Change the nation

Racists pretending to be Aboriginal online is not a new phenomenon, with the basic idea being to increase hatred against Aboriginal people by validating white supremacist rhetoric and conspiracy theories.

In the absence of government leadership, our grieving families and communities are leading the way to change the nation.

I can’t help but find hope in the history of this land. It has seen destruction before. And survived. Over and over again. First Nations people have watched this land change, over tens of thousands of years. And they have adapted with it, both genetically and culturally.

The truth is, that after all of the pain that the colonisers have caused, while we are led to believe that the book on Australia’s colonisation is complete, is actually still wide open, with plenty of blank pages to be filled in.

It is evident that Australia has no shortage of black expertise and leaders. What Australia does lack is the ability to centre these voices and leaders where we need them the most; in our policies, education, health and legal systems. Changing the date will not achieve anything while the nation itself is what needs to change.

Indigenous methods have always cared for country but the disruption of this has put us on the brink of ecological disaster. Jamie Graham-Blair discusses.

Neil Morris explains why he started a campaign to help Indigenous peoples displaced by the fires ravaging Australia.

Almost certainly there are more important issues effecting Indigenous people than the celebrations on January 26 but that is entirely not the point.

The 26th of January is indeed a historic day of significance for the Australian community. The events that took place on that day helped shape modern Australia and continue to have a profound impact of the lives of millions.

The onus is no longer on Indigenous Australia. We are awake, we are alive, we are still here.

We offer others a chance to learn from the wisdom we have developed over millennia and the lessons we have suffered through for over two centuries.

It is customary amongst Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to introduce oneself by identifying their family and country.

Despite what our name suggests, the Wild Black Women welcome in the new year with the same optimism of Karen from HR extolling her ‘new year new me’ resolutions.

January 26 represents the day colonisation took root on Koori lands.

This country loves listening to the didgeridoo while we dance for them, it enjoys hanging our dot paintings down their hallways and in their boardrooms, and they feel so humbled to allow us the honour of Welcoming them to our Countries, but there is a quick and sudden line drawn in the sand of what will be tolerated when we decide to utilise a voice we have earned, and fought hard for, to question the country they believe we should be so grateful for.

We cannot mature as a country if we do not acknowledge this damage and the responsibility of the nation to implement reform that encompasses restitution.

An Aboriginal flag engulfs a large stone, twine securing it in place, that lays beneath a fishing pontoon, at the bottom of the sea.

When reflecting on my time working in Indigenous affairs, my good memories are often trumped with the bad.