First James Cook, now the Queen’s corgi statues have fallen victim to vandalism.
Around the world, statues connected to colonialism have been debated, defaced and disassembled in recent weeks.
Now one of Elizabeth II’s three Corgis statues in Ōtautahi, Christchurch, has also been graffitied with blue spray paint.
The bronze corgis, originally installed in 2003, were a celebration of the Queen’s Golden Jubilee.
Planted firmly outside C1 Espresso, manager Manaia Feather says they’ve become a conversation starter with customers.
“I guess it's hard to not talk about it, because it's such a powerful movement at the moment.”
Last week, 1 NEWS reported that the statue of James Cook in Ōtautahi, Christchurch, had been vandalised over Queen’s Birthday weekend with blue spray paint, when hundreds attended a Black Lives Matter march in the city centre.
And it’s not just customers - C1 employees are also sharing their views about the situation at home and abroad.
According to Ms Feather, the Black Lives Matter movement “hit different, because we understand what's happening - obviously we haven't had it as bad [as the United States]… we've also had a history that I wouldn't say we should be proud of.”
Another C1 Espresso employee said customers had called Christchurch City Council to report the tagging, but a spokesperson told 1 NEWS the council is unaware of the vandalism.
“We are naturally concerned for any vandalism to council property.”
It’s understood the word “Gloom” was spray-painted on to the Corgi on Sunday, a word the council says it hasn’t seen tagged elsewhere.
Last week, the council said it hadn’t had any formal complaints about statues in the city and it isn’t considering any removals.
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