Regina group spearheading effort to change name of Dewdney Avenue

One of Regina’s major streets could be in for a name change if one woman gets her way.
 
Joely BigEagle-Kequahtooway is part of Buffalo People Arts Institute — a group which shares traditional Indigenous teachings and knowledge — which is pushing for the City of Regina to change Dewdney Avenue to Buffalo Avenue.
 
A major reason for the ask is because of who the street is named after. Dewdney Avenue is named after Edgar Dewdney, a Canadian surveyor, Indian commissioner and lieutenant governor of the Northwest Territories in the late 1800s.
 
Dewdney also played a major role in setting up Canada’s reserve system after the buffalo disappeared on the prairies. Since many people were starving because of the lack of food, it was Dewdney’s thought to locate indigenous people on reserves, and there they would learn how to farm.
 
BigEagle-Kequahtooway has identified the word buffalo as an appropriate replacement for the street.
 
“We presented buffalo because it seems like the most neutral, but significant, name change that would make a big impact in our community.”
 
It is not just the name change that BigEagle-Kequahtooway is interested in. She would also like to see a buffalo effigy created where large boulders would be strategically placed on the outskirts of the city. A plaque would be placed on each boulder explaining Regina’s Indigenous history.
 
In addition, BigEagle-Kequahtooway would like to see the world’s largest buffalo built, placed at one of the main entrances along the Trans-Canada Highway.
 
“Instead of Regina being known for a pile of bones, why don’t we be known for the world’s largest buffalo.”
 
BigEagle-Kequahtooway presented the idea to the city before Christmas, and she is hoping to get some sort of response by the end of January. She stated if they need to knock on doors and get people to sign a petition then that is what they will do.