In this special NACCHO Sorry Day and National Reconciliation Edition

1.NACCHO Chair Press Release

2.National Sorry Day : School resources

3.Sorry Day Bridge Walk Canberra

4.National Reconciliation Week : Download the Guide

5. NRL and AFL  Indigenous Round will see moving ceremonies and grand sentiments — and then what?

6. The Long Walk : Racism #DreamtimeatheG

“National Sorry Day and Reconciliation week remind us that Australia’s colonial past has resulted in different outcomes for different people. Our shared story of Australia needs to be grounded in truth so that we can cultivate positive race relations and work to make our country stronger, together

As a nation we must continue to speak about our history as a way to understand and heal deep wounds suffered as a result of our colonial past which laid the groundwork for decades of harmful policies directed at Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

We must continue to work together as a community, and indeed, as a country, to support the health and well-being of those from the Stolen Generations who are still recovering from loss of family, loss of culture and loss of life.

Truth-telling is a difficult yet courageous act. The journey of reconciliation takes time but every step forward creates a more solid foundation for our country to walk together, hand in hand, towards a hopeful future.”

Acting Chair of NACCHO, Ms Donnella Mills.

The National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO) encourages all Australians to take time to engage in conversations about our shared histories, cultures and achievements and reflect on the ways we can support reconciliation in Australia

Download Read in full NACCHO Chair Press Release

2.National Sorry Day : School resources

Sorry Day (26 May) is a time to remember the past policies of forced child removal, and reflect on the sad and painful stories of the Stolen Generations.

It is a time to recognise the resilience of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the power of saying Sorry.

Did you know?

•  The first Sorry Day was held on 26 May 1998—exactly one year after the Bringing Them Home Report was presented to the Parliament.
•  The Bringing Them Home Report was the result of an inquiry into the removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families, and recommends both an apology to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and reparations.
•  The term “Stolen Generations” refers to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians who were forcibly removed as children from their families by government, welfare, or church authorities, and placed into institutional care or with non-Indigenous foster families.
•  The forced removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children began as early as the mid-1800s and continued until the 1970s.

The Healing Foundation’s Stolen Generations Resource Kit for Teachers and Students has been created to educate young people about the Stolen Generations.

It makes it easy for school communities to start the conversation and inform classroom discussions using facts, real examples and stories.

Cultural consultation and guidance from Stolen Generations members has been an essential part of this project. The Healing Foundation has also worked closely with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous teachers, parents, early childhood specialists and curriculum writers.

This teaching resource has been developed to introduce students from Foundation to Year 9 to the firsthand experiences of Stolen Generations members. While the policies and suffering of the Stolen Generations is only one part of the ongoing story of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, it is an essential one to learn and to teach so students have a full understanding of the history of Australia.

Cultural consultation and guidance from Stolen Generations members has been an essential part of creating this project.

We would like to acknowledge the Healing Foundation’s Stolen Generations Reference Group members who guided the development of this project.

DOWNLOAD THE OVERVIEW

3.Sorry Day Bridge Walk Canberra

Our NACCHO , Winnunga ACCHO and Reconciliation Australia staff joined thousand of marchers on 24 May : The walk each year is organised by Julie Tongs CEO Winnunga

4.National Reconciliation Week : Download the Guide

Our purpose is to inspire and enable all Australians to contribute to the reconciliation of the nation.

Our vision is for a just, equitable and reconciled Australia.

Reconciliation Australia was established in 2001 and is the lead body for reconciliation in the nation. We are an independent not-for-profit organisation that promotes and facilitates reconciliation by building relationships, respect and trust between the wider Australian community and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Our vision of national reconciliation is based on five critical dimensions: race relations, equality and equity, institutional integrity, unity and historical acceptance. These five dimensions do not exist in isolation; they are inter-related and Australia can only achieve full reconciliation if we progress in all five Case Studies

 Download the 22 Page Reconciliation 2019 Guide

ra-nrw-2019-guide_v8

5. AFL, NRL Indigenous Round will see moving ceremonies and grand sentiments — and then what?

Over the weekend, both the AFL and NRL celebrated the vast contribution of Indigenous players who provide welcome visibility and wonderful role models for a people too easily overlooked and forgotten.

First published Here on ABC News

There was colourful jerseys,

moving ceremonies, the soothing drone of the didgeridoo and grand sentiments about how much the first Australians have given to the game.

The sights and sounds of 40,000 years of Indigenous culture was symbolised at football grounds across the country before vast audiences and then… what?

The answer lies in whether the AFL and NRL see Indigenous Round as an opportunity to go beyond the comfortable symbolism of inclusion and use the occasion to express support for more direct action and even controversial causes on behalf of their players.

Or whether they are merely appropriating Indigenous culture for yet another orgy of feel-good celebration that does more to advance the corporate interests of Australia’s most predominant football codes than those it purports to honour.

There are many who will argue that it is possible for Indigenous Rounds to be both a powerful celebration of Indigenous culture and politics-free; that unity rather than confrontation will help “bring more Australians along for the ride” on contentious issues such as granting treaty and a voice to Parliament.

The investment of the Indigenous players who design guernseys and choreograph celebrations demonstrate they have now appropriated their own round and are using it to drive their personal messages.

But having created such a powerful platform around Indigenous culture, surely we are also entitled to ask the AFL and NRL where they stand on the really big issues confronting Indigenous Australians.

Same-sex marriage is just one recent example of an issue on which both the AFL and NRL took sides on behalf of their playing groups.

Although, as the non-binding postal ballot proved, they were surfing a wave of public support, not entering the more turbulent political waters of Indigenous affairs.

For the AFL, this Indigenous Round has proven particularly problematic because of the imminent release of The Final Quarter — a reportedly confronting documentary about the treatment of Adam Goodes in the bitter finals seasons, marred by racist jeering.

Typically, AFL officials have been heavily briefed and are “on message” about the documentary. Mea culpas have been issued and we’ve-learned-from-this statements released even before next week’s media preview.

Indeed such are the depths of the AFL’s official contrition you could be forgiven for thinking the league executives, Collingwood president Eddie McGuire and other heavyweights, are delighted to have been cast in the most unflattering terms because it will help “show how much we’ve grown as a competition”.

Of course, the AFL’s craven failure to acknowledge and respond to the racist element of Goodes’s awful treatment, for fear of offending the sensibilities of the vilest element of its support base, is not absolved by the current frenzy of self-flagellation.

It merely presents a challenge: Do much better next time when confronted with similar circumstances or be condemned as opportunistic cause merchants who use the Indigenous brand to satisfy the clauses in government contracts and project good corporate citizenship.

The NRL’s more tactile message

As it is, even as the lights go out and 80,000 fans celebrate the “Dreamtime at the G”, there will be an uncomfortable sense that Indigenous Round merely highlights how out of touch the AFL remains with the real, dirt-under-the-fingernails problems confronting Indigenous Australians.

You might even argue that the symbolism of Indigenous Round is being used to absolve the league from confronting the hardcore issues in the communities from which many of its Indigenous players emerge.

The AFL’s relatively strong response to the racial vilification of Nicky Winmar and Michael Long is rightly celebrated on Indigenous Round, along with their bravery.

Yet it is only six years since then Adelaide Crows recruiting chief Matthew Rendell lost his job for clumsily stating clubs would not recruit an Indigenous player unless he had one white parent — a statement rightly condemned, but which also revealed the massive disconnection between clubs intoxicated by what they once called “Aboriginal magic” and the everyday realities of the players they seek to recruit.

If the AFL sells an ethereal message around Indigenous Round, there is something more tactile about the NRL version.

That stems from the more organic connection between the regions and the clubs from which Indigenous players have come, compared with the AFL where there remains a sense Indigenous stars are “imported” from another planet.

As a consequence, the NRL has seemed better placed to use the Indigenous message to create practical solutions, such as the initiative whereby Indigenous youths were given jerseys if they met certain health conditions. Note Deadly Choices 715 Health Checks

Great to have @NRL Indigenous players @jackie_boii4 and legend @TheRealPearl03 stop in at our activation as we launch our @raiderscanberra partnership with Winnunga Nimmityjah AH&CS #NRLIndigenousRound – at GIO Stadium

This direct connection with community is exemplified by Sydney Roosters star Latrell Mitchell’s words in The Daily Telegraph about what he hopes to achieve in his Indigenous jersey this weekend.

“Because with Indigenous Australians there’s this stereotype that says we’re lazy, on the dole, get given houses,” Mitchell said.

“Well, I want kids to know I’ve never been on the dole in my life. Want them to know I finished school and just went out and got myself a house. It wasn’t given to me for free. I bought it.”

6. The Long Walk

Website

Stand against racism 

VAHS ACCHO Thanks  to Essendon Football Club and The Long Walk for allowing our Deadly Choices Students to do a guard of honour at Dreamtime At The G.

All students enjoyed themselves. Also thanks to our schools for selecting the students on our behalf. #vahsdc

Treaty