The man standing above the entrance to the tram tunnel is not a politician, a general, or a saint. He's Harry. Haagse Harry. Round belly, mullet, white tracksuit, sneakers, and an expression that says he has absolutely nowhere to be and no intention of changing that.
Harry was born in the imagination of cartoonist Marnix Rueb, who lived in the lively Schilderswijk neighborhood and spent years observing the people around him with warmth and wit. His Harry became the ultimate Hagenees: unemployed, opinionated, and brilliantly funny in a thick local dialect that you had to read aloud to fully understand. Over five albums, Rueb captured something true about this city and the people who call it home.
Rueb passed away from lung cancer in 2014. The city awarded him its cultural prize the following year, and shortly after, this statue was unveiled. Designed by Bouke Schuemie and sculpted by Rob Daenen, it was placed right here above the tram tunnel, which Harry had mocked in the comics for years because of its enormous cost.
His T-shirt reads "kap nâh!! Lekkâh belangrèk," which roughly translates as "cut it out, big deal."
Sources. Story: Haagse Harry Photos: Source photo: 1. 1Veertje, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons 2. Marnix Rueb, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons 3. Vera de Kok, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
