Half of young adults support B.C. changing name to reflect Indigenous heritage: poll

Half of young adults support the idea of changing British Columbia’s name to reflect the province’s Indigenous heritage, according to a new survey.

Approximately one-third of overall respondents in the Research Co. poll expressed support for renaming B.C. for that reason, but the proportion surged to 50 per cent among those between the ages of 18 and 34.

Among the different age groups, people 55 and older were the least likely to approve of a name change, with just 18 per cent in favour and 70 per cent opposed. The remaining 13 per cent told pollsters they weren't sure.

Across different regions, support for a new name acknowledging the province’s Indigenous roots was most widespread on Vancouver Island (37%) and rarest in southern B.C. (26%), not including the Lower Mainland.

About 61 per cent of Indigenous respondents supported a switch. People of South Asian descent were the next most likely to approve of the change, with 38 per cent support.

About one-third of respondents said they agreed with updating B.C.'s flag to remove the Union Jack, while nearly half opposed the change and about a quarter said they weren't sure.

Asked how they felt about the Queen Charlotte Islands being renamed Haida Gwaii back in 2010, 57 per cent of respondents said they supported the decision. One-in-five were against the change, and 23 per cent said they weren't sure.

The survey was conducted online between Oct. 29 and 31 among 800 B.C. adults. Research Co. said the results were statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region, and that the results carry a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.