Legacy of B.C.’s ‘hanging judge’ faces scrutiny
New Westminster city council is anticipating a “conversation” about Justice Matthew Begbie, B.C.’s so-called “hanging judge,” whose name and likeness are familiar sights around the city.
The Law Society of B.C. announced on Thursday that it will remove a statue of Begbie from its lobby because it is offensive to indigenous peoples and “a reminder of the judge’s role in the hanging of six Tsilhqot’in chiefs.”
The move comes shortly after New Westminster council began a discussion about reconciliation, which could impact both the Begbie statue outside the city’s provincial courthouse and the name of Begbie Street, said Coun. Patrick Johnstone.
At a council meeting Monday, a community delegation aimed at continuing the work of Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission mentioned the Begbie statue and place names as issues requiring discussion. City staff were asked to prepare a report about the delegation’s ideas.
Johnstone said Begbie’s legacy will be “part of a much larger conversation” in a city whose colonial past is noticeable in various ways — from traditions like the May Day celebration, the oldest in the Commonwealth; to streets named after men like Begbie; to the controversy over the city’s secondary school, which was built on an old cemetery.
“New Westminster is a historic city,” Johnstone said. “It’s the most historic colonial city west of the Great Lakes. I think it’s time to have an honest conversation about that.”
Johnstone said he wouldn’t object to the removal of Begbie’s statue, a sentiment also expressed by Coun. Bill Harper, who also emphasized that removing the statue would need to be part of a larger conversation.
“This is a very old city, but it’s also a very multicultural city,” Harper said. “People here want to recognize traditions and also be accepting.”
Nadine Nakagawa, one of the delegation members who spoke at Monday’s meeting, said removing the statue may not be the only option for council.
“It definitely should be part of the discussion, but there’s also the possibility of adding something to recognize what happened,” she said, adding history is “not single-faceted.”
Begbie was a controversial figure who has other statues, along with streets, squares and a school named after him for his contribution to law and order in B.C. in the late 1800s. He was appointed the first judge of the colony of B.C. in 1858 during the gold rush, winning respect among the lawless miners. In 1869 he was named chief justice, according to a commemorative plaque in Victoria’s Bastion Square.
Begbie travelled the province by foot or horseback, living off the land by shooting game, fishing and making bannock, according to biographer David Williams. He became fluent in Secwepmc and Tsilhquot’in, supported aboriginal title and opposed settlers’ efforts to displace First Nations.
His reputation as a hanging judge is “undeserved … given that the death penalty was mandatory in murder cases at this time,” according to a New Westminster parks and recreation web page about Begbie Square.
In 1864, Begbie imposed death sentences on five First Nations leaders charged with killing 20 white people in the clash known as the Chilcotin War. B.C. Premier Christy Clark declared the chiefs “fully exonerated of any crime or wrongdoing” in a ceremony in Quesnel 2½ years ago.
Nakagawa said Begbie’s legacy needs to be viewed through the “lens of reconciliation.”