City of Sydney backtracks on Licorice Allsorts park name over racism concerns

A Sydney council has backtracked on plans to name a new public park after Licorice Allsorts lollies over concerns the name is ‘derogatory’ and could cause racial offence.

City of Sydney Greens councillor Sylvie Ellsmore said the proposed naming was offensive.

A Sydney council has backtracked on plans to name a new public park after Licorice Allsorts lollies over concerns the name is ‘derogatory’ and could cause racial offence.

Public backlash and feedback from an Indigenous advisory group has forced the City to Sydney to reconsider the naming of a new park on Rothschild Ave in Rosebery.

The aniseed-themed name was intended to recognise the history of the site which previously operated as a confectionary factory before being turned into a public park last year.

But the council’s plan to name the park after Licorice Allsorts met stiff resistance from residents along with the council’s own Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Panel which raised the concerns the name has been used as a derogatory term for people of mixed race and could cause offence.

Panel member and local councillor Yvonne Weldon said naming was insensitive and had caused concern and distress for panel members.

A photo of the new Rosebery park.

Public feedback on another proposed name – “Allsorts Park’’ – also sparked concerns that ‘allsorts’ was unclear and could be “interpreted in different ways’’

Instead, the council is now proposing to name the park ‘Butterscotch Park’.

Local greens councillor Sylvie Ellsmore, however, is pushing for the park to be given an Indigenous name in recognition of pre-colonial history.

Ms Ellsmore said an Indigenous name would be in line with the council’s updated naming policy which aims to rebalance the current disproportionate number of sites named after “British, colonial, male, white and industrial history” within the local government area.

A historic photo of the licorice allsorts produced at the factory during the 20th century.

A photo of the factory in its heyday. Picture: City of Sydney

“The council is quite right not to go forward with the licorice allsorts name because it’s racially offensive,” she said.

“But this is the sixth thing in the local area that will be named after the one sweet factory – it’s a cute name but why bother?

“It’s such a wasted opportunity when we could be recognising the voices that are all too invisible in the city – most often Aboriginal names, and also women.”

A photo of the new park.

City of Sydney councillor Linda Scott has backed an alternative name, saying there was an “abundance of words” from the local Indigenous Gadigal language that the council could draw on.

A council report stated the naming of the park was intended to recognise the Sweetacres factory that produced confectionery at the site from 1918 until the late 1960s.

The council says the Butterscotch name would maintain the historic reference to the factory, which produced butterscotch items as well as licorice during the 20th century.

A historic photo of a butterscotch item produced at the factory.

A number of parks and streets in the surrounding area have also been named in tribute to the sweet making history of the area including Honeykiss Park, Sweetacres Park, Stedman Street, Sweet Street and Confectioners Way.

The proposed naming of “Butterscotch Park” was supported by a 6-4 majority vote of councillors and will now be referred for assessment by the Geographical Names Board of NSW.

The council’s naming policy has already seen several streets renamed after the city’s multicultural history including “Ah Toy Lane” and “Sai Ying Lane” in Circular Quay which were originally proposed to be named “Cabinet Makers Lane” and “Crane Place” in recognition of the area’s industrial past.