Queen’s Park Statues to Be Wrapped After Protest Damage as More Rallies Loom

Statues on the grounds of the Ontario legislature in Toronto are set to be covered in protective wrapping to safeguard them from vandalism during planned protests at Queen’s Park this spring.

The decision announced this week by House Speaker Donna Skelly is in response to the $5,000 in damage inflicted on the George Brown monument that included spray-painted expletives referencing Ontario Premier Doug Ford.

The bronze statue is located on the front lawn of the legislative building to honour Father of Confederation George Brown. It was vandalized during a March 4 “Hands Off Our Education” rally against the government’s decision to restructure the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) and end the seven-year tuition freeze for post-secondary institutions.

Skelly said in a media statement that the sergeant-at-arms has recommended the temporary wrapping of all eight statues on the lawn to “prevent further damage” during a planned protest by the same group next week.

“Repairing vandalism costs taxpayers thousands of dollars—money that should not have to be spent,” she said. “I will always protect the right to peaceful protest on the grounds of the Ontario Legislature—but there will be zero tolerance for violence or lawbreaking.”

Ford also addressed the vandalism at an unrelated press conference this week, calling it a “ridiculous” act.

“Anyone who wants to protest, come to Queen’s Park, do cartwheels, jump up and down, whatever you want to do. But do not vandalize those statues, they’re historic,” Ford said. “If you do, you’re going to get charged.”

Toronto police arrested two suspects in the aftermath of the protest. One was charged with vandalizing the statue, while the other was accused of spitting on a police officer.

Police said in a press release that while officers were attempting to place the first accused under arrest, several other protesters became aggressive toward police and actively interfered with the arrest.

Twenty-two-year-old Rohtansh Saini of Toronto is charged with one count of mischief-damage to property under $5,000 and Mason Wallington, 21, of Hay River, Northwest Territories, was charged with assaulting a peace officer.

Both of the accused are scheduled to appear in court on April 17 to answer to the charges. 

The rally organizers—the Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario—said in a March 5 statement that legal representation has been arranged for both individuals.

The student group has also accused the Toronto Police Service of “police brutality,” and called the actions of officers “heavy-handed and disproportionate.” 

The group is organizing another “Hands Off Our Education” rally at Queen’s Park on March 24. An Instagram post from the group said rally-goers will protest Ontario government cuts to OSAP and rising tuition fees that result in increased student debt.

The province last month announced changes to OSAP that would see eligible students receive a maximum of 25 percent of their OSAP funding as grants and a minimum of 75 percent of their funding as loans.

The province has modified its tuition framework, enabling publicly supported colleges and universities to raise tuition fees by as much as 2 percent each year for three consecutive years, and thereafter by either 2 percent or the average inflation rate over the last three years, whichever is lower.

The government said in a statement that the tuition change would result in an additional cost of 18 cents per day for college students and 47 cents per day for university students.