When I heard the word that Wallum supporters would march dressed as zombies from Brunswick Heads sports field to Wallum to protest about zombie developments on Easter Monday, I was immediately into it.
As an older person much of the work necessary to Save Wallum is beyond me but this was something I could do. And I thought it very appropriate that zombies fight zombies.
I turned up early and found I was the only person there, an object of suspicion for joggers and dog walkers. My face, neck, shoulders and arms were covered with zombie-looking zinc cream and unfortunately some of that it had come off on my car leaving it a permanent memorial of zombie-ism.
Then other - smarter - people turned up with face-paints. Then more and more zombies arrived. The event was organised at the last minute as we had a chance to involve retiring Greens Senator Janet Rice, a fellow tree lover.
Before long we had a respectable 20 to 30 people. Not bad, I thought, for an Easter weekend when many people were away. But I hadn’t counted on the keenness of locals to Save Wallum. Zombies suddenly appeared from all directions, literally hundreds of them.
In our rags, with dribbles of blood on our cadaver faces, we took off for Wallum, first crossing the sport fields then marching – or lurching - into the residential area of Bayside.
I had wondered how the quiet neighbourhood would receive us as we chanted, loud enough to wake the dead, “Save Wallum” but I needn’t have worried. People came out of houses to cheer us on, smile, wave and take photos.
For me, being part of a long line of zombies was a great experience and I think it is a very visual and valid way to draw attention to the zombie nature of the planned development. The planning and assessment for Wallum Estate is out of date and should stay dead.
But if it doesn’t stay dead, we will rise up and there will be more zombie marches to draw attention to how dodgy the planning laws are and I encourage anyone and everyone to come along to be seen and heard.
And as Greens State MP Susan Higginson said at the conclusion of the march, “You are literally holding a front line between extinction and survival.... We must stand strong together. You are mighty powerful. You are the frontline. You are even bigger than this magic place, Wallum, and together we are going to win this.”