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28th Jan - 3rd Feb
FIRST ON THE STREET
No 735
LAKES WEEKLY BULLETIN
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26 IN 1 S ID
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ENQUIRIES@LWB.CO.NZ
Is Queenstown still the welcoming place it once was? For a community that can be so generous and considerate, it’s discouraging to see the plethora of comments on Queenstown Trading with veiled racism and xenophobia, after the last few week’s road accidents. As a second-generation immigrant to Canada, I grew up in the vast pool of multiculturalism that was the Greater Toronto Area. When I left, I had hoped to find a place that would make me feel just as welcome. Queenstown had been the answer for the last five years however recently, I’m not so sure. The negativity being hurled at “foreigners” on Facebook is disgusting, and it is disheartening to see the amount of support for some of these sentiments. When people leave comments such as “Tourists from 3rd world countries…”, “…Foreign F***tards” or “Another CHINESE OPERATED BUS” on a public Queenstown forum, I have no choice but to second guess who I thought my kind neighbours were. Has this place I’ve chosen to live not actually been all that accepting of me? Perhaps the praise I’ve given to friends and family about the kindness of Queenstown locals was a misjudgement. It should not be okay to share racially insensitive Youtube videos on a Queenstown community page in jest. What message does this send to those from other countries who have just recently settled here?
Destination Queenstown staff bid farewell to their CEO, and 13 year DQ stalwart, Graham Budd at a leaving party held at Yonder last Wednesday. (Photo: Jodi Walters)
On the post regarding last week’s bus incident, where is the concern for the 20 people injured? Had this been a bus full of locals, would the comments have read differently? Would we still be demanding to see the bus driver’s licence? Who counts as foreigners? I understand the frustrations towards the amount of accidents on the roads. I do not however, understand the shameful manner in which people have set out on a “us” vs “them” parade, making those from Asian decent living in Queenstown feel inferior and uncomfortable in a place that they have chosen live. Look around you. Queenstown is full of “foreigners” from all over the world. People come here with stories of their own, meet and discover new cultures, develop new ways of thinking, learn things, indulge in food, art and community. Plastering hate speech – and yes, I do refer to it as hate speech – all over a community forum does nothing but make people feel excluded and outcasted. It doesn’t matter that these comments are directed towards tourists. The words are there, the words are hurtful, and they speak volumes against the ethnicities in which they attack. A sad feeling to have after having been enamoured with a place I was so eager to call home. Christine Law - Local Resident
Justin ∙ justin@targ.co.nz
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