Little more than a month after they became law, Western Australia is reportedly set to scrap its controversial Indigenous cultural heritage laws.
Category: Aboriginal Culture
“It is racism killing our people – suicides born of racism” | The Stringer.
When a white Culture overlay has little or no empathy for indigenous cultural psychology. When a white cultural ego dominates a landscape of human emotions. Little recognition is given to minorities completely flattened by the impact of constant dominance and being at crossroads leaves nothing any longer taken for granted. Crossroads give birth to individual uncertainties in youth that can create existential despair and death welcoming.
Strange how politically useful politicians and the media find it to create that sense of emergency about terrorism , economic emergency, to create false realities for political ends. But how those same governments in doing so can totally ignore the real feelings of our indigenous and other minorities it’s citizens particularly their non voting youth and then simply write them off as if it’s their own cultural and psychological inadequacies.
It’s a case of who do you believe? I suggest the people who advocate there was nothing here but bush before the British arrived are profound liars. They appropriated or discarded everything that went before them and have created the myths that have dominated our psyches since but find hard to eradicate. The ghosts that remain and haunt not all of us but those at the crossroads particularly the youth of minority cultures the indigenous kids, the migrant kids that are told they should move on forget and assimilate to be worthwhile.The kids born of poverty sold a promise of equal opportunity who blame themselves when they realize the unachievable outcomes.
Have a look at this face we don’t need Scott Morrison to to feel globally ashamed. We’ve been towing back the boats of indigenous Australia since our arrival and blaming their their drownings on people smugglers we call their Culture.
Lookin Philinka’s eyes she’s better than you Bolt, Morrison, Abbott purveyors of the myth of hate for little more than cultural elite ego, and profit. I can’t speak from the personal experience suffered but I can empathize with the general condition you maintain. I can ask you Christian bastards to listen to all our Australian citizens black white or brindle on behalf our common humanity .
- Petitioning The Australian Government
Stop Deaths in Custody
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- Petition by
- Justice for Julieka
On August 4th, Julieka Dhu became another death in custody statistic to the Western Australia police and the Australian government. On that very same day, Julieka’s family and friends were devastated and very shocked- they had been told twice that she was doing ‘fine’ when she was very far from being ok. She was, in fact, grievously ill, she was wounded and she needed immediate help. She was twice cleared by Hedland Health Campus to be returned to police custody, even though an autopsy shows that at the time, she would have been suffering with a head injury, a possibly re-fractured rib, with bleeding in and around her lung. Witnesses have stated that she was begging for help but was dismissed as a ‘druggie’ and then a ‘mental case’.
Julieka was failed by the system. Nobody deserves to die like that, wounded, begging for help and being mocked and dismissed. All because she had around $1,000 in unpaid fines. This latest tragedy could easily have been prevented.
In 1987, the Hawke government set up the Royal commission into Indigenous deaths in custody, to help find out why Indigenous deaths in custody were so prevalent and to address how to stop it. When the commission handed down its findings, the Australian government lost it’s right to feign ignorance of the issue. The commission made over 300 recommendations to either eliminate or significantly reduce deaths in custody. Yet very few, if any were ever acted upon.
Twenty years of nothing while Indigenous Australians die in horrendous conditions, often for trifling offences, while under the DUTY OF CARE of police is unacceptable.
We are done waiting for the police, state or federal governments to decide that this needs to stop. We are demanding:
1. Timely coronial inquest into Ms Dhu’s death in custody
- Timely, regular and culturally competent communication to families
- Royal commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody
- No imprisonment as penalty for non-payment of fines and infringement
- 24hr legal advice custody notification and R U OK phone line
- 24hn medical coverage at watch house and on call medical assistance at lockups
- Independent public inquiry into systemic racism, sexism in the justice system
- Independent authority to investigate all custodial deaths
- New criminal offenses of corporate and custodial manslaughter
- Inspector of custodial services to oversee all lock ups in WA
- Build communities, not prisons
That is why, on Thursday, 23rd October, Australia will march, with a national ‘STOP DEATHS IN CUSTODY’ rally, held simultaneously throughout Geraldton, Perth, Adelaide, South Hedland, Sydney, and Melbourne. We will no longer allow the government and its agencies to ignore this issue. We will be heard!
Legitimate representatives of First People to meet at National Summit of Traditional Owners
They have declared that the Prime Ministerial Indigenous Advisory Council led by Bandjalung man Warren Mundine is not only an embarrassment to First People but it is an insult to suggest itself as an advisory body representative of the First People of this continent. According to these icons of the freedom and rights struggles, the Indigenous Advisory Council, now one-year-old, has abysmally failed First People.
The National Summit will be held in November with a call out to all the legitimate representatives of First People to attend. It is expected that from the Summit an Assembly of First People representatives will be formed. There will be a representative for each Country speaking to their issues and hopes. This Assembly will then head to Canberra in the anticipation that the Federal Government – the Prime Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Tony Abbott will meet with them.
“It will not be possible for Prime Minister Abbott to refuse to meet with the duly elected representatives of every Aboriginal region of this land. To reject meeting with an Assembly of all our people, of all the people of this land, would be an insulting slap to the face to all our people, past, present and future. It would be an unbelievable act of racism,”
said Mr Sansbury, chair of the Narrunga People.
“The Indigenous Advisory Council has only one option, and that is to resign. If they have any dignity left, they should resign immediately. It is one year in office and they have not delivered a single outcome for Aboriginal people anywhere in the nation.”
“If you want to remain credible in the eyes of Aboriginal people you take the bottom-up approach, you elect people from the communities to represent their people. You do not do this handpicked approach of ‘advisers’ as the Prime Minister has, picking people only who will say and do the Government’s bidding.”
“Government is now a threat to small communities. They are looking at closing them down, moving people on into other hardships. This has been disastrous thus far, creating many social problems.”
“This whole agenda of moving our people around is what has led to so many of the current problems, the poverty, the arrests, the suicides.”
These three seasoned stalwarts of the First Peoples rights struggle each have more than forty years of fighting for their people. Now, they are bringing together representatives from all over the continent. In my travels around the continent of late, as word spreads of what these gentlemen are doing there is a buzz and people saying this is the way it should have been all along. If the Assembly of First Peoples arises from the National Summit many already believe it will be significantly historic, hugely supported and more than likely arrive as the greatest challenge this Government will face “in having to at long-last at least deal with our people.”
The Prime Minister has made it clear that he favours a minimalist model on Indigenous recognition, but it would be a great shame if all that emerges from the referendum is a bland motherhood statement, writes Mungo MacCallum.
The Concerned Citizen:
22 Sep 2014 10:17:22am
I don’t normally endorse wishy-washy feel-good clauses, but in this case I will make an exception.
1- Indigenous Australians do have a unique relationship with this country- actually very similar to what Scotland, Wales, Ireland and England might have with the UK- and most certainly deserve recognition.
2- It would be another positive step for reconciliation
3- It would be another positive step AWAY from presumed acceptance of the NT intervention
4- To be blunt, it is also something that will likely get certain streaks of Australian who are more hostile to reconciliation (for whatever reason I suppose) to accept it without feeling attacked by it. Unfortunate, but a reality- and one that we can all work for further reconciliation when it is well received.
Well said.
Ten weeks dry: water is still a privilege, not a right, in Indigenous Australia
The Utopia homelands was once one of the healthiest Indigenous communities. Now it’s plagued by scabies because of water shortages. And that’s just the beginning
Email
Two weeks ago, reports emerged that the Utopia Homelands, a Northern Territory Indigenous community put in the spotlight by John Pilger’s recent film, was suffering acute water shortages after a bore at Amengernternenh collapsed during council maintenance works. The Urapuntja health service and several communities have had little to no access to water and sanitation for 10 whole weeks. Fifty kids have no drinking water at their school.
Australia is a wealthy country and the idea of entire communities not having proper access to clean water is unthinkable – even with the droughts we experience. That water is still considered to be a privilege and not a right for some Aboriginal communities speaks volumes about how little this country has progressed when it comes to addressing Indigenous disadvantage.
Why isn’t this apartheid being called out?
24 hours and talking has just begun Andrew Bolt is railing about talking. The man wishes he has an ear to the tent so he can direct what and how things can be discussed. Take a deep breath Bolt and hold it. We know you are fully informed about Aparthied. Talking starts somewhere lecturing goes nowhere. Listening is a skill you lack in spades.
Bolt is a Troll a lazy one at that he ran same blog on Noel Pearson last week. It was moronic then and is today. It was made up nonsense then and still is today. It was lies then and still is specious today.
Jackie Lambie represents an electorate not any Aboriginal community. Bolt speaks of her as if she is some representative. He gives her voice he gives her attention so he can knock her down. Bolt needs space a fatuous filler for his meaningless argument about parliamentary representation. . He is not only lazy but a danger he is constructing an argument about Noel Pearson, the constitution which is self-serving, narcissistic, racist bullshit.
Noel Pearson unlike Lambie does represent some Aboriginal communities not all but some, so he does have a legitimate voice. Nowhere does he argue what Bolt attributes to him, that a separate parliamentary voice is needed. Bolt is a liar, a coward protected in his Murdoch tower.
He and Pearson agree on the constitution. They agree that race is a non issue. Pearson isn’t asking for a separate parallel parliament nor any special place in the current parliamentary structure. Bolt is just needs us to believe it for his argument’s sake. He constructs the lies to knock them down and attributes them to Pearson. Bolt’s whole blog is a wank nothing to do with reality other than to say “look at me aren’t I a clever prick”
We live in a differentiated society. Representative associations act as advisers to the government on all sorts of matters ANIC ,AHA, IPA etc they lobby and advise the government ministers on all sorts of issues. To say we are a society of individuals alone with equal influence is crap. Newscorp is a lot more than just a bunch of individuals with varying opinions. Bolt is part of that corporate tribe.
Aboriginal people are a number groups (mobs)which have both common and separate interests 13 different clans are meeting the PM as we speak. Bolt always refers to them as one amorphous whole it suits his lazy simplistic argument. He does it with Islam and the left and any number of people. It’s taken over a year for these 13 clans to have this broken promised meeting with the Abbott who also happens to be their current minister and whose department is non functioning shambles at the moment. Warren Mundine is his Abbotts personal adviser on Aboriginal affairs one man. Mundine is not representative of Aborigines at all.
Pearson is Advocating an inclusive representative organization a body of Aboriginals to advice the minister. What Andrew Bolt is racist in that? He is not talking colour he is talking common and separate interests of varying communities both isolated and urban . Pearson is talking about representational and inclusive government isn’t that our current democratic system?. If Bolt suggests there is something nefarious in that he is self-serving scum whose running a polemic for polemics sake. This country is divided into interest groups political parties, womens groups etc etc etc the Abbott government listens to them through their representative organizations and notthrough a single adviser like Mundine or Noel Pearson. Gay groups, Right wing think tanks and even Newscorp have a voice. Tony Abbott has dinner with Murdoch because their friends, pigs arse. Singling out Noel Pearson and using him to run your inane specious argument is racist and a self-serving offering of crap. I bet you wouldn’t dare run this shit by Noel Pearson face to face Bolt only from the safety of your Murdoch tower. Ask him to talk to you on the Bolt Report in the studio you gutless media troll.
Multiculturalism is alive and well in the UK
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/aug/10/multiculturalism-uk-research
Shepparton, City of Harmony
BENDIGO Festival of Cultures
http://www.bendigofestivalofcultures.org.au/
HUMANITY DENIER ANDREW BOLT
Capitalism is an idealised concept that attempts to describe the way we behave economically and structure our lives. Some individuals break the rules commit crimes, sometimes in association with like-minded others. CBA financial planners, Wall st, etc. Mainstream media doesn’t cry “We were raped by Capitalism”. No we call them rogues, crooks, gangs & misfits.
Crime occurs in all communities of various description Communist,Democratic,Assimilated and Multicultural. Each has different approaches to policing and dealing with crime but crime occurs. Andrew Bolt is specifically opposed to multi-racial communities as they promote diversity as opposed to homogeneity and according to him encourage deviant behaviour. He believes in Assimilation. Rotherham this morning’s blog had a headline ‘Raped by Multiculturalism’ What went on was in Rotherham for Bolt is a direct consequence of Multiculturalism and the weakness of the Left, He has cherry picked to prove his retarded point.
Bolt doesn’t raise the issues of sexploitation of women on a large-scale such as by the Russian & Italian Mafia by white christian ‘civilized’ Europeans. He doesn’t examine sexploitation in Britain as a whole the scandals at the highest levels of Tory politics. That’s of no use to him. But a badly run orphanage in Rotherham suits him down to the ground. It’s not about lack of funds under staffing or just poor welfare support it’s a direct result of Multiculturalism.
Bolt shows us a bylaw indicating the word ‘Asian’ not to be used as an identifying term when talking about suspects of anything in Rotherham. However strikes me that bylaw supports everything Bolt claims to be an anti-racist, that colour and ethnicity are irrelevant when it comes to law and that’s why he proudly says ” I am not a racist.” He is however a hypocrite and totally two-faced. Bolt infers the leftist council in Rotherham were ‘sacrificing the young girls on the altar of ‘political correctness’ for not allowing suspects to be called ‘Asian’ or ‘Muslim’. Bolt the non racist agrees with the bylaw. Australia should not be differentiated by colour either. Colour does not exist.
There was an orphanage in Brighton some 50 + years ago a very conservative WASP suburb like Malvern where Bolt lives. It wasn’t a secret that young testosterone & alcohol fueled young men would come from all directions to scale the fence at night like tom cats to dally with those state wards in their dorms. Multiculturalism wasn’t an aspect of that suburb Mr Bolt. Lack of supervision and underfunding certainly was. The Brighton police were aware of it nobody was charged and it wasn’t just an urban myth. Multiculturalism wasn’t a driving force back then Mr Bolt. Doesn’t suit your argument does it Bolt.
Importing a cherry picked example is Bolt’s way of disproving any Multicultural Policy. One could argue that Rotherham is the exception that proves the rule and exceptions do exist. It’s far more persuasive than saying multicultural societies have a tendency to drive young men into illegal gang activity and in Bolt’s case Muslims.
One has to doubt somebody who denies any history prior to his birth in 1959 to try to win a point.On the Bolt Report the man said indigenous Australians today were not the first arrivals in this country therefore have no right to be mentioned in our constitution. He agrees with Tony Abbott that the defining moment in the history of this country was white settlement not invasion. The other 60,000 years is irrelevant. Therefore no mention of persons prior to settlement need be mentioned ‘Terra Nullis is ok. It seems to me that’s what the Rotherham bylaw is trying to achieve. There are no ‘Asians’ in Rotherham. But here Bolt want’s them named and shamed Pakis are Pakis , Muslims to boot and should be identified not protected by ‘political correctness’?He is a RACIST
Trying to understand Bolt’s ideas is like herding cats. He’s a one-eyed extreme conservative with a collection of arguments selectively picked to support a moral framework which he treats as some universal given . He is an elitist of the worst kind. The only reason Rotherham is of any use to him at the moment is to indulge in his favourite pastime of Muslim bashing.
Bolt doesn’t raise the issues of sexploitation of women on a larger and more brutal scale than Rotherham all by white christian Europeans. He never really says anything about the Italian & Russian Mafia or sexploitation in Britain in general. He doesn’t raise the scandals at the highest levels of Tory politicians, paedophilia ,rent boys & prostitution in Westminster these are of no use to him. But a badly run underfunded orphanage in Rotherham suits him down to the ground it’s in his cross hairs and suits his Labour vs Conservative debate in Britain. Bolts just copied and pasted it because he’s a lazy mother.
A YEAR AGO TONY ABBOTT PROMISED TO BE BACK IF HE WON THE ELECTION. BULLSHIT
BOLT BLAMES THE CULTURE NOT A HISTORY OF INTERVENTION BULLSHIT
HE SHOULD HAVE WATCHED Q&A LIVE
FROM GARMA
Noel Pearson,Nova Peris,KenWyatt, Djawa Yunupingu, Joe Morrison, & Dhanggal Gurruwiwi all Showed why
ANDREW BOLT IS AN ULTRA RACIST
Andrew Bolt is advocating cultural genocide of the Aboriginal peoples on his 1/8/14 blog.
He is the the rapist blaming his victim.
“We see this too often – that the blame for a general dysfunction in Aboriginal communities is put not on Aboriginal culture but non-Aborigines.
This is not merely false. It also encourages us to fix everything but the real problem.
The blunt truth is that the “stronger” the Aboriginal culture the poorer a community tends to be.”
What does he mean by ” the stronger the Aboriginal culture the poorer the community tends to be”?
Yes there are problems. Problems that date back to settlement. Alcohol, drugs, social engineering all have had an impact on fragmenting Aboriginal culture.
The Amish in the US are fragmenting as their youth are being seduced by influences outside sex, drugs, crime and disaffection is a problem for them as well. Does Bolt suggest Amish are weak I doubt it. Largely this arrogant Malvern spruiker addresses no specific issues offers no specific solutions other than get rid of Aboriginal Culture…Cultural Genocide
This reply by Sam put’s Bolt’s idiocy into perspective. Self interest financial personal gain are foreign values. 50 years ago Aboriginies were just fauna as far as our census was concerned. They had no vote. They had no land or right to equal wages ,yet they could go overseas fight & die for this country. Changes have been made and communities influenced. Where does Bolt get off blaming their culture?
Sam a reply to Bolt is worth reading.
“It is not the aboriginal culture but rather an imitated American gang style culture, fuelled by alcohol, drugs and a complete disrespect and ignorance of the historic aboriginal culture. I could show you hours upons hours of videos of disturbances, so disgraceful and appalling of men, women and children fighting in the streets, talking like gangsters on the streets of LA, all in clear view of small children. Make no mistake, the drug culture is not something just thrust upon these communities by outside influence but rather a entirely new under culture fuelled from within, supported by so called ‘elders’ within the communities for pure financial greed and when brought to account, out trots the cultural aspect card so distorted again, for pure personal greed. Thankfully in that time I saw a great many well respected leaders within the communities stand up to the disgusting behaviour and lead by example, talking down those who sought to erode their cultural beliefs for their own personal gain. All too often though, the activist types attached to various other departments made more noise, again to serve their own positions and self interests, overshadowing the good people in the community and warp the issues instead of tackling the problems that existed. Interestingly there was an identified 62 different community groups representing indigenous people in that one community, of which we saw very little to no interaction in that area. I will always take away something I was told by an elder one day, who stated, “We just want to be treated like everyone else, not special or different because we are aboriginal…”
Being Aboriginal is not an illness, nor Assimilation the cure. Communities have problems which need to be addressed and addressed as they are anywhere. Are the current drug issues in Melbourne significant of a total cultural change or lack of infra structure to tackle the issue? Crystal meth is an issue that cuts across all youth and cultures in Australia.Where does Bolt suggest we find an answer.
in Malvern?
olddogthoughts 
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