‘The Cup’ drops Deighton from name at Vancouver’s Hastings Racecourse
Posted July 25, 2022 11:10 am.
Last Updated July 25, 2022 11:12 am.
The iconic horse races in Vancouver have dropped the name “Deighton,” which references John Deighton — better known as “Gassy Jack.”
“It means a lot to have the name dropped. It’s showing respect for host Nations, showing respect for the actual history of these lands,” said
Deighton, a saloon owner and operator in Gastown in the 1860s, married two Squamish women in his lifetime, one of whom was a 12-year-old girl at the time the marriage took place.
A statue of Deighton in Gastown was toppled in February during the 31st annual Womens Memorial march.
Organizers of the event at Hastings Racecourse, now known simply as “The Cup,” had spent two years working closely with First Nations communities to create a more conscientious event.
“When we first started the festival well over 10 years ago, we thought it would be an interesting way to honour Vancouver history — to name it after somebody who was a very iconic Vancouverite,” explained co-founder Jordan Kallman.
“The community obviously had deep trauma and outcry around ‘Gassy Jack’ Deighton … We wanted to honor that by dropping the name from our festival.”
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Organizers worked closely with Ta7taliya Nahanee, founder and CEO of Nahanee Creative Inc. to become educated about colonial impacts.
“There was a period of time when we were meeting frequently and then we took some time apart for the organization to process,” Nahanee explained. “I really support people to land where they need to land in their own time. That’s actually what’s decolonial about the process. I’m not rushing to the checkmark.”
This is the first year The Cup has incorporated a land acknowledgement at the start of the event, and is now permanently featuring Indigenous art.
