Traditional Owners Rename A Melbourne Council To Detach From Its Racist History

The Moreland City Council in Melbourne’s inner north will change its name after a resident pushed to distance the community from the slavery links of its name.

Moreland — which encompasses the suburbs of Brunswick, Coburg, Fawkner, Glenroy and Pascoe Vale — was first declared in 1839 by land speculator Farquhar McCrae, who named the area after a Jamaican slave plantation run by his father. When the council was officially recognised by the state government in 1994, Farquhar’s name stuck.

However, residents have since complained of the “racist and offensive” nature of the name, with only six percent of people voting not to support a name change. It’s also worth noting that the council — and its name — has only existed officially for 28 years, so the community is not deeply connected to the name.

According to Moreland Mayor Mark Riley, the name-changing project has received an overwhelming amount of support from the community, who are keen to distance themselves from the name.

“We believe this is the most engagement we’ve ever had on a council project,” Riley told the ABC, noting that 6,315 residents supported the push. “Changing our corporate name is an important step in our reconciliation and healing journey with the traditional owners of this land.”

In an interview with the ABC earlier this year, Riley noted that the name change is part of an ongoing reconciliation plan with the land’s traditional owners — the Wurundjeri Woi-Wurrung people.

“The name of a city is of fairly important significance and symbolism to the city and if it’s excluding somebody, why would you want to keep it?” he said. “It all stems from that commitment that we have to the Wurundjeri Woi-Wurrung to take action and really implement change.”

Local elder Uncle Tony Garvey said the gesture is meaningful and a step in the right direction.

“It means a lot, the Moreland City Council has always been very supportive of the Wurundjeri people,” he told the ABC. “It’s a step forward not just for our community but Indigenous people Australia-wide and everyone as a whole going forward as one.”

Three potential names were put forward by the Aboriginal Heritage Council for residents to choose from: Merri-bek (meaning “rocky country”), Jerrang (meaning “leaf of tree”) and Wa-dam-buk (meaning “renew”).

Ultimately, more than 3,700 people (59 percent) voted for Merri-bek, which will now be put forward for official consideration at a special council meeting this Sunday.

After receiving local approval, the name will need to be approved by a few more levels of government before it can officially be rolled out, but Riley is convinced a name change will end up happening.

The roll-out of a new name is expected to cost $500,000 over the next two years, which will largely be spent on changing the name printed on infrastructure around the council area. But this is a small price to pay to be able to distance the community from its slavery roots.

Moreland City Council did not consult ratepayers on whether the name should be changed, rather, it simply gave them the option to vote on a new name.