Kensington school's decision to remove memorial wall 'upsetting,' says P.E.I. education minister

A central P.E.I. school's decision to remove a tribute to students who died has sparked an online backlash, and even made its way to the floor of the legislative assembly. 

Tuesday during question period in the P.E.I. Legislature, Kensington-Malpeque MLA Matthew MacKay raised the issue of Kensington Intermediate Senior High's decision to remove its memorial wall in an apparent move to avoid upsetting current students. 

The wall includes the names and photos of students who died while attending the school over the years. 

The decision to remove the wall led to dozens of social media posts — including some from family members of the students on the wall — as well as an online petition with more than 1,500 signatures as of Wednesday morning.

MacKay asked Education Minister Rob Lantz if he was aware of the school's decision and what actions he planned to take. 

Lantz responded that he was only made aware of the situation Tuesday, but neither he nor Department of Education staff were consulted about the move. 

He did pledge to look into the matter with the school's staff, calling the decision "upsetting" for the families of those featured on the wall.

"It seems like a solution in search of a problem. I honestly can't understand what we're trying to achieve by this. It seems like we're trying to make sure the children don't encounter anything unpleasant in this life," Lantz said in the legislature. 

"If we're trying to create resilience in children, which of course we are, there's going to be obstacles, there's going to be unpleasant situations. We can't remove everything."