Labor MP in the ACT wants to change ‘hurtful’ suburb, street names

A Labor MP has called for suburbs and streets named after “bad” historical figures to be changed out of respect to victims.

Labor ACT politician Bec Cody.

A Labor MP is pushing to have “hurtful” street and suburb names in Canberra changed out of respect to victims who find them distressing.

Bec Cody, the ACT’s member for Murrumbidgee, says she is responding to feedback from constituents who expressed “pain” over areas named after historical figures whose misdeeds had since been revealed.

“We’ve had apologies to groups that are well deserving of those apologies,” she told the ABC’s Radio National today. “Saying sorry isn’t enough. It’s time to act on it.

“I’ve had representations made to me, both as a member of the Legislative Assembly, but I was a hairdresser for 30 years before that and people were often telling me about some of the hurtful place names that we have in Canberra and the pain that they feel when they have to see them.”

I think we should review place names in the ACT because some of them are named after bad people, and are hurtful to the victims. It's a small task for us to make life a little kinder for others. #ACTpol

— Bec Cody (@Rebecca_Cody) October 28, 2018

She highlighted Stirling, named after a British naval officer and WA’s first governor, as an example of a suburb that should be changed.

Ms Cody said Stirling’s leadership of the Pinjarra Massacre, of up to 30 indigenous people in 1834, made him a disgraced historical figure.

“Some people would have a real problem with a person being commemorated for massacring Aboriginals,” she said.

“The reason for my motion is to start a conversation. To get the community telling the place names committee about some of the things they think need to be changed.

“The review is the starting place for all this.”

Another example she referred to was Haig Park, named in honour of British war commander Douglas Haig — known as The Butcher for his tactics during WWI.

Ms Cody told Radio National that the general had sent his troops into battle “just to be killed” during WWI and was not a suitable person to be glorified in such a way.

Since going public with her idea, Ms Cody said she had been flooded by other examples of names that people found offensive.

It was not simply a case of rewriting history, she said. “I think it’s trying to ... we’ve apologised for some of the wrongs that we’ve done in history and I think that that’s a wonderful thing to do.

“I’m a proud Australian but I’m not proud enough to think we have some dodgy history.”

She has asked the ACT Place Names Committee to revise all place names so that they meet community standards.

Committee co-chair Jeff Brown said changing names of streets and suburbs was difficult, and had been done on only a couple of occasions.

Ms Cody’s motion will be debated in the ACT Legislative Assembly on November 28.