An Auckland man with family links to a controversial pastor has pleaded guilty to vandalising an LGBT-themed pedestrian crossing in an iconic part of the CBD.
The crossing on Karanghape, colloquially known as K' Road, was painted over in whitewash on March 28, causing an uproar in the community.
“I mean, we want to be embracing our rainbow community. We want everyone in New Zealand to be able to be who they want to be in this country—and I’ve got no time for that at all,” Prime Minister Chris Luxon said.
Ford O’Connor, 31, a father of four, appeared in the Auckland District Court this morning on charges of intentionally damaging the crossing and agreed to pay $16,093 (US$9,577) for removing paint and repairing the crossing.
The offer of reparation led the magistrate to grant a discharge without conviction after his lawyer said the amount would be settled within a month.
Mr. O'Connor is married to eldest granddaughter of Destiny Church leader Brian Tamaki’s. Mr. Tamaki is a polarising figure in New Zealand who founded the Pentecostal Destiny Church, which has evolved into a wider political movement.
Mr. Tamaki’s charismatic preaching style and emphasis on prosperity theology have attracted a large following, but have also drawn criticism from some quarters.
One of Mr. Tamaki’s most controversial statements came in 2016 when he blamed the LGBT community, among others, for causing earthquakes in New Zealand. These comments sparked widespread condemnation and led to calls for Mr. Tamaki to be banned from speaking at public events.
He was vocally against the COVID mandates and was alleged by police to have held illegal protest rallies during the pandemic in the Auckland Domain.
Recently, he was vocal in his opposition to Drag Story Time, an initiative where drag performers read books to children in libraries, calling the scheme a “full-on assault on the innocence of our children.”
“Enough is Enough. We will no longer sit back and watch the transgender invasion into our public places and schools. It’s time to clean up and confront this scourge in our society, the scourge of transgender ideology,” Mr. Tamaki said.
A similar incident to the K' Road whitewash occurred in the east coast city of Gisborne in the leadup to a Drag Story Time performance on March 26 when Destiny Church members painted over a rainbow crossing in the city centre.
“We have blocked all the roads because we are not going to tolerate this anymore,” Gisborne’s Destiny Church leader Leighton Packer said.
He also called out Mayor Rehette Stoltz for agreeing to allow drag performers to “[come] here to read to our children.”
Despite the similarities in the two acts of vandalism, Mr. Tamaki said in the aftermath of the K' Road incident that he didn’t know who was responsible.
‘Overpromotion’ of LGBT
Mr. Tamaki, shrouded by around 50 of his flock, showed support outside court for Mr. O'Connor.“Today I stand alongside a young man, who is accused of wilful damage to the K' Road rainbow crossing ... Mr. O’Connor handed himself into the police last week and he was not arrested,” he said.
Mr. Tamaki then appeared to excuse Mr. O'Connor’s actions by saying he had taken a stand against what he perceives as an overpromotion of LGBT rights by the government.
“As I stated before, Mr. O’Connor undertook a political protest against the excessive rainbow washing that is occurring across New Zealand right now, at the expense of our taxpayers and our ratepayers,“ Mr. Tamaki said, before adding, ”The over-promotion and protection of this perversion is not right.”
Mr. Tamaki also took aim at immorality in the New Zealand school system.
Impact on the K' Road Community
In the 1960s, Karangahape Road became known for its association with the LGBTQ equality movement, with several gay bars and clubs opening in the area. That legacy has continued with its recognition as the hub of the LGBT community in Auckland.“It’s sad and bizarre some people are spending their energy suppressing simple symbols of the visibility and pride of our, my, rainbow community,” Auckland Central MP Chlöe Swarbrick told Newshub in the morning after the event.
“You can’t paint over our existence. Love always wins.”
Karangahape Road Business Association general manager James Holloway told RNZ that the crossing was a physical manifestation of the core of K' Road.
“Everyone is welcome; everyone should feel safe. It is a Turangawaewae for the rainbow community.. A little bit of shoddily applied white paint is not going to change that,” he said.
Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown called the act “disgraceful” and said he had “no time for intolerance of people’s differences, ” before adding the painting wanton vandalism.
“This is just another form of graffiti on other people’s property that we will need to spend money fixing—which I hate.”
