Archival material purge led to staff bearing the brunt of public outcry

Article content material

Workers on the nationwide archives exchanged profane emails following public criticism concerning the elimination of webpages that celebrated former prime minister John A. Macdonald.

Article content material

Archival workers mentioned taxpayers reacted negatively for essentially the most half after historic info deemed offensive was faraway from the archives, in keeping with Blacklock’s Reporter.

Inside information obtained by Entry To Info confirmed many complaints.

“To this point the extra irate shoppers have complained that we’re erasing or rewriting historical past due to ‘political correctness’ and different views alongside the strains,” learn a July 8, 2021 workers e mail.

Added one other supervisor: “The emails we’ve seen appear to largely object in precept. We’re getting an rising variety of sad calls.”

Public emails included: “That is morally flawed,” “rewriting historical past just isn’t the reply” and “it is a shame. You can’t take away historical past as a lot as we want to.”

In a extra heated alternate, Andrew Ross, a senior advisor to the deputy chief archivist emailed colleagues: “I simply bought an e mail from a Tory pal sending me the hyperlink and asking, ‘What is that this bulls—?’ I truly seemed, and now I’m questioning. Certainly the reply is to not destroy on-line entry to historic information’ (for f–ok’s sake).”

“Are you guys on medicine?” wrote one complainant.

“Your website is an archive,” wrote one other. “It’s supposed to maintain outdated materials. That’s its perform.”