Approaching Australia Day 2019 Post #02

The Stiff Gins and the Sydney Childrens Choir performed together at TEDx Sydney in the Carriageworks at Redfern AND it was electric live!! The music and comedians punctuated a brilliant day of speakers telling their stories and this was an absolute highlight!! The various songs all had stories of family, long cultural history and spoke of the depth of indigenous society.

It seems we appreciate: dot paintings; decorated Qantas Jets; football jerseys; music; and sometimes Welcomes to Country at community events BUT is that really where it ends?
That can't be good enough...

The Sydney 2000 Olympics were a great example of what can be done in relationship with a shared vision and integrity in action. The Organisers and Creatives shared a hope to include, celebrate and give appropriate space for the indigenous history of this country. Some may remember murmurings of protest in the lead up but good work was done to say "just trust us, participate and watch the story unfold." True to their word the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, the two weeks, the cultural space and everything about the Games showed sensitive and collaborative recognition. Even Midnight Oil, being themselves, wanted to play a current single in the Closing Ceremony but were convinced "Bed are Burning" was the song to play, not just because it was their world breaking song. So began their clandestine idea for the 'Sorry Suits" with the word "Sorry" (covered by velcro/material until the last moments before taking the stage)!! At the time our PM was well known for arguing we shouldn't say sorry for something that wasn't our doing. The possible power of acknowledging structural and historical impacts, seeking reconciliation and being vulnerable by giving away power, was lost on him. Instead we heard about "practical reconciliation" which is code for doing what we want with little regard for the hopes of those directly effected by our policy in action.
That can't be good enough...

Empathy, non judgement, shared hopes and openness to hear indigenous stories genuinely could be the making of Australia... People I've met, experiences I've had and stories I've heard have changed my life!! "Just get over it!"
That can't be good enough...

In my own sphere the Biblical concept of "Jubilee" is relevant... it's where land was returned to the families who owned it before (every fifty years) so wealth was gained but shared... and then redistributed. If families experienced hardship it could be addressed with generosity across generations... This gave rise to the global Jubilee 2000 movement seeking for countries and the IMF to cancel third world debt that was crippling struggling economies in ways that could see them never prosper... the principles apply...

Anyhow, one day we will be mature enough to explore this, kids will learn the stories at school and it'll seem crazy that we didn't deal with the relationships by 'giving up power' and focusing on resilience and thriving communities everywhere (by shared definition of what that looks like)...