Hobart City Council mayoral candidate Louise Elliot denies accusations of racist speech
A prominent face in the Hobart City Council mayoral race has defended herself against accusations of racist speech, in the wake of comments she made in a social media discussion.
Tasmania
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Hobart mayoral candidate Louise Elliot has defended herself against accusations of racist speech, after she weighed into an online discussion about the controversial statue of William Crowther in Franklin Square.
Facing backlash for her comments, Ms Elliot told the Mercury she believed “everyone is equal and no-one should be treated unfavourably because of their race”.
It follows a unanimous vote by the Hobart City Council’s Community, Culture and Events Committee on Thursday night to remove the statue and commission a new interpretation and/or sculpture.
The full council will vote on whether to remove the Crowther statue at its next meeting on August 15.
Crowther, a former premier and medical practitioner who died in 1885, decapitated the corpse of Tasmanian Aboriginal man William Lanne and stole his skull.
On Thursday, Hobart alderman Jeff Briscoe shared on Facebook a Mercury article detailing the objections of one of Crowther’s descendants, Hayden Windsor, to the proposed removal of the statue.
Commenting on Mr Briscoe’s post, Deputy Mayor Helen Burnet expressed outrage at Mr Windsor’s characterisation of “the tragedy that was the final days of the Tasmanian Aboriginal people”.
“I can’t believe I am reading this,” she wrote.
Ms Elliot responded: “Lanne was one of, if not, the last full-blooded Aboriginal people, that’s clearly what (Mr Windsor) meant.”
At the committee meeting that evening, Ms Burnet asked Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre campaign co-ordinator Nala Mansell whether she believed what Ms Elliot had said was racist.
“I would say that’s completely racist and if that’s been published, that needs to be dealt with,” Ms Mansell said. “The only time we hear talk about blood percentage is normally when you’re breeding dogs or animals.”
Ms Elliot, who spoke in opposition to the statue’s removal at the meeting, was then grilled by Ms Burnet, who asked her, “Do you understand what Ms Mansell has said in relation to (your comment) and how racist it is?”
“Yes, I do,” Ms Elliot replied. “I don’t believe it to be racist, I believe it to be fact – biological fact.”
In response to questions from the Mercury, Ms Elliot again denied she had made a racist remark, noting that the same language had been used in a work of history that council officers had “relied on” when recommending to the committee that the statue be removed.
“I’m sorry to hear that Ms Mansell was offended by the description; that was not my intention,” she said. “I find it a terribly sad reality and a statement that’s made in multiple reputable historical sources.”
“Thankfully, we have a strong Aboriginal community among us today.”
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