Change Kitchener, Ontario back to Berlin
Change Kitchener, Ontario back to Berlin
The Issue
This year marks an auspicious anniversary for Kitchener, Ontario. The city has now had its name for over 100 years [1]. While this might be cause for celebration, this anniversary betrays the story behind its name change from what was once Berlin, to Kitchener back in 1916. When you think of Kitchener, you might think of a mid-sized, tolerant, diverse, and bubbly community. However, most people wouldn’t associate it with intolerance, bigotry, or racism. Surprisingly, the man after whom the city Kitchener was named was convincingly all of the above [2]. Lord Kitchener was a celebrated, albeit controversial war hero, who helped the British colonize parts of Southern Africa but mercilessly rejected nations’ wills for independence from British imperialism. In the Second Boer War, Encyclopedia Britannica describes Lord Kitchener’s brutality as follows: “During the last 18 months of the war, Kitchener combated guerrilla resistance by such methods as burning Boer farms and herding Boer women and children into disease-ridden concentration camps.”[3] In fact, the use of “concentration camps” is first attributed to Lord Kitchener [4] where tens of thousands of victims perished, 80% of whom were children [5]. Had these tactics been employed today, Lord Kitchener would surely not receive praise—instead these acts would be considered war crimes or crimes against humanity.
On the other hand, Kitchener’s old name, Berlin, was changed despite the community’s reluctance, a pattern which reoccurred across many cities named Kitchener in North America during World War I [6]. The referendum ballot didn’t even give voters an option to keep the name [7] nor were women included in the vote, meanwhile the name Kitchener won by 81 votes [1]. Yet the Berlin, Germany of today represents an eclectic, trend-setting, and innovative cosmopolitan city. The city literally broke down walls between intolerance and love, and showed the world countless stories of resilience in the face of adversity during the Cold War. Our beloved Kitchener is much better reflected by its similarities with the Berlin of today. Kitchener strives to be progressive, dynamic, community-oriented and is most definitely caring and responsive in the face of adversity. In the past year, Kitchener and the surrounding counties have welcomed over seven hundred Syrian refugees with open arms [8]. Had the city been run by Kitchener, it’s unlikely that a similar enthusiasm would have been reciprocated. It is for these reasons that I am compelled to ask whether in 2016, the name Kitchener still suits our city. Perhaps it is time for the city council to reconsider our name to reflect our values, our heritage, and our shared land.
Please consider passing this petition along to anyone you know who is interested in opening up the debate about the name of our beautiful city. We have the power to make change, and make Kitchener ours again.
[1] Enduring Spirit: The Rejuvenation of Berlin (Ontario), John Allemang, Globe and Mail, Saturday August 27th 2016 Available online: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/enduring-spirit-the-rejuvenation-of-berlin-ontario/article31576065/
[2] Kitchener: Hero and Anti-Hero, by C. Brad Faught
[3] https://www.britannica.com/biography/Horatio-Herbert-Kitchener-1st-Earl-Kitchener
[4] http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/kitchener_lord_horatio.shtml
[5] Herbert Kitchener: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_Kitchener
[6] Berlin to Kitchener Name Change: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_to_Kitchener_name_change
[8] Search terms: “Waterloo, “Kitchener”, and “Cambridge” in Map of destination communities and service provider organizations. Ottawa: Government of Canada. Available at <http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/refugees/welcome/map.asp> (accessed August 22 2016).
The Issue
This year marks an auspicious anniversary for Kitchener, Ontario. The city has now had its name for over 100 years [1]. While this might be cause for celebration, this anniversary betrays the story behind its name change from what was once Berlin, to Kitchener back in 1916. When you think of Kitchener, you might think of a mid-sized, tolerant, diverse, and bubbly community. However, most people wouldn’t associate it with intolerance, bigotry, or racism. Surprisingly, the man after whom the city Kitchener was named was convincingly all of the above [2]. Lord Kitchener was a celebrated, albeit controversial war hero, who helped the British colonize parts of Southern Africa but mercilessly rejected nations’ wills for independence from British imperialism. In the Second Boer War, Encyclopedia Britannica describes Lord Kitchener’s brutality as follows: “During the last 18 months of the war, Kitchener combated guerrilla resistance by such methods as burning Boer farms and herding Boer women and children into disease-ridden concentration camps.”[3] In fact, the use of “concentration camps” is first attributed to Lord Kitchener [4] where tens of thousands of victims perished, 80% of whom were children [5]. Had these tactics been employed today, Lord Kitchener would surely not receive praise—instead these acts would be considered war crimes or crimes against humanity.
On the other hand, Kitchener’s old name, Berlin, was changed despite the community’s reluctance, a pattern which reoccurred across many cities named Kitchener in North America during World War I [6]. The referendum ballot didn’t even give voters an option to keep the name [7] nor were women included in the vote, meanwhile the name Kitchener won by 81 votes [1]. Yet the Berlin, Germany of today represents an eclectic, trend-setting, and innovative cosmopolitan city. The city literally broke down walls between intolerance and love, and showed the world countless stories of resilience in the face of adversity during the Cold War. Our beloved Kitchener is much better reflected by its similarities with the Berlin of today. Kitchener strives to be progressive, dynamic, community-oriented and is most definitely caring and responsive in the face of adversity. In the past year, Kitchener and the surrounding counties have welcomed over seven hundred Syrian refugees with open arms [8]. Had the city been run by Kitchener, it’s unlikely that a similar enthusiasm would have been reciprocated. It is for these reasons that I am compelled to ask whether in 2016, the name Kitchener still suits our city. Perhaps it is time for the city council to reconsider our name to reflect our values, our heritage, and our shared land.
Please consider passing this petition along to anyone you know who is interested in opening up the debate about the name of our beautiful city. We have the power to make change, and make Kitchener ours again.
[1] Enduring Spirit: The Rejuvenation of Berlin (Ontario), John Allemang, Globe and Mail, Saturday August 27th 2016 Available online: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/enduring-spirit-the-rejuvenation-of-berlin-ontario/article31576065/
[2] Kitchener: Hero and Anti-Hero, by C. Brad Faught
[3] https://www.britannica.com/biography/Horatio-Herbert-Kitchener-1st-Earl-Kitchener
[4] http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/kitchener_lord_horatio.shtml
[5] Herbert Kitchener: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_Kitchener
[6] Berlin to Kitchener Name Change: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_to_Kitchener_name_change
[8] Search terms: “Waterloo, “Kitchener”, and “Cambridge” in Map of destination communities and service provider organizations. Ottawa: Government of Canada. Available at <http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/refugees/welcome/map.asp> (accessed August 22 2016).
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Petition created on September 6, 2016