Commentary
Recently, efforts have been made to “cancel” figures linked to the European settlement of Australia.
Statues of Captain James Cook, who discovered and claimed the east coast of the continent in 1770, have been defaced. There has also been vitriol directed at the first governor of the colony of New South Wales, Captain Arthur Phillip, as the “invader” of Australia, even though he did his utmost to have friendly relations with the Indigenous populations and learn as much about their language and culture as possible. Indeed, on Phillip’s return to Britain in 1792, two Indigenous men, Bennelong (whose name is given to Bennelong Point in Sydney as well as a federal electorate) and Yemmerrawanne, accompanied him….