You know these guys who tell you when you can walk across the road? Well, in Wellington they've gotten an upgrade.
Take a look at that! I noticed this a while ago, while walking near parliament. I just thought it was neat that it was a woman instead of a man, but actually, the story behind it is even cooler than that. The woman is Kate Sheppard, who was one of the leaders in the women's suffrage movement here. She and her fellow suffragettes succeeded, helping to make NZ the first country in the world to grant women the vote, way back in 1893 (a full 27 years before the States). These lights in the parliamentary precinct are to honour her and raise awareness for women's rights.
You can read more on the Wellington City Council website:
Also, I just learned that Kate Sheppard is on the $10 bill!
I also noticed awesome walking women down on Cuba Street, where a lot of the nightlife of the city is found. Not knowing the story of the other ones yet, I was just pleased to see another female figure, and J immediately said it looked like a transgender person. I though that was a lot to extrapolate from a silhouette, but he was totally right! These lights, at intersections along Cuba Street, are to celebrate a transgender woman named Carmen Rupe, who was an LGBT activist, a stripper, a humanitarian volunteer, a brothel keeper, and HIV/AIDS activist, among many other things.
(Side note, while learning about her, I learned that prostitution is legal in NZ, with the intent to make it safer and better regulated. I will have to learn more about that situation).
Carmen was a big hit on Cuba Street and an influential resident of Wellington, and I think it's wonderful for her to be honoured in this way. You can read more about Carmen's lights at this site:
I think that this is inventive and fun way to celebrate important people in Wellington's history, and there are plans to do more, so I look forward to seeing them.
amazing! I knew about K. Sheppard but I didn't know about Carmen in Cuba street. Have you heard about paddy the wanderer in Queen's wharf? if not: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paddy_the_Wanderer
ReplyDeleteWow, I didn't know about him - and I would have walked right by the memorial on my way to Te Papa yesterday. I'll have to go find it sometime soon. :) It's nice to live in a city with nice little things like that around.
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