I am appalled but not shocked by a recent petition by a group of fellow Tauragians who started a petition to stop the rainbow crossing on Devonport St over the ‘cost’.

I mean, come on! Does an extra couple of cans of paint really ‘cost’ that much more, or is something else at play? Maybe these people prefer to have drab and dull city centres rather than colourful and vibrant ones.

People might shout my letter down as ‘woke’, but it merely points out that colourful crosswalks hurt no one and allow our city to move into the 21st Century, not one stuck in the past.

Furthermore, looking around our CBD, there seems to be very little friendliness towards the rainbow community, who need I remind you had their building at the Historic Village burnt down. It was a shocking act that should have required much more introspection in our community.

This community is as Kiwi as the All Blacks, mince and cheese pies and getting stuck in terrible traffic during the summer holidays. In other words, they are us, and we are them.

I would like to see MPs of all stripes, National, Labour, Green and NZ First, stand up for this rainbow crossing and not shrink away from their duties to protect and encourage the growth of all Kiwis. Not just their voter base.

Trevor Fry, Tauranga City.