When the Camden council blocked the building of a Muslim school in the fringe of the town, it inspired one hate activist Kate McCulloch to say that the well known Camden pioneer of the wool industry John Macarthur, would have been proud of them.
Well, she was wrong as far as the Macarthur descendants are concerned. They wrote in the Sydney Morning Herald of 31 May, 2008 :
“In two places in Saturday's Herald, Kate McCulloch was quoted as saying "The Macarthurs will be proud of us" ("Am I the new Pauline Hanson? I hope so", May 31-June 1). We write as direct descendants of John and Elizabeth's daughter Mary Isabella.
No one can say what their reaction would have been. But we can say that they were first-generation Australians who sought to continue to honour their cultural heritage in a new place and valued education for their children.
We can't know what Elizabeth and John would have thought, but we do know that Mrs McCulloch's racism is not representative of our own views and we like to think it would not have been representative of the Macarthurs either.
Hugh Finlay and Kate, James, Georgina and Isabella Macneil Woy Woy”
Descendants of John Macarthur, we take our hats off to you all !
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
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