Jewish group seeks removal of anti-Semite’s name from Quebec street and park

MONTREAL — A Jewish advocacy group is calling on a city south of Montreal to rename a street and a park honouring a man who sought to prevent Jews from ever buying his land.

David Ouellette, with the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, said today the late Alphonse Waegener doesn’t deserve to be honoured in St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, located about 40 kilometres southeast of Montreal.

It was recently revealed that in the 1960s Waegener had registered conditions on the titles of his land forbidding their sale to Jews.

A Superior Court Justice revoked those conditions in November after they were discovered during court proceedings involving a developer’s request to build on the land.

St-Jean-sur-Richelieu Mayor Alain Laplante said today it was common in the 1960s for streets and parks in his city to be named after the owners of adjacent land and not necessarily as a celebration of the owner’s values.

He says the city doesn’t want to take any hasty action and will consult with residents who live on the street before deciding on a possible name change.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Jan. 14, 2020.

The Canadian Press

Note to readers: Will be updated