Category Archives: Indigenous Affairs

NAIDOC Week celebrations 8-15 November 2020

Indigenous Affairs, NAIDOC Week,

The focus of this year’s NAIDOC Week is Australia’s identity as an ancient land occupied by the oldest cultures on earth. “Always was, always will be” is this year’s theme.

Events around the country will celebrate First Nations peoples’ history, culture and achievements, recognising that Indigenous Australians have occupied the continent for more than 65,000 years.

NAIDOC Week 2020 acknowledges that Australia’s story did not begin with European contact connected with the arrival of Captain James Cook and HM Bark Endeavour in 1770, nor with the arrival of the Dutch on the western coast of the Cape York Peninsula in in 1606.1

Continue reading NAIDOC Week celebrations 8-15 November 2020 →

NAIDOC Week – July 7 to 14, 2019

Indigenous Affairs,

The theme for this year’s NAIDOC Week is ‘Voice, Treaty, Truth’. Events based upon this theme will be held around the country from 7 to 14 July. The three elements of the theme refer to key reforms articulated in the Uluru Statement from the Heart.

According to National NAIDOC Co-Chair Pat Thompson, for generations Indigenous Australians have campaigned for their unique place in Australian history and society to be officially recognised. She says “(t)he 2017 Uluru Statement from the Heart built on generations of consultation and discussions among Indigenous people – we need to be the architects of our lives and futures.” Continue reading NAIDOC Week – July 7 to 14, 2019 →

Council’s response to proposal for Pemulwuy Cooks River Trail

Indigenous Affairs,
Map of proposed Pemulwuy Cooks River Trail

On 15 August 2018, the Cooks River Valley Association (CRVA) lodged a petition with Inner West Council that called for the establishment of a Pemulwuy Cooks River Trail.1

A letter, dated 2 November 2018, was issued by Council in response to CRVA’s petition. The letter noted that Council had engaged Tocomwall Aboriginal Consultancy “to undertake a critical investigation into the Gadigal and Wangal landscape” and that the “aim of this investigation is to build a wider and clearer understanding of the former landscape including the flora, the fauna, Aboriginal history, culture and heritage of the Inner West Local Government Area.”2 Continue reading Council’s response to proposal for Pemulwuy Cooks River Trail →

Pemulwuy Cooks River Trail Petition

Indigenous Affairs, , , , ,
‘Living by the River’ site in Warren Park

The Cooks River Valley Association (CRVA), with assistance from Gallipoli Centenary Peace Campaign (GCPC), has collected nearly 60 signatures on a petition that calls for the establishment of a Pemulwuy Cooks River Trail.

The signatures were mainly collected at two events that were held in Marrickville during April and May 2018.  These events were the Anzac Day Reflection held on April 25, 2018 in Richardson’s Lookout – Marrickville Peace Park and the National Sorry Day Walk along the Cooks River on May 26, 2018. Continue reading Pemulwuy Cooks River Trail Petition →

National Sorry Day Walk – 26th May 2018

Indigenous Affairs, , , ,
Jennifer Newman (Photo by Anand Lohorung)*

To observe National Sorry Day in Marrickville this year, the Cooks River Valley Association (CRVA), supported by the Gallipoli Centenary Peace Campaign, organised a walk along the Cooks River on Saturday May 26. The event attracted close to 40 people, including members of the Wiradjuri community from central NSW and a number of local Nepalese people.

This year’s Sorry Day Walk was led by Jennifer Newman (CRVA’s Vice-President and local Wiradjuri woman) and was divided into three stages. Continue reading National Sorry Day Walk – 26th May 2018 →

Consultation on an Appropriate Frontier War Memorial

Indigenous Affairs, ,
Prof. Lyndall Ryan – mapping frontier massacres

At its Ordinary Council Meeting on 13 February 2018, the Inner West Council adopted the following motion entitled ‘Mayoral Minute: Initiating Consultation about an Appropriate Frontier War Memorial’:

THAT:
1. Council consult with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Strategic Reference Group, the Metro Land Council and further representatives from the local community about the need, form and location of a Frontier War memorial;
2. A report be brought back to council outlin(ing) the results of this consultation; and
3. The report should draw from international examples and research. Continue reading Consultation on an Appropriate Frontier War Memorial →