Canada’s first prime minister was both celebrated and burned during duelling events in front of his statue in City Park Monday morning as the city marked his 201st birthday.

Competing speakers standing just metres apart either extolled Sir John A. Macdonald’s virtues as an admittedly flawed visionary, or vilified him as a genocidal monster.

His health was toasted by his supporters and he was burned in effigy by his detractors.

On the pro-Macdonald side were civic leaders from various levels of government, including guest speaker Dalton McGuinty, MP Mark Gerretsen and Kingston Mayor Bryan Paterson. Also present were former MPP John Gerretsen and former MP Peter Milliken.

In a circle just a short distance away were Idle No More supporters who want Macdonald stripped of any celebrations in his honour, the removal of his statues and his place in history revised because of his policies towards indigenous people.

The protesters arrived first, gathering around one of the two cannons that guard Macdonald’s statue. Under the watchful eyes of a half-dozen police officers, they held signs that read “Shame,” “Macdonald is a murderer” and “Don’t celebrate genocide.”

A warrior flag blew in the brisk morning wind and snow from intermittent squalls coated the protesters.

Beth Newell mounted the cannon’s base and called for a minute of silence to remember “Macdonald’s victims.”

In an address to the 50 supporters, she accused him of genocide, racism and hatred and called him “the father of apartheid” in Canada.

As town crier Chris Whyman rang his bell to announce the start of the birthday celebration in front of a similarly sized crowd, Newell rejected the notion that Macdonald’s actions should be excused because of the time in which he lived. She said Macdonald’s policies towards natives and the French prompted protests against him in his own time.

“John A.’s actions were genocide, racism and apartheid then as they are now. You cannot celebrate the father of Canadian hatred … and hold dinners in his honour while reconciling with those who suffered at the hands of his own policies ever since.”

She said any indigenous person who spoke at events celebrating Macdonald betrayed their people.

After finishing her address, she stuck a knife through the paper from which she was reading and plunged it into the chest of a Sir John A. Macdonald figure that was hanging in effigy, a noose around its neck. It was later set on fire.

As the protesters began drumming and singing, the birthday celebration next door started with Whyman noting 2015 was “a truly emotional, educational and inspiring year for all” as the city and the country marked the 200th anniversary of Macdonald’s birth by recognizing “his grand achievements and his faults as well.”

The singing of O Canada drew jeers and heckled protests from the Idle No More crowd.

Paterson noted Macdonald “has always been a man that evoked great debate” and welcomed the protesters.

“I am very proud of the fact that as a community we have never shied away from a debate and discussion about the legacy of Macdonald, both the good and the bad.”

Mark Gerretsen, who had his cars vandalized that morning, echoed Paterson’s words that Canada is a country where open expression is encouraged.

“I know we have a challenging past, but it is about celebrating the benefits and it’s about learning from the mistakes that will make us a stronger country.”

He said it was important the true facts about Macdonald came out so people could make up their own minds over his contribution to the country.

John Gerretsen said “we live in one great country where we can disagree with one another but we also respect the right of the other opinion.”

He said people need to listen to what the protesters have to say and he challenged them to listen to what the pro-Macdonald supporters have to say.

McGuinty said he wanted to speak “not about the myth but about the man.”

“He was flesh and blood,” he said. “He had weaknesses, but he also had some remarkable strengths. He was shortsighted in some ways, but in other ways he could see far ahead of his time.”

He said it was easy to use today’s standards and apply them to yesterday’s societies and wondered how future generations would judge today’s actions.

He believed Macdonald would take pride in having a group protest his legacy since it meant an important democratic debate was taking place.

Natasha Stirrett, representing Idle No More, believed protesters had achieved their goal for the day “in terms of raising awareness of the impact on indigenous communities in terms of celebration of colonial history and perpetrators of crimes against humanity.”

She said a genuine reconciliation with indigenous people can’t come “from a place that condones that kind of celebration of violence. It is akin to celebrating Hitler.”

As both events ended and supporters and protesters alike headed for their cars, numerous people came up to birthday celebration organizer Art Milnes to console him for the vandalism that marred his day.

His car’s tires were slashed and red paint poured over it.

“I’ve had better days,” he said to one supporter.

Milnes said he was pleased with the way the pro-Macdonald and anti-Macdonald events coincided peacefully.

He thanked the protesters because “they acted in the best traditions of Kingston, of First Nations people, of Canadians, and I think, once again, Kingstonians have shown the entire country how to have this mature discussion.”

Milnes said it was wrong to believe Kingston has been “blindly celebrating and worshipping” Macdonald without also recognizing his faults.

“Show me a perfect prime minister, a perfect mayor or a perfect chief and I will show you someone who has never been prime minister, mayor or chief in our society.”

Above all else, Canada’s leaders give their lives to public service, he said.

“That’s what I celebrate every year.”

Milnes said he wasn’t opposed to any protest that was peaceful.

Staring upwards at Sir John A. Macdonald as he stood on his pedestal high above City Park, Milnes said Macdonald played a large part in enshrining the right to protest in the constitution.

“I won’t lie that I was a little worried this morning.”

He said he was “100 per cent confident that it wasn’t anybody from Idle No More” that vandalized his car.

“It was just some … sh–head. I didn’t like it, but if I had any thoughts of not coming today they ended at quarter to five when I discovered (it).”

Milnes said he was most upset about the fact the vandals had also burned a Canadian flag “and discarded it like garbage.”

He said he thought of former Kingstonian John Matheson’s work to create the flag.

“Burning Mr. Matheson’s flag in Kingston … it was sad. I wasn’t angry, I was just sad.”

michael.lea@sunmedia.ca