Clarence alderman Brendan Blomeley has been met with heavy backlash by First Nations people after posting an image of golliwog dolls on Facebook.
Tagging The Woodcraft Shop in Tasmania, Mr Blomeley wrote, “Wonderful to know the PC Brigade haven’t taken total control! Golliwogs for sale in historic Richmond.”
In a media statement, the alderman later wrote, “If my post caused anyone genuine offence, then of course I apologise.”
“As well as being an Alderman on the Clarence City Council, I am a former director of the Migrant Resource Centre in Southern Tasmania and I’m presently a Multicultural Ambassador for Mental Health [Foundation] Australia,” Mr Blomeley said.
“So, to be very clear, I am not racist and indeed, I have a proud record of working to achieve harmony and acceptance in our diverse community.”
Mr Blomeley claimed he had “wonderful memories” of his Nan knitting him a golliwog when he was a child.
“My clear understanding of the golliwog, growing up with one beside my bed as a child - was that they were a protector of children - and are not, as some believe, a sign of racism or disrespect to people of different race or skin tone.”
Referencing the renaming of Coon cheese and cancellation of “six Dr Seuss books”, the alderman said it seemed “the politically-correct brigade seek to find offence under every single rock in their pursuit to cancel culture.”
The origins of the golliwog date back to a late by American author Florence Kate Upton. The dolls are also associated with the tradition of white performers wearing blackface on stage.
In 2016, Kullilli man and social justice advocate, Dr Stephen Hagan, launched a successful campaign to remove golliwog dolls from a Terry White Chemist in Toowoomba.
“There’s no place for golliwogs in Australian society now,” he told at the time, adding, “To me and to all people of colour, it’s a depiction of a racist era when black people didn’t have any rights.”
Speaking to The Feed today, Dr Hagan said if a multi-million dollar company like Terry White Chemists can remove golliwog dolls from shopfronts, there’s no reason other stores can’t follow suit.
Kullili Traditional Owner Dr Stephen Hagan author of the Rise and rise of Judicial Bigotry. Source: Batchelor Institute/Dr Stephen Hagan
“If someone wants to live in the past and get satisfaction from being tone-deaf with what’s happening around the world with Black Lives Matter, they’re the ones out of date, who need to readjust their thinking.”
The Feed reached out to The Woodcraft Shop for comment but did not receive a response.
Like Dr Hagan, Wiradjuri man James Blackwell sees golliwogs as “offensive, and definitely racist.”
A research fellow in Indigenous Policy at the University of NSW’s Centre for Social Impact, Mr Blackwell said the dolls are, “a caricature of Black people, both overseas and here in Australia, that sees us as only being a reflection of our skin.”
“Golliwogs demean Black people and hurt the psyches of our children. It’s also an outdated way to look at people, and we should be well past such stereotypes,” he told The Feed.
Mr Blackwell said the dolls are not respectful representations of black and brown people.
Author and academic Dr Stephen Hagan believes golliwog dolls have no place "in the 21st century." Source: SBS News
“It’s not about finding offence. It’s about recognising what’s no longer appropriate,” he said.
“This so-called “cancel culture” is simply us as a society recognising that things that have come before are inappropriate, unfair, and offensive representations, rooted in bigotry and hatred.”
“We recognise that these are not reflective of the society that we’re in.”
In his media statement, Mr Blomeley claimed “left-leaning media” jumped at the opportunity to “undermine our rich culture and history.”
“If you want to survive in this environment, it seems that you’ve got to jump on the PC bandwagon and in so doing, disown our own western civilisation, that is, as we know, the best in the world,” he said.
In response, Mr Blackwell said, “I would encourage [the alderman] to learn and listen to people of colour and their communities. To understand our lives and lived experiences.”
“Racism has massive effects on the lives and overall health of black and brown people, and such golliwog representations set a tone that broader racism in our society is ok.”
