Wattle Range Councillors vote against changing ‘offensive’ Penola road name Chinamans Lane

A council has made its decision on whether to change the name of a local road after a resident objected to its “offensive” connotations.

A Penola resident has written to the Wattle Range Council asking them to consider changing the name of Chinamans Lane. Picture: Jessica Dempster

A country SA council has unanimously voted to retain the name of a local road after a resident wrote a letter asking for it to be changed due to the “offensive” racial connotations associated with the phrase.

On Tuesday night, all 11 councillors at the Wattle Range Council monthly meeting voted against changing the name of “Chinamans Lane” in Penola after a written request was made by a new resident of the street.

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The writer said while they were “thrilled to be calling it home”, sharing their new address with others made them feel embarrassed, particularly with Asian Australians, due to the racist connotations of the term “Chinaman”.

Discussion of the resident’s letter lasted less than 10 minutes at the meeting with the body making the unanimous decision not to pursue the renaming of the lane.

Council CEO, Ben Gower said the decision was made following the consideration of the historic origins of the name, opinions by other residents, and a submission received from a descendant of one of the early Chinese settlers of Penola who had contacted council to say they were not offended by the name.

Wattle Range Deputy Mayor Councillor Peter Dunnicliff said he was “dead against” the name change due to its connection to the region’s heritage.

The name “Chinamans Lane” is said to reference the Chinese vegetable farmers of early Penola who sold supplies to explorers on their journey from Robe to Ballarat during the nineteenth century gold rush era.

Many locals took to social media to share their opinion on the proposed name change. The majority were against the change, with several pointing out the historical significance of the road and its history.

“As a resident of Chinamans Lane, I am not at all offended by the name. When I get curious questions when giving street address, I love to tell about the history of the name,” one local posted.

“Maybe a historical marker under the sign (like we have around town) can be erected to give information regarding the road name (unless there already is one). There’s no place for racism in Australia, but knowledge of our history is important,” another person said

“It’s a shame the person who’s complaining wasn’t here in 2017 when many locals participated walking with the ancestors of the Chinese miners to commemorate the journey the people took trekking from Robe to Ballarat. The Chinese community council of Australia (vic) didn’t have an issue with the road name at the time, I’m surprised this person does,” they continued.