im in the camp that if there was a good local name, and it was polled, i would totally vote in favor of a rename. I've lived in a couple towns now with native names, and really prefered it over.. Campbell River for example.
That said, this is so far down my list of priorities...
Personally I don't care for it is or isn't a native name, but I do dislike British Columbia. I can live with it but if it were out up to a vote to change it I would say go for it.
I hate that it's:
So long
Two words
Refers to other geographical places
I would much prefer a simpler name like Alberta or Manitoba. Fuck Saskatchewan though I need to pull out the dictionary for that one half the time.
They aren't suggesting dropping the "British", rather they are asking about changing the name to something more representative of the Indigenous Peoples of BC who have been keepers of the land since time immemorial.
Not sure how that would work, though, as there are so many Nations and languages in the province.
Like, "Powell River School District" is now "qathet School District". They didn't just drop "Powell" to call it "River", lol.
There is nothing offensive about the name British Columbia. This isn't like Yong-Dundas or schools that are named after residential school pushers or streets named after slavers.
There is a push to native-wash everything in Canada, I think because it makes progressives feel like they've accomplished something despite the systems of oppression against native peoples remaining fundamentally unchanged.
Next year something else will become offensive. Next year another huge initiative to change something else. This type of thing is literally endless as everything is changing all the time. Sounds like a waste of tax $ to me.