Gassy Jack Statue in Vancouver’s Gastown Toppled During Women’s Memorial March

The statue of John Deighton, more commonly known as Gassy Jack, was toppled Monday afternoon during the annual Downtown Eastside Women’s Memorial March.

Video shared online shows ropes being placed around the statue and then it falling while people crowded around to cheer.

The statue stands at the edge of Gastown, the neighbourhood in Vancouver named after him.

It has been the subject of controversy before.

An online petition demanding the statue be removed garnered more than 23,000 signatures.

In a tweet, Monday, Vancouver Mayor Kennedy Stewart said today’s actions “were dangerous (and) undermines ongoing work with Squamish to guide steps to reconciliation.

The City of Vancouver has been in consultations with (the) Squamish Nation on the right way to remove the Gassy Jack statue and recognize the truth of John Deighton’s harmful legacy.”

{snip}

Critics have said Gassy Jack is a symbol of oppression against Indigenous people, noting he was 40 years old when he married a 12-year-old girl from the Squamish First Nation.

{snip}