Elite school’s push to dump Batman name

AN elite Melbourne girls’ school will host a school-wide referendum on whether to change the name of one of its houses named after Melbourne founder John Batman.

From Friday, Melbourne Girls’ Grammar students in years 4 to 12, and all alumnae, will be invited to vote on whether to rename Batman House.

The results will then be announced on Monday.

It comes after school captains last year made a presentation to school council, questioning “whether in a contemporary 21st century setting, Batman was an appropriate name”.

According to a statement on the school’s website, students put forward the idea that “John Batman was not only the broker of the notorious Batman Treaty but a participant in the Tasmanian ‘Black Wars’, which culminated in the murder of more than 1000 Aboriginal people”.

“They also made the case that the other House names of Hensley and Taylor (our first principals), Mungo (after the original site of the School, St Mungo in Domain Rd, and Clarke (after Melbourne Archbishop, Lowther Clarke, responsible for promoting and funding Anglican girls’ education) were closely tied to the School. Batman by contrast, seemed the ‘odd man’ out,” the school’s statement said.

The move to change the name of the house has been welcomed by

Aboriginal Land Council of Tasmania chairman Michael Mansell (inset).

“This man was an absolute racist murderer,’’ he said.

“So good on the girls, it’s a wonderful gesture, it’s a very sound moral position they are taking and shows great leadership for future generations,” Mr Mansell said.

“It’s a pity the politicians in Tasmania didn’t heed their call and get rid of the name Batman Bridge.”

Calls to rename the bridge, in Launceston, saw the Launceston City Council pass a motion in April that the name was inappropriate for historical reasons.

On Monday, September 12, Melbourne Girls’ Grammar principal Dr Toni Meath sent a letter to students and parents saying: “I know these issues are sometimes more complex than they appear, particularly when dealing with historical legacy; however, student voice is a pillar of MGGS and the conversation has been continued within the student body.

“Scholars of representations of Australian History often refer to ‘moral moments’ that occur at different points in time, perhaps now is one of those,” she said.

Last year, Northcote High School also dumped John Batman’s name from one of its school houses.