‘Tears’ quote the best of the year
A statement of defiance levelled at the Christchurch terrorist has topped a poll as the best quote of the year.
‘‘Let it be known these tears are not for you,’’ were the poignant words spoken by Sara Qasem at the sentencing of the mosque gunman in August. Her father, Abdelfattah Qasem, had been killed at the Al Noor mosque on March 15 last year. Qasem told the terrorist to remember her father’s name.
The top quote is decided by public vote, with Qasem’s words attracting 26.5 per cent of the 2479 votes cast.
Massey speech writing specialist Heather Kavan said the result was not surprising, given
New Zealanders’ solidarity with the victims of the mosque attacks.
She said the courtroom footage of the sentencing was intense.
‘‘As Ms Qasem gets to the part in her speech about how she misses the smell of her father’s cologne, her eyes well with tears. She pauses mid-sentence to regain her composure, turns directly to him in the dock and says, ‘Let it be known these tears are not for you’, before resuming her speech.
Qasem said she was stunned that her words won the competition. ‘‘I feel honoured that my words have left an impact on someone out there, and that they were able to sympathise and resonate through their compassion and humanity. This statement was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done.’’
This year’s runner-up, with
22.2 per cent of the vote, was Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield’s announcement that there were no new cases of Covid19 in New Zealand. Bloomfield made this announcement, with slight variations in wording, several times at press conferences throughout the year.
The common lament of ‘‘you’re on mute’’, Hilary Barry calling cannabis ‘‘jazz cabbage’’, and the orange-fronted parakeet’s Bird of the Year campaign slogan ‘‘I am the orange face you can trust’’ placed third, fourth and fifth, respectively.