[From a friend, Brigid Walsh]
Where do you live? What do you know of the history of your locality?
Getting to know this history is important.
If geological/earth history is known, we are able to gain a better
understanding of how our local habitat is/was formed. With knowledge,
we are better equipped to interact responsibly with our planet, flora
and fauna.
Having an understanding of how the community in which we lived was
formed, helps us to understand people we live and work with. With
knowledge, we can keep what is good and work for what is better for
those in the future. We can learn about patterns of human settlement,
religions and culture of those who have settled in locally, and the way
we govern ourselves.
In Australia, most of our historical understanding has emphasised
European exploration and post-1788 settlement. There has been little
encouragement towards having a wide and deep understanding across the
nation of settlement, culture, and spirituality prior to European
involvement.
How do we rectify this?
It is possible to influence education curricula, and lobby government.
However, there is no substitute for individual action and interaction.
There is a lot of easily accessible information to allow us to increase
our knowledge. But, if this is all that happens, this will be only book
learning. Knowledge gained from literature, histories and general
reading needs to have the experience of human interaction to give it the
fullest understanding and practicality.
However, in large urban areas with a history of extensive dispossession
of Aboriginal people, people of energy and goodwill might find it
difficult to meet Aboriginal people and form meaningful friendships.
The purpose of this leaflet is to encourage an interest in pre-1770
history of local communities by two very simple actions and so begin a
journey to understanding our nation and its people in an enriched way.
First, establish – through your local council, the internet, your local
library – the name of the Aboriginal group in your area.
Secondly, include this name in your address.
For instance, I live at Upper Ferntree Gully in the outer suburbs of
Melbourne in Victoria. I now use as my address the following:
Brigid Walsh
Upper Ferntree Gully
Woiworung Country
Victoria 3156
By doing this, I hope that others will do the same and, that, gradually,
there will be a groundswell until across the nation we will have people
establishing, through these simple actions, a link to the ancient
history and traditions of Australia.
If you take up this practice, please let me know. I would love to hear
about it. Contact me at misseagle[at]bluebottle.com.
I have used as my authority a map available at the website of the
Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies in Canberra.
You can find this site at
http://www.aiatsis.gov.au/aboriginal_studies_press/aboriginal_wall_map/map_page
or http://tinyurl.com/6l2qqv
AIATSIS also have wall maps, large and small, available for sale. You
might encourage your local organisations (council, schools, churches,
businesses) to purchase a map and display it where it can be easily seen.
See:
http://www.melbourne.indymedia.org/uploads/aus_map_covered_text_lined.jpg
or http://tinyurl.com/5lc78r
At this site, this map is clickable to provide a greatly enlarged and
readable map.
--
Shalom/Salaam/Pax! Rowland Croucher
http://jmm.aaa.net.au/
(20,000 articles 4000 humor)
Blogs - http://rowlandsblogs.blogspot.com/
Justice for Dawn Rowan - http://dawnrowansaga.blogspot.com/
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