ANTaR (Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation)

I am fortunate enough to be able to say that I have loved almost every writing project I have ever been part of. And in their own ways, they each hold special meaning, memories and significance to me, not only as an Aboriginal woman, but also as an author.

But the release of the groundbreaking volume The Macquarie PEN Anthology of Aboriginal literature this week is without doubt, one of the highlights of my professional career.

Just under four years ago I had a conversation with Elizabeth Weiss, Publisher at Allen and Unwin, about the need for such a volume as this. Around the same time, my mate Peter Minter was having the same conversation, also with Elizabeth. We hadn’t actually had the conversation with each other though.

Four years later, we have had many conversations – about the evolution of our writings in English since Bennelong’s first letter in 1796, right through to the Miles Franklin Award winning novel Carpentaria in 2007. We discussed the role of Aboriginal literature in world literatures, and also how a text like this could be incorporated into many different academic courses (nationally and internationally) including Australian Studies, Cultural Studies, Indigenous Studies, Race Studies, Australian History, Australian Politics, Australian Literature and so on.

On putting this anthology together, Peter and I embarked on a journey of discovery, revelling in much of the unknown writings by Aboriginal people over the past 200 years and how they contribute to the bigger story of who we are as a nation today. The writings included in this anthology are pieces of journalism, letters, petitions, political manifestoes, song lyrics, poetry, play excerpts, short stories, fiction, autobiography, biography and social commentary. It is safe to say there is something for every reader of every genre known to the reading community.

In fact, because of the variety of work we have included in this book, I believe there will be a whole new dialogue about the way in which literature is defined in Australia. For all the works included in this volume tell stories and give voice to the First Nations people of this land who have by-and-large remained voiceless.

Some of those showcased in The Macquarie PEN anthology of Aboriginal Literature include: * David Unaipon * Pearl Gibbs * Oodgeroo Noonuccal * Charles Perkins * Ruby Langford Ginibi * Sam Watson * Archie Roach * Jimmy Pike * Doris Pilkington * Alexis Wright * Mick Dodson * Wesley Enoch * Samuel Wagan Watson * Kim Scott * Jackie Huggins * Larissa Behrendt * Tara June Winch and many more.

The hardest thing for us as editors was culling an extensive list of top quality writing that could easily have been included, but due to space constraints, just couldn’t be.

We are excited and confident that this anthology will go a long way to engaging Australian students in both schools and universities with Indigenous voices, ideas, world views, diverse experiences, and most of all, the sense of dignity we have maintained while continuing to struggle for not only equal rights in Australia but in many instances, basic human rights.

Read William Cooper’s Petition to the King, read the Yirrkala Bark Petition of 1963, read the 1938 ‘Aborigines Claim Citizenship Rights’ manifesto, read Oodgeroo Noonuccal’s ‘Aboriginal Charter of Rights’, and then marry it with Mick and Patrick Dodson’s writings, and the poetry of Lionel Fogarty and Barbara Nicholson, and you will see the politics of a people who have used literature since not long after the point of first contact. And, as you will see in the second half of the volume, we continue to do so.

The Macquarie PEN Anthology of Aboriginal literature is published by Allen and Unwin, and is available for $39.95 at all good bookstores, including Australian airports!

For more info and to access the on-line Teachers’ Notes, go to: www.macquariepenanthology.com.au

This week I attended the launch of the Indigenous Literacy Project (ILP) to improve literacy in remote Indigenous communities. A joint effort between Australian publishers, booksellers and authors in conjunction with the Fred Hollows Foundation, the project includes an annual Indigenous Literacy Day on September 3.

Last year’s goal of $100k, was exceeded when $250k was raised through events, a reading challenge and the generous contribution by participating booksellers nationally that donated a percentage of their takings on the day.

In 2008, the project has a new lease of life with the introduction of Therese Rein as the ILP Patron. Also known as the wife of our Prime Minister, Therese (I can call her that because we met at the launch and so now we’re sistas in the cause!) brings to the project not only her name and standing in the Australian community, but also a real desire to improve the literacy of our children. In her speech at the media launch held at Allen and Unwin in Sydney, she said the project offered an opportunity for all Australians to get involved in a simple and effective community activity.

Also part of the project this year are Author Ambassadors. These include yours truly, the Miles Franklin Award winning author of Carpentaria, Alexis Wright, multi-award winning author of Swallow the Air, Tara June Winch, the owner of every bum joke on the planet Andy Griffiths, Australia’s patriarch or literature David Malouf and Geraldine Brookes.

There is also a newly designed Reader’s Quest designed to assist schools in participating in the project. The Reader’s Quest involves reading at least seven books from the specially prepared Readers Quest booklists, recording each book you read, and then receiving a Reader’s Quest certificate.

As for me, having just returned from the NT myself as part of a role modelling tour, I can see so many ways to engage our young people in books. One of the key ways is for us as adults to be “Reading Heroes” for our young people. We need to read to our kids, we need to be seen to be reading alone and enjoying it, we need to instil in our young people that books and reading should be part of our every day lives and routines. And at least in the cities, we need to be exploiting our libraries for everything they can do to engage, educate and entertain our kids through books.

What you can do for the project: Members of the general public can participate in this important project by buying a book at one of the 400 participating bookshops. So, check and see if your local bookshop is part of the ILP and then go out and buy lots of books on September 3!!!

All of the funds raised will go directly to the Fred Hollows Foundation to buy books and literacy resources for Indigenous communities.

For more information about the Indigenous Literacy Project, please contact Karen Williams on (02) 9388 0087 or go to: www.worldwithoutbooks.org

Next week I am attending the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in New York. This year’s topic is climate change. The Indigenous Law Centre has a research project that is examining the human rights implications of climate change for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

UN meetings on Indigenous issues are always exciting. It is amazing to see so many Indigenous human rights defenders from around the world dressed in beautiful and intricate traditional costumes and gathered together to share stories of success and failure in Indigenous law and policy.

I was once an Indigenous Fellow with the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva. My fellowship group consisted of a Sami Parliamentarian from Sweden, an Indigenous man from the Yakutz republic and a Biak man from West Papua. The two blokes couldn’t speak English very well so we all communicated in French!

The Permanent Forum was created in 2000. Its existence is a triumph of Indigenous advocacy at the UN. Its establishment was one of two main goals of the first UN International Decade of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, the other goal being the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

The primary role of the forum is to raise awareness of indigenous peoples human rights issues within the United Nations system and to integrate indigenous issues into the many agencies and programmes of the UN system. It is unique in its structure with its membership being divided equally between eight state members and eight indigenous peoples representatives.

Professor Mick Dodson is the extremely hardworking and dedicated Indigenous representative for the Pacific. Another hard working and brilliant Aboriginal woman working for the UN Secretariat for the forum is Sonia Smallacombe. Sonia is a member of the Maramanindji people in the Daly River region of NT. Sonia has also held the roles of Head of the School of Australian Indigenous Knowledge Systems at Charles Darwin University and was the manager of the Indigenous Cultural and Intellectual Property Taskforce at ATSIC. Sonia is such an inspiration to me and many young Aboriginal women and it’s really thrilling to see so many Indigenous people working in important postings at the United Nations.

One major development Indigenous peoples are expecting in the next two weeks is the Rudd government’s long awaited endorsement of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

The Declaration is a non-binding legal instrument of the General Assembly. It doesn’t have to be signed or ratified. And because it is a declaration of the General Assembly, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities can use the declaration in their work and daily lives immediately.

And while it doesn’t have to be endorsed to be used, endorsement is important for Australia in signalling its renewed commitment and emphasis on human rights and multilateralism. That should be done contemporaneously with taking office along with other commitments to human rights such as the Optional Protocol to CEDAW.

It is important for the Rudd government to endorse the declaration as it is necessary to make concrete the Federal government’s commitment to Indigenous peoples. Of course their ongoing commitment to the suspension of the RDA and the willingness to support the inadequate legal justification for violating peoples rights on the basis of race (until their annual review of the NT Intervention) sits uncomfortably with an endorsement of a declaration that is based on the right to self-determination and rule of law.

While the federal government is at pains not to break economic promises that will bolster the wallets of many Australians, it will be interesting to see whether this promise to endorse the declaration was real or just hollow words spoken in election time to juxtapose rights “cred” against the Howard agenda.

But before New York, I am off to 2020 … I will be participating in the 2020 Summit in the Indigenous stream.

Murri cricket

Finally, I have to congratulate the victorious Queensland team for their victory in the Imparja cup!! My brother Will was one of the champion Murris who won in Alice - Imparja Cup is being rotated on NITV for those who want to check it out.

Campbelltown Arts Centre
ISBN: 978-1-875199-55-6

“Stories of resilience and inspiration” is how I would sum up this collection of oral histories with 15 local Aboriginal women residing in the Campbelltown District. They are stories that resolve issues for each of these women, and help the younger generations understand the lives we are fortunate to have today.

Many stories revolve around the history of the local areas these women have come from across the State and even Victoria, and life under the Protection Act including mission life, as well the negative effects of alcohol and domestic violence on the family. But most stories end with life today in Campbelltown and the roles the women play in community activities such as the street patrols Gladys Lock is part of.

The stories are about reconciling the past for these women. Marnie Williamson says, “Reconciliation must begin within ourselves. As elders, we must strive to reconcile our own past, somehow make sense of it, or we’ll always live in this voice, shadows in our own land.” And in trying to reconcile such stories of hardship, the women also recall the funnier side of life and growing up, such as the first time Verna Barker saw a plane and how she screamed thinking it was aliens coming to get her.

I was astounded at the size of the families that some of these women raised and continue to raise. Jenny Brown had four kids of her own but raised another 600 foster kids, while Christina Craig has 93 grand kids.

Some stories were also interesting local histories such as Glenda Chalker’s entry about living at Pheasant’s Nest, which is named PN because it’s the first place lyrebirds were recorded at. The Lyrebird is also Glenda’s totem, so she feels especially at home at Pheasant’s Nest. I’ll remember that when next I drive to Canberra along the M5.

Most women had key messages for their children and for all young people. Sue Davis’ message was that we should respect one another, respect culture and respect ourselves. In line with that Kylie Dickson believes that “to earn respect, you’ve got to give respect”. Artist and painter Sue Grant advises that you should follow your spirit and your dreams and be proud. And Julie Hoffmanbeck’s words to her children and other parents are “The most important thing is protecting you and your kids.”

Judy McKay recommends taking one day at a time, enjoying a sunset or a sunrise, the birds chirping, and the smells around you. And to never lose the little child inside.

Some of the stories are about achievement for these women, and that is measured in different ways. For Norma Layt her greatest achievements in life were going to uni, buying her own home and bringing up seven children. I would’ve thought one of those would be enough!

The book is really about the role of the mother and other key women in our lives and Alana Moffatt talks about the guidance and knowledge she got from her Mimi (grandmother) and how that’s where her drive stems from.

Each short autobiographical narrative is complimented by a beautiful black and white portrait by Mervyn Bishop.

Finally, Ruby Langford Ginibi says she tells her stories to make things change and to make people wake up. And this collection of truly hard lives lived, by women who are not bitter or twisted, but who are full of love and compassion should really make some of our young people wake up to themselves and see that what they enjoy today is a far cry from what our old people had to endure.

This is an inspirational read about women, many whom were born in dire conditions and raised without the basic human right we enjoy today. Show them you appreciate their generosity of spirit to tell their stories by reading them, and in turn you will show and that they deserve a place, as Mona Porter says, “My philosophy is that in the world, it doesn’t matter who you are, where you are or where you are from, you deserve your place in this world.”

This small volume is a gift to the Campbelltown community by these women, through the Campbelltown Arts Centre who coordinate the Campbelltown Intergenerational Aboriginal Project, through which this book was completed.

TO ORDER CONTACT:
Campbelltown Arts Centre
PO Box 57
Campbelltown NSW 2560
Email: artscentre@campbelltown.nsw.gov.au
Phone: 02 46454111
Drop in to the Cnr of Camden and Appin Roads Campbelltown

I must tell you that I am brimming with excitement and honoured to be part of this event today. I’m sure I am not the only person here who considers themselves a midwife in the delivery process of the latest Holt baby, Anonymous Premonition.

It has been a long pregnancy since Yvette’s collection won the David Unaipon Award in 2005. But what a wonderful time it has been watching Yvette blossom as a poet over the years. Today is probably just as exciting for us Yvette as your friends and supporters, as it is for you.

Because we know your ability, we know the passion behind your words, we know the strength of your convictions, and we know how much of a contribution you will go on to make to the world of poetry, not only in Australia, but internationally.

But you are not just a poet Yvette, and while many of your friends, family and colleagues here will know of your educational and professional achievements, I think it’s important to flag them also.
For those of you who didn’t know, our Yvette is a graduate from the University of Technology, Sydney, she has a degree in Adult Education & Community Management (Business). In 2003 Yvette received the UTS Human Rights Award in the category of Reconciliation for her outstanding contribution towards the elevation of social justice for Indigenous Australians. Yvette is active on a number of state boards and committees, and she currently researches Indigenous Australian literature for the Black Words subset of AustLit: www.austlit.du.au/blackwords. Yvette’s latest achievement has been a position as lecturer in Aboriginal Women’s Studies at the University of Queensland.

It is Yvette’s keen interest in social justice and leadership and development for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, and her concern for family, friends, human rights and issues around domestic violence, that form the basis of her incredibly powerful and at times emotionally charged writing. Anonymous Premonition deals with painful issues like incest, attempted suicide, depression, incarceration, and the realities of funerals as part of the daily lives of Aboriginal people. But it also acknowledges the longevity and resilience of true friendships and the strength that Yvette draws from key people in her life.

And there are also moments that gave me as a reader and friend enormous insight into an Yvette that I never knew. For example, I have to admit that looking at our glamazon sister today, it’s hard for me to believe that as a little girl growing up all Yvette wanted to do was play football. But that’s what she tells us in “The Grandest Final”. And how she longed to kick that pig skin – somehow Yvette, I struggle with the thought of you in footy socks and spikes. And when I read in different poems references to footy boots and walking in heels I quickly came to understand Yvette’s obsession with shoes. I think on one block release visit to UTS Yvette travelled with 12 pairs of shoes in her luggage. Correct me if I’m wrong, it may have been 13.

In fact when reading Yvette’s collection I started to think about when in I first met her. I can’t honestly remember. But what I do know is that I knew Yvette’s HAIR before I knew Yvette the person. I saw this striking, tall black woman with a mane that got flicked atround a lot and who always looked confident and wore beautiful pashmenas and wraps. I saw her at Sydney Writers’ Festival and then I saw her at a NAIDOC Event at the National Musuem in Canberra but I still wasn’t sure who she was, but we smiled at each other. Perhaps she was thinking the same thing, I don’t know. But I can tell you I felt a little daggy in my appearance being in the same room with Yvette, and I was just a little bit scared of her as well. She looked like a power-broker.

And she is – a power-broker of words. Samuel Wagan Watson and Jena Woodhouse have already referred to the work in Anonymous Premonition as uncompromising, uplifting and revealing, fresh, compelling and empowering. So what else could be left to add to these words, PLENTY!

Anonymous Premonition is a collection of tributes:
It is a tribute to Yvette’s home at Inala 4077;
It is a tribute to the strength of Yvette’s friendships, and moreso how devoted and loyal a friend Yvette is;
It is a tribute to the special people who will always be remembered by Yvette like our late sista, the poet Lisa Bellear and Yvette’s brother Kevin Alex Holt, whom was removed from the Holt’s lives all too soon;
It is a tribute to motherhood also, that momentarily made me almost feel like I’m missing out on something not having had a child of my own. I read and re-read a beautiful entry called “Motherhood” dedicated to Yvette’s daughter Cheyenne. Of course, I did a road trip with Yvette and Cheyanne to the Dreaming Festival last year, so I know the other side of the story, too!

Yvette’s words demonstrate the love of a sister, the love of a mother, the love of a friend, and the love quite clearly that only a woman can give. Sorry men, but I do believe that we love differently.

In terms of Yvette’s poetry, it makes me as a writer seem almost fraudulent. Because Yvette already has the solid voice and style of someone with many, many years of experience, and yet Anonymous Premonition is her first published collection. This effort reminds of the first published novel of Tara June Winch and Swallow the Air. In that this book also is an extraordinary gift by a young black woman to the Australian literary community and general society. So on behalf of both, I want to thank you Yvette for such an offering.

I believe Anonymous Premonition is a fitting tribute to the resilience of Aboriginal women everywhere, but you Yvette are a tribute yourself, to your family, to your nation and to Inala 4077.

In the words of the late Eric Rolls “You launch a boat not a book, you open a book.” So it is my great pleasure now to say that the David Unaipon Award winning collection of poetry by Yvette Holt, Anonymous Premonition, is now officially opened.

Anonymous Premonition is published by UQP: http://www.uqp.uq.edu.au/index.php