I acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land on which I live and work, the Wangerriburra people, and their elders past, present and future.
Each year in July, NAIDOC Week is marked across Australia. This is an opportunity “to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples” (NAIDOC, n.d.), who have inhabited this continent for more that 60,000 years. To put that into perspective: “Aboriginal Australians have effectively been on their country as long as modern human populations have been outside of Africa” (Coper, Williams & Spooner, 2018).
The theme this year is Heal Country!, which recognises the importance of the land to the indigenous people of Australia:
Country is inherent to our identity.
It sustains our lives in every aspect – spiritually, physically, emotionally, socially, and culturally.
It is more than a place.
When we talk about Country it is spoken of like a person.
Country is family, kin, law, lore, ceremony, traditions, and language. For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples it has been this way since the dawn of time.
Through our languages and songs, we speak to Country; through our ceremonies and traditions we sing to – and celebrate Country – and Country speak to us.
Increasingly, we worry about Country.
As the oldest continuous culture on this planet, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people possess a depth of knowledge and wisdom around caring for Country. It is time to recognise and respect this. In Australia, we have experienced the effects of bushfires, droughts and deforestation and seen the desecration and destruction of sacred indigenous sites. We must allow the traditional custodians of the land to manage and be fully involved in taking care of Country. It is also about acknowledging the injustices that have occurred since the arrival of Europeans 250 years ago:
For generations we have repeatedly called for just recognition of our right to participate on an equal basis in economic and social terms.
Yet such participation cannot be successful unless, first, there is formal recognition that Indigenous people have been dispossessed and, second, definite, specific steps are taken to redress the grave social and economic disadvantage that followed that dispossession.
Only then can all Australians work together to heal Country.
The stunning artwork for this year’s poster was created by Maggie-Jean Douglas, a Gubbi Gubbi artist from South East Queensland. For more information about her and her work, please visit the NAIDOC website.
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