No More movement in 2013 by artists and activists Hayden King and Susan Blight though a project called Ogimaa Mikana.

'By doing this, it shows that the First Nations people are still here. We're still on their land'

CBC News Posted: Sep 20, 2016 7:49 PM EDT | Last Updated: September 20, 2016

Official signs are cropping up across the city, with four of Toronto's major streets now bearing signs with their Anishinaabe names. Spadina, or Ishpadinaa, is one of them. (Craig Chivers/CBC)

The signs on some of Toronto's best-known streets are getting a makeover,but the names they bear aren't new in fact, they're thousands of years old.

It's a movementbegun at the height of the Idle No More movementin 2013by artists and activists Hayden King and Susan Blight through a project called Ogimaa Mikana. As part of an effort to reclaimToronto's Indigenous history, the two made stickers with Indigenoustranslations of Toronto street names, plastering them over the English signs.

Artist reclaims Toronto streets using Ojibway language

Now, three years later, "official" signs are cropping up across the city, withfour of Toronto's major streets now bearing signs with theirAnishinaabenames.

"Official" signs went up today at Dupont/Spadina, Davenport/Spadina, Dupont/ Davenport. Or, Ishpadinaa & Gete-Onigaming. Go check them out!
—@Hayden_King

A new sign for Davenport Street bears its Anishnaabe name. (Craig Chivers)

The signs officially went up Friday as part of ajoint initiative by Ogimaa Mikanaand theDupont by the Castle Business Improvement Area(BIA).

Stuart Grant, chair of the BIA, told CBC News the group was inspired to bring the signs to their area after seeing the hand-made ones by Ogimaa Mikanaonline. After taking the idea to the city, Grant says, the group started work on the signs' designs.

"These were the names thousands of years ago when the First Nations people were here," Grant told CBC News.

"By doing this, it shows that the First Nations people are still here. We're still on their land. We share it but we're still on their land," Grant said.

On its website, Ogimaa Mikana says it hopes "torestore Anishinaabemowin place-names to the streets, avenues, roads, paths and trails of Gichi Kiiwenging (Toronto)."

The group hopes the signs will expand throughout the city, "transforming alandscapethat oftenobscures or makes invisible the presence of Indigenouspeoples."

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