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To: The New Zealand House of Representatives

Remove the Statue of Dick Seddon from Parliament Lawn

We, the undersigned, call upon you to remove and replace the Richard Seddon statue on Parliament lawn.

We petition the government to remove the statue of Seddon from outside parliament and replace him with another respected figure or leader from Aotearoa - or a carving or sculpture that represents our bicultural heritage and modern values.

Why is this important?

“A nation reveals itself not only by the men it produces but also by the men it honours, the men it remembers.” - John F. Kennedy

#DitchDick is a campaign petitioning the New Zealand government to remove and replace the statute of Richard “King Dick” Seddon which currently stands in front of the New Zealand Parliament Buildings.

Dick Seddon was an established and notorious autocrat, imperialist and racist, and his beliefs are totally incompatible with the values of Aotearoa New Zealand as a just and modern nation.

Seddon actively opposed the enfranchisement of women, supported racist policy against Chinese people, supported widespread confiscations and coercive purchase of Māori land and attempted to invade and annex the Pacific nations of Fiji, Sāmoa and the Cook Islands, succeeding in the latter.

We call upon the government to relegate Richard Seddon to the history books and no longer honour him with pride of place in front of the highest legislative body in the nation. Seddon’s abhorrent words and deeds have no place in modern New Zealand, and there are many other great Kiwis who deserve the coveted place on Parliament lawn far more than he.

References and further reading:

-Grimshaw, Patricia. Women's Suffrage in New Zealand. Auckland University Press/Oxford University Press, 1972. xx, 151 pp.
-Scott, Dick (1975). Ask That Mountain: The Story of Parihaka. Heinemann.
-Burdon, Randal Mathews (1966)."Seddon, Richard John". In McLintock, A.H. (ed.). An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand.

Wellington, New Zealand

Maps © Stamen; Data © OSM and contributors, ODbL

Updates

2020-06-14 03:14:40 +1200

100 signatures reached

2020-06-13 17:20:42 +1200

50 signatures reached

2020-06-13 14:22:55 +1200

25 signatures reached

2020-06-13 13:01:50 +1200

10 signatures reached