Reconciliation week events in Geelong May 2012

The Geelong Art Gallery will be hosting a children's art exhibition in collaboration with Geelong One Fire during Reconciliation week in May 2012. To stay in touch with reconciliation week events at the Gallery please follow this link:

• http://www.geelonggallery.org.au/education/current-programs

Geelong One Fire Reconciliation Group will host movie evenings every 2 months during 2012

Venue: Wathaurong Aboriginal Co-op
Lot 62 Morgan Street, North Geelong Victoria 3215
(please park outside the entrance, and follow the signs)
Time: 7.30pm on a Tuesday evening
Cost: donations appreciated: www.geelongonefire.org.au

All movies will include some discussion time afterwards.
Please let us know if you need help to get there: geelongonefire@gmail.com

• 20th March: Reincarnation of William Buckley – “the incredible story of William Buckley: the escaped convict who lived with Aboriginal people in Victoria for 32 years in the early 1800s, before Melbourne was established” (ABC1/December Films, 60mins)
• 15th May: Mad Bastards - “a beautifully measured take on violence and redemption … irresistible … a sublime soundtrack… a triumph in every sense.” (94 mins)
• 17th July: Bush Mechanics – “The adventures of a group of outback Aboriginal Musicians & their never ending car trouble. Bodgy(but effective) repairs save the day”(30mins)
• 18th September: Murunduk – (songs of freedom) is a feature documentary that journeys into the heart of Aboriginal protest music following The Black Arm Band (92 mins)
• 20th November & AGM: The First Australians – episode 3, focuses on the first Australians of Victoria and the lives of Simon Wonga and William Barak (60 mins)

Wathaurong & One Fire perspectives on Australia Day (Invasion Day) - a podcast

• Wathaurong and Invasion Day - a podcast on the Pulse Community Radio (Geelong). An interview with Uncle David Tournier (Wathaurong Co-operative) and Glenda Mac Naughton (One Fire Reconciliation Group). January 2012 is available for download at the following link: http://www.947thepulse.com/programs/roads-to-recovery.html

From the Pulse summary of the podcast:

This is a chat that goes all over the place about celebrations on the 26th January for Australians and talks of discrimination, lack of understanding, and our need for reconciliation. "Uncle" David Tournier and Professor Glenda MacNaughton are locals - David is heavily involved in educating our community about Indigenous Culture and History, and Glenda is on a steep learning curve to find out about where and what her birth area is all about, and how we can educate our young to accept their community. We also talk about her work with the Centre for Equity and Innovation in Early Childhood ? now - Equity and Childhood Program - as well as about the Geelong One Fire Reconciliation Group, whose aim is to foster and promote reconciliation in the region. Keep your eye out for the Geelong One Fire website (www.geelongonefire.org.au). The Wathaurong Co-op can be contacted at -  Lot 62 Morgan St.- Nth Geelong, 3215 or Ph.(03) 5277 0044 Wathaurong Health Centre is at 20a Forster St - Norlane 3214 - Ph: (03) 5277 2038 

Experiences & Thoughts from the 40th Tent Embassy event in Canberra, 2012

CoGG Bus - thanks to Councillor Eddy Kontelj

The opportunity to be part of the 40th Anniversary of such an historical event was a privilege.

The coming together of peoples from all over Australia displayed every ones intention to discuss the way forward for Aboriginal people and acknowledgement of their Culture.
I sincerely wish to extend my thanks to the organisers, volunteers, attendees, family and friends for a truly impressive show of support and true Australianism - where people look out for each other.

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26 January 2012 at the Tent Embassy in Canberra was a wonderful opportunity to be part of a group of people showing solidarity and commitment to the future of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders …. Australia’s First Nations Peoples. The Tent Embassy has long been a living protest and symbol of the struggle for Aboriginal Rights.

In the words of Gary Foley ‘Native Title is Not Land Rights, and Reconciliation is Not Justice’.

This 40 year continuous protest is about Aboriginal Sovereignty, about the ability for Aboriginal people to control their own affairs. Aboriginal Australia wants  an acknowledgement for a sovereignty that was never ceded.

This protest has seen an incredible amount of criticism of Indigenous Australians …. After reading many articles regarding the events of the day …. I was most distressed to read the comments by the ‘Average Aussie’ …. For those of you who are under the delusion that Australia is not a racist country …. Think again ….!!! Not many really wanted to know exactly what happened ….but were given to great opinions based on misinformation that came from the leaders of this country and their staff ….. and the ‘beat up’ media coverage that followed. The media coverage gave license to many of those hateful comments. For a long time, Australia's media has refused to provide a platform to Indigenous Australians, except those who, tell white Australia what they want to hear: ...that we're ‘doing our best to save the unsaveables, and that the demise of Aboriginal people is really their own fault’

This protest has shown white Australia that many Indigenous Australians are angry… who can be surprised ????

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Speaking to the mainstream media Mr Abbott inferred the Aboriginal Embassy is past it’s use-by-date.

A few hours later Mr Michael Anderson and his diplomatic aides visited Her majesty’s Opposition Leader in personaand delivered a clear reply:

Always Was!

Always Will Be!

Aboriginal Land!

The original cause of the establishment of the embassy 40 years ago – the creation of an alien people on their land through the seizure of natural inheritance of Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people by Captain Crook and the White Pirates, remains.

224 years on, the thorn of disputed sovereignty continues to sap the national soul.

It was a lesson learnt again on 26^th January 2012.

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It was a great honour to be part of the group from Geelong to celebrate the 40^th anniversary of the Aboriginal Embassy.

Community representatives from across Australia were present. We marched to Parliament House and then became part of the hundreds of people greeting each other and listening to speakers informing us of history since the formation of the Embassy in 1972.

Michael Anderson: the only surviving member of the four men who set the embassy up in 1972, spoke along with many other elders who have been part of the embassy activities over the 40 years. Ideas were shared for many aspects of the journey ahead, including sovereignty.

GOFRG members & friends at the grave of Willem Baa Ni Ip

Geelong One Fire Reconciliation Group members & friends met by the grave of Willem Baa Ni Ip (King Billy) at Western Cemetery in early December.

Ron Milligan talked movingly about what he has found out about the life and final years of Willem Baa Ni Ip (born 1836 – died 1885) and other Barrabool Tribe members, including the impact of settlement / squatters on their lives.

More information about Willem Baa Ni Ip will be available on a website which we plan to launch at Reconciliation Week in May 2012, with information and resources provided by Uncle David Tournier at the Wathaurong Aboriginal Co-op plus GOFRG member Ron Milligan and other people.

Geelong One Fire Reconciliation Group meetings 2012

All meetings in 2012 will be held at 7.30pm (except 27th May 2012). Watch this space for updates. 

• 21st Feb - Wathaurong Aboriginal Co-op (meeting)
• 20th March - Geelong Trades Hall (movie)
• 17th April
• 15th May
• 27th May - Reconciliation in the Park event
• 19th June
• 17th July
• 21st August
• 18th September
• 16th October
• 20th November

ANTaR Victoria - Join our conversation towards a Referendum in 2012The Government has announced plans for a Referendum in 2013, to give our First Peoples recognition and equality in the Constitution.
ANTaR Victoria is launching a campaign to bring people together for a conversation to move Australia forward. If you want to get involved in this campaign, email us c/o our website: http://www.antarvictoria.org.au
You can also email Geelong One Fire Reconciliation Group at geelongonefire@gmail.com to join local activities to support this plan.