Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Sydney’s Iberoamerican Plaza and the Limits of Multiculturalism

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Mapping South-South Connections

Part of the book series: Studies of the Americas ((STAM))

  • 299 Accesses

Abstract

Since the 1970s, immigration has been one of the primary means of understanding connections between Australia and a variety of Latin American nations. However, when compared to the number of Asian migrants arriving in Australia in the same period, Latin Americans are often overlooked. Instead, they are contextualized as part of Australia’s turn toward multiculturalism that was first officially sanctioned by Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam. Using Sydney’s Iberoamerican Plaza as a case study, this chapter considers the conceptual limits to multicultural representation in late twentieth-century Australia. Specifically, the chapter demonstrates how the construction, maintenance, and legacy of the plaza were very much affected by a general lack of understanding among Sydney city officials about Latin American, Spanish, and Portuguese cultures and traditions (and the distinctions between them). It also demonstrates that attempting to include a large number of stakeholders as well as shifts in government policy often hampers multiculturalist efforts of this sort.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    Unless otherwise indicated, all photos are taken by the author.

  2. 2.

    Due to a number of efforts to standardize Portuguese spelling over the past two hundred years, there are a number of different ways to spell Fernandez de Quiros’ last name. The most popular of these is: Fernandes de Queirós. Since none of the documents in the City of Sydney Archival Files related to him use this spelling, however, I have chosen to leave it as it appears in those documents in this article.

  3. 3.

    The Spanish Empire relied on the expeditions of many non-Spanish explorers. For example, Christopher Columbus was from the Italian city-state of Genoa (Columbus 1990). The case of Fernandez de Quiros is a bit different. At the time of his 1606 expedition, Spain and Portugal were not separate nations. In fact, resulting from a Portuguese crisis of succession in 1578, the two countries were joined by Phillip II of Spain to form the Iberian Union. Portugal was officially under Spanish control until the Portuguese revolution in 1640 (Gallego 1986).

  4. 4.

    For additional studies of memorials and nationalism, see: Agulhon (1978), Anderson (1983), and Doss (2010).

  5. 5.

    For a very good discussion of assimilation as it applied to both Aboriginal and immigrant “ethnics” in Australia in between 1950 and 1970, see: Haebich (2007, pp. 9–10). This is also an argument advanced by (Thobani 2007) for Canada. See also Castles et al. (1992, p. 1). Though Australia has accepted more immigrants relative to the size of the existing population than any other country since the mid-twentieth century, the culture has remained fairly homogeneous and identifiably constructed to favour those who conform to the “Australian way of life.”

  6. 6.

    The White Australia Policy has been the subject of intense scholarly scrutiny since its inception. At its most basic, the phrase “white Australia policy” refers to the enactment of Australia’s Immigration Restriction Act in 1901 and the subsequent seven decades of strict limitation of non-white migrants. For more fulsome discussions of this policy, see: Affeldt (2014), Jayasuriya et al. (2003); Jupp and Kabala (1993), Tavan (2005), and Windschuttle (2004).

  7. 7.

    Ramos and Grassby may have been exaggerating the size of the Latin American population at the time. As of the 2006 Australian census, approximately 94,000 people claimed Latin American heritage throughout the whole country. However, it is possible that the 100,000 figure was meant to encompass all Iberian-connected communities (Australian Bureau of Statistics).

  8. 8.

    The park was founded in 1868 to honour the British prince during his first royal tour to Australia. That visit was notable in Australian history, as it included an assassination attempt on the prince’s life in the Clontarf Picnic Grounds. Out of embarrassment, city officials rushed to name a number of city spaces after the prince, such as the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, as recompense. For more information regarding the history of Prince Alfred Park, see: Cooke (1997), Prince Alfred Park (2013), and Redfern (1999).

  9. 9.

    The order of statues donated to the city is as follows: [1986–1988] Pedro Fernandez de Quiros (Spain), Benito Juarez (Mexico), José Gervasio Artigas (Uruguay), Simon Bolívar (Venezuela); [1989] Bernardo O’Higgins (Chile); [1990] Eugenio de Santa Cruz y Espejo (Ecuador); [1991] Antonio Nariño (Colombia), José Martí (Cuba); [1995] Prince Henry the Navigator (Portugal); José Rizal (Philippines); [2000] Miguel Grau Seminario (Peru); Juana Azurduy de Padilla (Bolivia); José de San Martin (Argentina).

  10. 10.

    It should be noted that, though the original contract only stipulated four statues, it also obligated the city to a permanent preservation order. Additionally, the first mention of a Filipino statue or bust being included in the plaza was 9 May 1992 at a ceremony that honoured the placement of a commemorative plaque representing the Philippines. Then ambassador Rora Navarro-Tolentino spoke at the event and stated that the plaque was a stand-in for the bust of José Rizal that would eventually be donated to the city (Ramos Albarracin 1993, pp. 91–93).

  11. 11.

    Even that number was somewhat conservative. Not including Spain, Portugal, or the Philippines, there are currently twenty-six nations or territories in Latin America that might be considered connected to the Iberian colonial legacy.

  12. 12.

    This report indicated that there had been efforts made to relocate the plaza’s statues to Parramatta. In fact, the report included correspondence with the president of the Australian National Council for the Commemoration of the Fifth Centenary of the Discovery of America, see p. 1.

  13. 13.

    It probably was this fact that ensured Bolivia’s contribution be accepted by the city. See Projects and Public Spaces Committee (1995, Attachment B, p. 5).

  14. 14.

    Al Grassby also wrote a letter to the council in the same vein, alluding to the fact that leaving the plaza in its current state might suggest preference for certain groups, see Projects and Public Spaces Committee (1995, Attachment C, p. 8). At this time, there still remains one additional statue that has been proposed by the Brazilian Consul General. There seems to be no current effort to follow up with this endeavour, see Cramer (2001, p. 2).

  15. 15.

    The Iberoamerican Consular Corps were comprised of representatives from the various Latin American consulates in Sydney at the time.

References

  • Affeldt, Stefanie. 2014. Consuming Whiteness: Australian Racism and the ‘White Sugar’ Campaign. Berlin: Lit.

    Google Scholar 

  • Agulhon, Maurice. 1978. Marianne into Battle: Republican Imagery and Symbolism in France, 1789–1880. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, Benedict. 1983. Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism. London: Verso.

    Google Scholar 

  • Attwood, Bain, and Andrew Markus. 2007. The 1967 Referendum: Race, Power and the Australian Constitution. Canberra: Aboriginal Studies Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • AustLit. 2010. Ramos, Victor, September 15. https://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/A10736.

  • Australian Bureau of Statistics. 2006. Community Profiles. http://www.abs.gov.au/websitedbs/censushome.nsf/home/cowsredirect.

  • Bennett, Tony. 2004. Pasts Beyond Memories: Evolution, Museums, Colonialism. New York: Routledge.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Bennett, Tony. 2013. Making Culture, Changing Society. New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bennett, Tony, et al. (eds.). 1992. Celebrating the Nation: A Critical Study of Australia’s Bicentenary. Sydney: Allen & Unwin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bingham, Jeremy. 1989. Address by the Right Honourable Lord Mayor of Sydney, Alderman Jeremy Bingham, Official Opening of the Ibero-American Plaza, January 4. CSAF L01-00049.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brasch, Nicolas. 2009. Australia’s Immigration Policy: 1788–2009. Sydney: Pearson Heinemann Library.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bulbek, Chilla. 1988. The Stone Laurel: Of Race, Gender and Class in Australian Memorials. Nathan: Institute for Cultural Policy Studies, Division of Humanities, Griffith University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bulbek, Chilla. 1992. Women of Substance: The Depiction of Women in Australian Monuments. Hecate 18 (2): 8.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carter, L.P. 1989. Letter to Bob Gallagher, May 8. CSAF L01/00032.

    Google Scholar 

  • Castles, Stephen, et al. 1992. Mistaken Identity: Multiculturalism and the Demise of Nationalism in Australia. Sydney: Pluto Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chalmers Street Proposed Plaza. n.d. CSAF L01/00032.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chesterman, John, and Brian Galligan. 1997. Citizens Without Rights: Aborigines and Australian Citizenship. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Columbus, Christopher. 1990. Journals and Other Documents on the Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus, trans. Samuel Eliot Morison and Lima de Freitas. Norwalk: Heritage Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cooke, Anne. 1997. Heritage Study: Prince Alfred Park.

    Google Scholar 

  • Costa Pereira, José. 1994. Letter to Mayor Frank Sartor, December 6. CSAF P02-00270.

    Google Scholar 

  • Couacaud, Sally. 1993. Ibero-American Plaza and Visit of Corazon Aquino, June 17. CSAF P02-00270.

    Google Scholar 

  • Coulton, Dixie. 2003. Unveiling Address, June 7. CSAF S024414.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cramer, Michelle. 2001. Ibero American Plaza Status, June 8. CSAF S016649.

    Google Scholar 

  • Deed of Agreement. 1989, January 31. CSAF L01/00032.

    Google Scholar 

  • Doss, Erika. 2010. Memorial Mania: Public Feeling in America. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Dupont, Louis, and Nathalie Lemarchand. 2001. Official Multiculturalism in Canada: Between Virtue and Politics. In Global Multiculturalism: Comparative Perspectives on Ethnicity, Race, and Nation, ed. Grant H. Cornwell and Eve Walsh Stoddard, 309–336. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.

    Google Scholar 

  • Elder, Catriona. 2007. Being Australian: Narratives of National Identity. Crows Nest: Allen & Unwin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fleras, Augie. 2009. The Politics of Multiculturalism: Multicultural Governance in Comparative Perspective. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Gallego, José Andrés. 1986. Historia general de España y América. VIII, La crisis de la hegemonía española: siglo XVII. Madrid: Rialp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gibson, T.G. 1992. Minute Paper—Iberoamericana Plaza, July 21. CSAF S000996.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gibson, Lisanne, and Joanna Besley. 2004. Monumental Queensland: Signposts on a Cultural Landscape. St. Lucia: University of Queensland Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Haebich, Anna. 2007. Spinning the Dream: Assimilation in Australia. North Fremantle: Fremantle Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hage, Ghassan. 2000. White Nation: Fantasies of White Supremacy in a Multicultural Society. New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hearn, Mark. 2007. Cultivating an Australian Sentiment: John Christian Watson’s Narrative of White Nationalism. National Identities 9 (4): 351–368.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hite, Katherine. 2011. Politics and the Art of Commemoration: Memorials to Struggle in Latin America and Spain. New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jayasuriya, Laksiri, et al. (eds.). 2003. Legacies of White Australia: Race, Culture, and Nation. Crawley: University of Western Australia Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jupp, James. 1996. Understanding Australian Multiculturalism. Canberra: Australian Government Publication Service.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jupp, James, and Marie Kabala. 1993. The Politics of Australian Immigration. Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service.

    Google Scholar 

  • Keating, Christopher. 2008. Surry Hills: The City’s Backyard. Sydney: Halstead.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leece, Brigette. 2002. Ibero American Plaza—Recurring Vandalism of Simon Bolivar Bust, November 29. CSAF S016649.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lochhead, Helen. 1993. Ibero-American Plaza, May 19. CSAF P02-00270.

    Google Scholar 

  • MacCallum, Mungo. 2005. The Colourful Multiculturalist. Sydney Morning Herald, April 28. https://www.smh.com.au/news/Obituaries/The-colourful-multiculturalist/2005/04/27/1114462097014.html.

  • Mansouri, Fethi, and Michele Lobo. 2011. Migration, Citizenship and Intercultural Relations: Looking Through the Lens of Social Inclusion. Burlington: Ashgate.

    Google Scholar 

  • McCarthy, Louella, and Paul Ashton (eds.). 1994. Sydney Open Museum History Survey. Sydney: Living City/Sydney City Council.

    Google Scholar 

  • McGrath, Ann. 1993. Beneath the Skin: Australian Citizenship, Rights and Aboriginal Women. Journal of Australian Studies 17 (37): 99–114.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mellor, Bill. 1989. The Back Page. Sydney Morning Herald, January 29.

    Google Scholar 

  • Minute Paper. 1987. Prince Alfred Park, March 23. CSAF L01/00032.

    Google Scholar 

  • Minute Paper. 1988. Australian/Hispano American Plaza—Proposed Establishment, August 4. CSAF L01/00032.

    Google Scholar 

  • Morote, Ricardo. 1999. Letter to Frank Sartor, April 13. CSAF S000996.

    Google Scholar 

  • Neal, Eric. 1988. Minute Paper—Gift of Sculptures by Republics of Uruguay, Venezuela and Mexico, September 27. CSAF L01/00032.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ortiz, Gonzalo. 1998. Letter to Bill Tsakalos, December 11. CSAF S000996.

    Google Scholar 

  • Presentation. 1999, January 28. CSAF S000996.

    Google Scholar 

  • Price, J., and J. Hutchison. 1989. Council of the City of South Sydney—Expenditure Certification, May 19. CSAF L01/00032.

    Google Scholar 

  • Prince Alfred Park. 2013. http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/learn/sydneys-history/people-and-places/park-histories/prince-alfred-park.

  • Projects and Public Spaces Committee. 1995, March 27. CSAF P02-00270.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ramos-Albarracin, Victor. 1988. Letter to L.P. Carter, May 18. CSAF L01/00032.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ramos-Albarracin, Victor. 1989. Iberoamerican Plaza. Sydney.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ramos Albarracin, Victor. 1993. Plaza Iberoamericana: History of the Project. Sydney: Sydney City Library’s Reference and Local History Departments.

    Google Scholar 

  • Redfern, John. 1999. Prince Alfred Park. History 61 (September).

    Google Scholar 

  • Rodriguez Riestra, Eva. 1999. Iberoamerican Plaza, August 24. CSAF S000996.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tavan, Gwenda. 2005. The Long, Slow Death of White Australia. Melbourne: Scribe Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thobani, Sunera. 2007. Exalted Subjects: Studies in the Making of Race and Nation in Canada. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tsakalos, Bill. 1999a. Iberoamerican Plaza, April 15. CSAF S000996.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tsakalos, Bill. 1999b. Iberoamerican Plaza, April 28. CSAF S000996.

    Google Scholar 

  • Viegas Carrascalao, Joao. 1994. Letter to Al Grasby, April 19. CSAF P02-00270.

    Google Scholar 

  • Windschuttle, Keith. 2004. The White Australia Policy. Sydney: Macleay Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Young, James E. (ed.). 1994. The Art of Memory: Holocaust Memorials in History. New York: Jewish Museum with Prestel-Verlag.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank Warwick Anderson, Miranda Johnson, Ben Silverstein, and Robert Aldrich for giving feedback on earlier versions of this article. The Australian Research Council Laureate Fellowship “Race and Ethnicity in the Global South” supported research for this article. I also received support from the European Research Council Project “The Colour of Labour” 695573, PI: Cristiana Bastos.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Washington State University, Pullman, WA, USA

    Sarah Walsh

Authors
  1. Sarah Walsh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sarah Walsh .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Spanish and Latin American Studies, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    Fernanda Peñaloza

  2. Washington State University, Pullman, USA

    Sarah Walsh

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2019 The Author(s)

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Walsh, S. (2019). Sydney’s Iberoamerican Plaza and the Limits of Multiculturalism. In: Peñaloza, F., Walsh, S. (eds) Mapping South-South Connections. Studies of the Americas. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-78577-6_8

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation