I’m writing today not only…

I’m writing today not only as a concerned Ontario resident, but as someone who knows the human cost of Schedule 7 of Bill 5.

One of the most passionate people I know is an archaeologist. For years, I’ve watched them dedicate their life to uncovering the layers of Ontario’s history—working long hours in the field, researching with care, and building relationships with Indigenous communities to ensure that cultural heritage is treated with the respect it deserves. They don’t do this work for recognition or wealth. They do it because they believe in honouring the lives and stories that came before us.

When they learned about this bill, I saw something in them that I rarely see: heartbreak.

Bill 5, and particularly Schedule 7, feels like a sweeping dismissal of everything they’ve fought to protect. If passed, it will allow entire areas of this province to be built over without even checking for what lies beneath—without ensuring that sacred sites, burial grounds, and irreplaceable pieces of our collective history aren’t being destroyed in the name of development.

They’ve spent their life trying to protect what can’t be replaced. But this bill makes it feel like none of that work matters anymore. And I can’t help but wonder—if we stop listening to people like them, to the people who dedicate their lives to safeguarding the past, what kind of future are we building?

This isn’t just about heritage legislation. It’s about trust. It’s about whether we, as a province, are willing to listen to the people who understand the value of what we can’t see. It’s about whether we are prepared to let go of history—Indigenous history, colonial history, shared history—simply because it’s inconvenient.

If this bill goes through, we won’t even know what we’re losing. That’s what breaks my heart the most.

I’m asking you to hear not just my voice, but the quiet devastation of every archaeologist, every community elder, and every citizen who understands that once you destroy a piece of history, there’s no bringing it back. Please reconsider Schedule 7. Respect the work of those who have spent their lives protecting what the rest of us might never even see.