In this episode of the History Slam, Sean Graham talks with Tonya Davidson of Carleton University about the meaning of monuments. They talk about monuments from a sociological perspective, the controversies around taking monuments down, and whether we should have monuments to individual people. They also visit two monuments in downtown Ottawa to talk about their designs meaning, and use in public spaces.

In addition to teaching at Carleton, Tonya also does walking tours of downtown Ottawa where she takes groups to various monuments to discuss their role as pieces of public history and sociology. She runs her tours through (De)Tours, so the next time you’re in the nation’s capital, be sure to check them out.

https://media.blubrry.com/activehistory.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Tonya-Davidson.mp3