The Ode to Newfoundland ad-hoc committee at Memorial University required five elected academic staff members be appointed from eligible Senators. On the December 12, 2023, Senate agenda, it is stated that the Senate Committee on Elections, Committees and Bylaws (SCECB) received seven nominations, but two of the nominations received were from individuals who were not part of Senate, so they were not considered, and the remaining five nominations included Grenfell Campus Associate Professor of History Edwin Bezzina, Marine Institute Aquaculture Scientist Cry Couturier, Biology Professor Craig Purchase, Music Professor Kati Szego, and Medicine Associate Professor Michael Woods. All five were approved by the Senate. Two of the five academic staff members, based on their statements provided on the nomination form, supported the reinstatement of the Ode at Convocation, two remained neutral, and the stance of one individual was unclear.
Edwin Bezzina stated that he was not born in the province but has been following closely the issue of the Ode and Convocation ceremonies. He corresponded with his MHA on the issue and hoped he could, with the dialogue and input from the government, help the committee in its work. Although the history of Newfoundland and Labrador is not his area of historical experience, he stated that he does incorporate elements of the history of the province into his courses. Bezzina stated that he has a Grade 9 piano from the Royal Conservatory of Music and practices regularly.
Cyr Couturier stated that he is extremely proud of Memorial University and its history. He was a faculty member for the past three decades and has come to embrace and celebrate what he calls “its movement into the modern era of education, its movement towards EDI, and Indigenous reconciliation.” However, Couturier stated that he was appalled when the decision to drop the Ode from convocation was made by a select few advisors to the recent President. He stated, “No consultation with the ‘people’ in the House of Assembly, no consultation with students, alumni, donors, faculty, and general stakeholders.” Couturier stated, “The public outcry from this decision was not unexpected.” Furthermore, he stated, “To remove this traditional Ode and keep the national anthem in unilingual format was an insult to all those that support Memorial throughout the last century. There is a better way of educating the people of NL and reconciling the past, but just dropping the Ode suddenly is NOT the best way of doing this.”
Craig Purchase stated that his family has been on the island for 250 years, and his great-uncle was part of the Newfoundland regiment and was killed at the Somme. He stated, “My opinion is very clear. We play O Canada at Convocation and the Vice-Regal Salute when our ‘official visitor,’ the Lieutenant Governor, is present.” He stated that playing those Anthems but concluding the Provincial Anthem is a problem “is viscerally insulting to the people who created this university and their descendants who continue to pay for it.” Purchase stated that Memorial no longer has a “special connection” to the people of the province when the university insults so many of them in this way. He stated, “Don’t bite the hand that feeds you, let alone chew off its arm and slap the owner in the face.” He concluded, “The Provincial Anthem must come back. We can work together to decide what can be added to the ceremony to celebrate the peoples of Labrador and the Indigenous peoples of the province.
Kati Szego stated that as an ethnomusicologist immersed in the study of music in culture, her over 30 years of experience as an ethnographer and teacher of ethnographic methods may be useful to the committee in consulting the university’s many stakeholders. She imagines collaborative development of a methodology for gathering information about the ways that diverse stakeholders ascribe meanings to the Ode, including “how it represents or misrepresents them, appropriate contexts for its performance, and potential alternatives/amendments/additions to the anthem or its traditional mode of presentation. Szego stated that she is committed to working with others to listen carefully and then interrupt the body of collected data to ultimately offer recommendations. She stated that she does not have any particular stake in maintaining or dispensing with the Ode. She concluded, “I’m genuinely interested in learning what different stakeholders think and feel, in creating dialogue on an important, sensitive subject, and finding a way out of the current impasse.
Michael Woods stated that he was “born and bred” outside St. John’s in Kilbride, now considered part of St. John’s. He stated that the Ode is not dear to him but that he does feel like it is an important part of the heritage of Newfoundland. His father traced a part of their family tree back to the Colony of Avalon. However, one arm of his family also traced back to the child of one of the early Governors. “It’s not all glorious,” he stated. Woods then stated that he has strong roots in the province and has heard the Ode many times during school events, sporting events, and before artistic performances. He concluded, “I thought the committee would like an open-minded (albeit male and Caucasian) individual to reflect and deliberate on how best to address the current dilemma about our provincial anthem.”
View the nomination forms below:
Matt Barter is a fourth-year student in the Humanities and Social Sciences Faculty at Memorial University of Newfoundland, majoring in Political Science with a minor in Sociology. He enjoys reading thought-provoking articles, walks in nature, and volunteering in the community.
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