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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Kat Wong

Australian town defends its ‘long-valued and admired’ statue of an enslaved African American child

The Jocko Graves statue, a bronze figure in draped clothing, stands on a pedestal outside a shopfront
The Jocko Graves statue in Maitland, New South Wales, has been in the town’s main street since some time between 1881 and 1891. Photograph: Percy Sternbeck/Coalfields Local History Association

A 150-year-old statue of an enslaved African American child in the middle of a regional Australian town has ignited a furore over race, censorship and what defines art.

Originally designed as a hitching post for horses, the statue later became a Maitland landmark, with images of the boy reproduced on postcards, teaspoons and other memorabilia.

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