Leeds women statue plans divide opinion
On International Women’s Day, the Yorkshire Evening Post yesterday backed the idea of Leeds West MP Rachel Reeves and Leeds City Council leader Judith Blake for a prominent artwork celebrating females to be installed.
The only statues of women in Leeds – apart from small plaques and stones – are of Queen Victoria in Woodhouse Moor, a series of nymphs around City Square and Henry Moore’s Reclining Woman: Elbow outside the Art Gallery.
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Hide AdAnd mixed responses to the plan – which would most likely be funded through donations – have been posted on our social media pages.
One person, commenting as ‘leodisjim’, said: “A great idea, Beryl Burton was a true sporting legend and should be commemorated properly in the city as should the Barnbow girls. Let’s get it organised.”
And Facebook user Victoria Wood said that double Olympic boxing champ Nicola Adams should be given a statue.
But reader Amy Green said: “I’d much rather we used the money to invest in women across the city.
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Hide Ad“Sex education, planned parenthood. Parenting classes for those at risk. Let’s use the money for something tangible.”
Notable women from the city include suffragette social reformer Mary Gawthorpe, novelist Barbara Taylor Bradford and late charity campaigner Jane Tomlinson.
The YEP is asking for your suggestions about which Leeds woman or women should be remembered with a work of art. Get in touch on Facebook or @LeedsNews on Twitter.