While a push to have the city rename Paul Haggis Park failed to get past council, a women's rights advocate suggests there is another way the Oscar-winning filmmaker's name could be stripped from the green space.
Megan Walker, the executive director of the London Abused Women's Centre, is calling on Haggis to make the request himself.
"We have been pressing him through Twitter to remove his name voluntarily," said Walker.
In a tweet to Haggis, Walker stated "It’s unfortunate @Paul_Haggis has not requested his name be removed from the park. That would have been the respectful thing for him to have done."
Calls to rename Paul Haggis Park began earlier this month when accusations of sexual misconduct against its namesake surfaced. That prompted Councillor Mo Salih to put forward a motion asking city staff replace the Paul Haggis Park sign with one listing the park’s address at 2875 Bateman Trail until a new name for the space could be selected.
The motion was defeated 10-2 at Tuesday night's city council meeting. Only Councillors Salih and Jesse Helmer voted in favour. Councillors Virginia Ridley, Tanya Park, and Jared Zaifman were not present for the vote.
"Ten people on council got it wrong and they've betrayed the trust of women and girls in our community," said Walker, who noted that, after 30 years of advocating for women, she has come to expect this kind of outcome. "I am not disheartened. It just continues to drive me and inspire me to work harder and hold people accountable for their decisions."
In a lawsuit filed December 15, 2017, Haggis is accused of sexually assaulting a woman, an accusation the 64-year-old has denied in a pending countersuit. The original lawsuit was later amended to include complaints from three other women.
No criminal charges have been laid against Haggis and none of the accusations against him have been proven in court. It was that point that gave the bulk of politicians debating the motion pause.
However, the presumption of innocence isn't sitting well with Walker.
"If you have an alleged serial murderer and his name is on a public park there would be no question that his name would be removed," said Walker. "Yet when we are discussing the serious issues of sexualized violence against women it seems we always want to say we're not going to take action because it is innocent until proven guilty and that is a double standard that I won't tolerate."
Haggis was born in London and graduated from Fanshawe College’s cinematography program before moving to California. The south-London green space was constructed and dubbed Paul Haggis Park in 2011 after the Million Dollar Baby screenwriter was given a lifetime recognition by the city in 2006.
He has not responded to Walker's tweets requesting he voluntarily remove his name from the park.
