A Helpful Guide to Perth’s Problematic Statues and Where to Find Them – Lillian Keenan

A Helpful Guide to Perth’s Problematic Statues AND WHERE TO FIND THEM

Lillian Keenan

CONTENT WARNING: COLONISATION, MURDER, GENOCIDE OF INDIGENOUS AUSTRALIANS

Throughout history statues have risen and fallen with societal values. In the United States, spurred on by the Black Lives Matter protests, many Confederate statues around the country have been toppled, hung, beheaded, drowned and defaced. Some local and state governments have acted. For example, on July the 1st the Mayor of Richmond, Virginia Levar Stoney called for the removal of all confederate statues in the city. The United Kingdom has also been reviewing links to its problematic heritage. In Manchester, Councillor Luthfur Rahman asked the public who they would like to see celebrated in future statues while previous ones are removed. Here in Australia we’ve been reflecting on our own shameful history and who we celebrate. In 2017, after Captain Cook’s statue was defaced in Sydney’s Hyde park Malcom Turnbull referred to this act as a disturbing totalitarian act to obliterate Australian history. More recently, as people still call for the removal of the very same statue Scott Morrison inevitably responded, that there was no slavery in Australia. Fun fact, we have more statues of animals than women and indigenous people (Cowaramup I’m looking at you). Clearly, we would rather celebrate men who brutally colonised Australia than we would the rightful owners of this land. While the spotlight has been on the Eastern states monuments WA has plenty of statues commemorating colonial eras. But calls for their removal haven’t been as loud. I assume it’s because our statues aren’t as famous as James Cook and we just don’t know who we have in our own backyard. So, I’d like to provide a helpful guide to the statues around Perth. Without further ado, here is an alphabetical list of some of the most problematic statues in Perth and why.

1. Henry Camfield (1799-1872) - This statue is located on Great Eastern Highway in Burswood and was put up in 1992. Camfields statue represents the values of his time, hard work and the struggle to survive as a pioneer in a foreign environment. But nowadays we recognise his ‘hard work’ as colonisation. When he arrived in Australia (1829) he was ‘granted’ 5533 acres of stolen land which he named Burswood. Camfield attempted to farm almost starving three times due to poor knowledge of the land. This land would go on to become the Belmont race course, Perth Stadium, Crown and Burswood which features the Camfield pub. He became Government Resident in Albany where he established Annesfield schoolhouse in 1851. An institution where he and his wife ‘raised’ and indoctrinated more than 50 Aboriginal children into Christianity. During the school’s first 16 years 17 children died there. The statue of Henry Camfield glorifies the actions of settlers and hides their atrocious acts. To make matters worse his statue is leaning against a shovel wiping sweat from his brow, to represent how hard he suffered to make a name for himself. In reality, Camfield failed to force foreign land into an English garden so he gave up and forced European standards onto stolen children.

2. Charles Court (1911- 2007) - This statue is located on Saint Georges Terrace and was unveiled in 2011. Charles Court is praised for numerous accomplishments he made during his political career. Namely, he paved the way for Western Australia’s mining boom and is said to have been committed to the art and culture of WA. But how does one pave the way for mining? In Court’s case, it would be by being staunchly opposing Aboriginal land rights and dismissing any cultural significance the land had to its indigenous people. Which seems contradictory for a man who is said to have loved WAs culture. Charles Court played a central role in the Noonkanbah land-rights dispute. In 1978 when

3. John and Alexander Forrest - John Forrest (1847- 1918). John Forrest has a couple of monuments in WA, with one in Kings Park (1927) and the other in Bunbury (1979). Alexander Forrest (1849-1901) has his statue on St Georges Terrace. It’s been there since 1903. Alexander Forrest along with his older brother John Forrest explored Australia. They are credited with discovering the Fitzroy river and naming the King Leopold Range which has since been renamed the Wunaamin Miliwundi Ranges. They also named

4. Bishop Mathew hale (1811-1895) - This monument is located on Saint Georges Terrace and was unveiled in 2008. The name Hale might sound a little familiar because he founded the oldest boys school in WA, Hale school. He is known to be “the good Bishop ‘’ as he was committed to the welfare Aboriginal people. However, his idea of helping was taking indigenous people from Adelaide and placing them in a native reserve in Poonindie. Which was chosen for its isolation. Hale also took over Annesfield after Camfield, due to knowing each other and sharing similar ideas about needing to civilise and Christianise indigenous children through religious lead institutions. These institutions created extremely abusive environments indigenous people and contributed to the erasure of their Indigenous culture because Christianity was considered superior. His statue represents classic colonial values that must be dismissed as outdated and racist.

5. The Explorers’ Monument (Maitland Brown Memorial) 1993 - Located on the esplanade in Fremantle. Out of the list this is the only Statue to be deemed so offensive that another plaque was added to the monument. Maitland Brown led the La Grange massacre in 1865. Brown searched with the intent to murder and killed an estimated 20 Aboriginal people to avenge the deaths of three white settlers. These actions were not justified and should not be celebrated through a monument in public space. AMAX (an American oil company) wanted to drill Noonkanbah the Yungngora community protested, Court insisted that 45-strong convoy of drilling rigs and trucks go to Noonkanbah and backed WA police forcibly removing protesters so that miners could gain access to their land. When they did eventually drill, they found nothing. Aboriginal people around Australia are still fighting to protect their land and culture especially from mining companies who still push to mine sacred sites. Recently Rio Tinto blew up part of the Juukan Gorge area, a sacred site dating back 46,000 years. Courts statue reminds us that we still disregard First Nations peoples’ right to their own land.

the Kimberly region, Margaret River and the Ord River. Although it’s hard to claim having discovered, explored or named anything when these places were already known and named for Indigenous Australians. Alexander Forrest also leased out 50 million acres of land that wasn’t his and he was not meant to profit off. Statues of these two brothers contribute to the celebration of colonial Australia which disregarded the existence of an established thriving culture.

6. John Septimus Roe (1797-1878) – Erected in 1990, the statue is found on Adelaide Terrance. Let’s skip right to the point on this one because every article will tell you about how good of a man Roe was and why we should commemorate him in bronze. But in 1834 Roe was involved in the Pinjarra massacre and killed an estimated 70 Binjareb people but the exact number is unknown.

7. James Stirling (1791-1865) - Found on Hay street this statue was erected in 1979. Unlike Roe, Stirling didn’t just participate in the Pinjarra massacre, he led it. Afterwards he threatened to commit genocide by killing 80% of the Indigenous population. Neither of these men deserve to be celebrated as heroes and their actions cannot be glorified.

There are more outdated and problematic statues around Perth that have not been mentioned here to save your time. You probably get the idea, all around our city of statues of people who did awful things and don’t deserve to be in public space and now that you know, the next step would be to continue signing petitions, writing emails and amplifying the voices of Indigenous Australians.