Petition for a Patyegarang statue to City of Sydney council failed

By TILEAH DOBSON

The request for a statue that commemorates a First Nation figure to the City of Sydney council has been denied in the latest council meeting.

Currently, there are no public-funded statues that commemorate a First Nations individual within the City of Sydney. There are dozens of statues, however, of colonial figures such as Captain Cook, Governor Arthur Philip, and Queen Victoria.

While the City of Sydney council has in recent years adopted the Gadigal language, which had been preserved by Patyegarang’s teaching to First Fleet naval officer Lieutenant William Dawkes, for naming initiatives, Independent Councillor Yvonne Weldon believes this isn’t enough.

With over six hundred signatures, Cr Weldon began a petition to have an Aboriginal artist to be commissioned a statue to commemorate Patyegarang in order to celebrate her role in preserving the Gadigal language.

“Patyegarang’s tremendous display of courage and trust in Dawes resulted in a gift of cultural knowledge back to her people almost 200 years later,” Cr Weldon’s said in her petition.

“Two years ago, at the peak of the Black Lives Matter protests and as statues of the most barbaric colonial figures were being pulled down abroad, representatives of the local Aboriginal community respectfully requested that the Council help erect a statue commemorating Patyegarang as a significant individual in Sydney’s First Nations history.”

Council votes for First Nations voice in Parliament

Cr Weldon’s amendment died on the floor as the council passed Lord Mayor Clover Moore’s motion for the council to actively campaign in support of the upcoming referendum on an alteration to the Australian Constitution to establish a First Nations voice in the federal government.

The Lord Mayor’s motion also included writing to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to commend the federal government for upholding the promise of the referendum and “requesting that he place the matter of changing the date of Australia’s national day to one that can be fully embraced and celebrated by all Australians on the agenda of National Cabinet.”

In her motion, Moore also wants the Chief Executive Officer to “consult with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Panel and the wider community” on what options the City has to conduct a ‘Yes’ campaign for the referendum. It was also mentioned that truth-telling in the library system, talks programs and communication when it comes to Uluru Statement from the Heart and Reconciliation Australia.

And while in her motion, Moore wanted to look into “bringing forward public art projects in the Eora Journey which can further rebalance our public domain in relation to First Nations history, heritage and culture, together with opportunities for new strategic and imaginative approaches in the public domain to enable truth-telling;”, this differed from Cr Weldon who continued to press for a statue instead of an artwork.

Councillors who supported Cr Weldon’s amendment were Liberal councillors Shauna Jarrett and Lyndon Gannon, Labor Councillor Linda Scott and Greens Councillor Sylvie Ellsmore. The rest of the council voted against the amendment.

Please continue to SIGN ✍🏽 and/or SHARE 📣 the petition to build the pressure.https://t.co/nQRifSzJH5

— Councillor Yvonne Weldon (@ypweldon) August 24, 2022

“I am shocked and heartbroken that this did not receive universal support,” Cr Weldon said.

“I am sad to relay that the Lord Mayor Clover Moore and her team of councillors opposed my addition calling for a statue commemorating Patyegarang.”

“The petition calling for a statue has received support from over six hundred community members in just a matter of days. [Last night], the Lord Mayor used her casting vote to overrule the community’s plea. In doing so, she made it clear that she doesn’t want a statue of a First Nation person in our city. This is unacceptable.”

CEO of the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Council Nathan Moran expressed his disappointment that the City of Sydney council “won’t support or acknowledge and commemorate a person whose gift of providing Gadigal language.”

“City of City council not supporting the only Aboriginal councillor and 1st elected Aboriginal person to City of Sydney council proposal to honour [the] person that shared Gadigal language for us to enjoy and contribute is an indication of sad reality paternalism is still paramount and an indication of the City of Sydney council’s inability to truly respect Aboriginal or 1st Nation’s people to be respected for their contribution,” Moran told City Hub.