Some Islanders say the Confederation Bridge's name should not change

A Summerside woman says she doesn't want the Confederation Bridge renamed.

Susan Adams feels so passionate about the issue that she started a Facebook group calling for the bridge name to be left alone.

Within days she had more than 600 members.

Adam said there are more pressing matters facing the province than renaming the Confederation Bridge, which links P.E.I. with New Brunswick.

"I was very upset with the renaming of the bridge, that's basically why I started the group, leave the bridge alone, basically leave the name of the bridge alone ... it's been the same name for 27 years — just leave it," Adams said, as she walked along a park in Borden-Carleton overlooking the bridge.

'I'm always going to call it the Confederation Bridge'

"As far as I'm concerned, it doesn't matter if they do happen to change it — I hope they don't — as far as I go I'm always going to call it the Confederation Bridge."

When the bridge was built, a committee recommended it be named Abegweit Crossing based on public submissions. But that name wasn't selected by the federal government at the time. (CBC)

Nearly two years ago, the P.E.I. Legislature voted unanimously to urge the federal government to rename the bridge Epekwitk Crossing, pronounced ehb-uh-gwihd. That's the original name given by the Mi'kmaq for the land now known as Prince Edward Island.

P.E.I. Premier Dennis King put forward the motion, with the support of all parties in the legislature.

Senator Brian Francis, a former chief of the Abegweit First Nation in Prince Edward Island, has repeatedly called on the federal government to "get on with" the renaming of the bridge. He said he knows the renaming has sparked some opposition.

"I respect everyone's right to express their views, but I am deeply troubled by the creation of an online page featuring a range of discriminatory and racist comments about First Nations and other Indigenous people in Canada," Francis said in a statement to CBC News.

"However, while incredibly hurtful and harmful, I know that these comments do not reflect the values of the majority of Islanders and Canadians who are committed to establishing respectful relationships with the Mi'kmaq and all Indigenous people and communities."

'A small but significant act of reconciliation'

Francis said after the legislature passed the motion in 2022, he heard from many who "embrace the renaming of the Confederation Bridge."

Senator Brian Francis, a former chief of the Abegweit First Nation in Prince Edward Island, says he knows the renaming has sparked some opposition. (Senate of Canada)

"The current name of the bridge highlights Confederation as the beginning of a unified nation while disregarding how the Mi'kmaq and all Indigenous people were completely excluded from these negotiations and suffered lasting and ongoing consequences since 1867, which remain widely unknown," the senator's statement goes on to say.

"As a result, many of us are now urging the federal government to rename the bridge to Epekwitk Crossing, as a small but significant act of reconciliation which would encourage locals and visitors alike to have more honest conversations about our shared past, present and future."

Judy Leard of Summerside also wants to see the Confederation name stay on the 12.9 kilometre bridge.

"I really don't think it should change," said Leard.

When the bridge was built in the 1990s, a committee recommended it be named Abegweit Crossing based on public submissions. Abegweit is the anglicized version of Epekwitk, which means "cradled on the waves."

'Leave it alone'

But that name wasn't selected by the federal government at the time. The other choices were Confederation Bridge and Northumberland Strait Bridge.

Judy Leard of Summerside wants to see the Confederation name stay on the 12.9 kilometre bridge that connects P.E.I. to New Brunswick. (Shane Hennessey/CBC)

"The responsibility and process of renaming federal infrastructure lies with the Government of Canada," the P.E.I. government said in a statement Wednesday.

Last month, Public Works and Procurement Canada sent a short statement to CBC News, saying: "We continue to review the motion passed in the Prince Edward Island Legislature and there is no timetable for a decision."

Adams said she left the Facebook group she started because some of the comments were getting out of hand. On Thursday, the Facebook group was taken down. Adams said she didn't take it down.

She's now calling for a plebiscite so all Islanders can have their say on whether the bridge should be renamed.

"It was ... nothing against no one, I just believe that the bridge was named for a reason," she said.

"Leave it alone."