CHEERS TO…Councillor Marea Ruddy
Another proud moment for this Orange resident, following this weekend's installation of the She Matters mural at Southcourt on Saturday.
Only the second of its kind in Australia (the OG version is in iconic Hosier Lane, Melbourne), the She Matters mural project commemorates the 136 women killed since January 1st, 2024 and is based on Australian Femicide Watch Founder Sherele Moody’s She Matters instagram posts.
A special section of the mural has been dedicated to other Central West women lost to domestic violence, that Sherele could find record of prior to January 1st 2024.
Their names are: Kristy Armstrong, Thelma May Dresley, Kristy Scholes, Leteesha Nolan, an unnamed woman, Ethel May Wells, Vivienne Slessor, Janine Vaughan, Jessica Beth Small, Lauren Margaret Barry, Nicole Emma Collins, Yvonne Minter, Dearne Nonnenmacher and Rhonda Trainor.
I am beyond grateful that Orange has a leader like Councillor Marea Ruddy, who spearheaded the campaign to install the mural in Orange, and for her endless energy, empathy and compassion for the marginalised. Thank you to Orange City Council for their support of this initiative.
The installation is a permanent memorial and will be updated as required. I can't say that plainly enough - when another woman is killed, she will be added to the mural. The certainty of that statement is horrifying.
Next time you're in downtown Orange, please go to visit the mural. It is profoundly moving, very confronting, but extremely special.
This piece first appeared in Excessive Consumption - a weekly dispatch on culture, branding, politics and whatever other modern internet brain rot the algorithm has emotionally assigned me that week.
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