I AM writing to express my strong desire to have the name of Henry Dangar removed from all place names in the city of Newcastle. This would include Dangar Park in Mayfield and Dangar Street in Wickham. As a concerned citizen, I believe it is crucial to reassess the individuals we choose to honour and ensure that their actions align with the values we hold dear as a community.
Henry Dangar's active involvement in supporting the individuals implicated in the Myall Creek massacre of Indigenous people is deeply troubling. The massacre was perpetrated on Dangar's land and involved some of his employees. His role was highlighted in the recent apology and truth-telling ("Time to right a wrong", Sydney Morning Herald 10/6). Dangar, through his membership of the "Black Association", a group of landholders who insisted that the right of whites to kill blacks must be kept sacrosanct, also helped to fund the defence of the 11 accused.
The Myall Creek Massacre was a horrific event in Australia's history, where innocent Indigenous men, women, and children were brutally murdered. It stands as a painful reminder of the atrocities committed against the First Nations people and the long-lasting impact of colonisation. By continuing to honour Henry Dangar through place names, we inadvertently perpetuate a narrative that overlooks or even condones the actions he was involved in. It sends a message that we are not fully committed to acknowledging the deep pain and suffering experienced by the Indigenous community and the broader need for reconciliation.
In light of the ongoing national conversation surrounding truth-telling, reconciliation, and the recognition of Indigenous history, it is essential that we take proactive steps to rectify the past.
Removing Henry Dangar's name from place names in Newcastle would be a significant gesture towards acknowledging the truth and demonstrating our commitment to healing and justice.
I firmly believe that by removing Henry Dangar's name from place names, we can begin to foster a more inclusive and respectful environment that honours the history, culture, and contributions of the Indigenous community. It is an opportunity to ensure that the names we choose to commemorate, reflect our commitment to reconciliation, justice, and healing.
I hope that you will consider giving prominence to this issue in your newspaper and facilitating a broader community conversation on the renaming of places.
Gavin Green, Hamilton
Cross over lack of crossings
IF the land owners and council continue filling up every parcel of land left in this Cameron Park estate, then how about realising that the demographics of this estate consist of 50 per cent young families, 35 per cent retirees and that it's the council's responsibility to put into place all the relevant safety infrastructure.
I have written about this before and contacted Lake Macquarie council, but still no safety crossings have been installed, except maybe McDonald's to KFC and at traffic lights near the shopping centre.
In three weeks I have had two near misses while walking my dog across at the North Lakes/Constitution roundabout's supposed safety islands, and once at the safety island crossing between the aged care facility and IGA while crossing at the same time as a gentleman on his mobility scooter. Not good enough, council, especially when you are in the median strip safety island and you cannot see the oncoming traffic that are doing 60kmh plus, not 50kmh because of the median strip beds overgrown with some sort of fast-growing weeds. If you can't keep these areas near safety islands clear for better vision, give me a shout and I'll sort it out. There are no safe crossings in Cameron Park. In fact, no suitable crossings at all. At some stage some of the 19,000 residents and counting are going to cross these roads. Are we going to wait until there is a fatality?
Graeme Kime, Cameron Park
Empathy is the right way to go
DAVE McTaggart (Short Takes, 1/6), recently asked what rights he has that his "Indigenous mate" doesn't. Here's a few. The right to not be looked at suspiciously and monitored when he enters a shop. The right to go through a day without being the target of a racial slur. The right to compete for a job purely on merit. The right to fairness if he applies to rent a house. The right to safety if taken into custody. The right to not have others make an array of assumptions about him based on the colour of his skin.
Some of our most important rights, the ones essential for a secure and happy life, are not found in statute books. White Australians don't tend to see these things as rights, or at all, because they can be taken for granted. But they are no less real or important for that.
So the challenge is to look beyond the comfortable illusion of equality created by formal rules and try to walk a mile in another's shoes. To genuinely open hearts and minds to what it might be actually like to be a black person in an overwhelmingly white country. And to look at the Voice proposal from that perspective rather than our own.
Michael Hinchey, New Lambton
Waitangi opinion was welcome
MICHAEL Gormly ("Factual debate key to progress", Letters, 9/6), I say well done to the Herald for printing the Institute of Public Affairs' opinion piece on the New Zealand equivalent of the Voice ('Tricks' used to silence debate on the Voice', Opinion 6/6). The piece was about something Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has called a role model. It's far from misinformation and provides another view on exactly what serious implications this "modest" (Albo's word) change could mean for Australia.
Meanwhile, on your invitation I read the IPA's 2012 wishlist for Tony Abbott and it's clear that even back then they could see it was futile to expect the ABC to remain unbiased and balanced, therefore wanting to remove the law that required impartiality.
Greg Hunt, Newcastle West
Containers would cut emissions
I OFTEN wonder how many tonnes of greenhouse gases would be avoided if the NSW government let Newcastle be a container port. When I see all those trucks going up the highway from Sydney, I think that this could be avoided with the stroke of a pen. How many lives could be saved by getting those trucks off the road with a stroke of a pen?
Doug Cliff, Saratoga
Reading between lines of lyrics
SUBTITLES, yes please, ("Subtitles on? You're not the only one ...", Topics, 8/6), especially for most of today's music videos as we don't know what the hell artists are supposedly singing or rapping about.
I believe most of the musos in modern, free-to-air TV can't even play instruments, let alone are successful with lip and instrument syncing. Some video production companies are making heaps of money with their psychedelic productions apparently requiring viewers to be bombed out.
Brian Watson-Will, Corlette
SHORT TAKES
AT least Jerry Schwartz saved the post office from the point of no return, which would have likely happened if left with the previous owners ("'I don't land bank': post office's new mail", Newcastle Herald 10/6). They should never have sold the building in the first place, which led it to become subject of a land rights claim. Several previous owners had the building for longer than Dr Schwartz, who at least should be commended for saving the building from demolition and not criticised for a "lack of progress".
Steven Busch, Rathmines
IN response to Peter Devey ("Why would the Voice be different?", Letters, 14/6) implying that The Voice to Parliament would be doing the same as has been done before, this entire referendum has been made far more complex by the public than it actually is. It is an advisory body to parliament on decisions that affect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. It is as simple as this, and anyone suggesting that it is more than this is either confused or attempting to mislead.
Michael Stevenson, Warners Bay
DANIEL Duggan's treatment ("Pilot's human rights 'breached'", Herald, 13/6) is an example of Australia participating in the US 'rules based' world order. An order where decency, the United Nations, and local law is of no consequence. It would be good to see the Australian government stand up for its citizens for once.
Peter Ronne, Woodberry
DARYL Frost (Short Takes, 10/6), I wonder how you would go standing next to these soldiers, fighting against an enemy who have no rules of war and use men, women and children as walking bombs, and don't give a rat's about rules. It would be like getting in a boxing ring with your arms tied behind your back and wearing a blindfold.
Ken Stead, Lambton
WHEN you tell a lie long and often enough, younger people start to believe that great big lie that the Baby Boomer generation all got free university education. The vast majority of boomers left school at year 10 to hit the factory floor for the next 40-plus years and only the brainy went on to university, unlike today where it's a haven for the unemployable.
Alan Hamilton, Hamilton East
ALL roads appear to lead to the Roosters in rugby league. Look at Dom Young; top NRL try scorer, high jumper, faster than a speeding bullet, and out the door. The never-ending story of the Knights.
Alan Harrison, Glendale
I BELIEVE if the Knights had a recognised goalkicker they would have won the three games they lost and would be on 21 points and running second (behind the Broncos and in front of the Panthers who are one of the teams they lost to due to goalkicking).
