Njernda Aboriginal Corporation chief executive Tracey Dillon said this year’s NAIDOC theme “Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up!” prompted community members to speak up and support meaningful, systemic change.
Ms Dillon said this year’s theme was a powerful and topical conversation starter.
“This theme encourages Mob to speak up for change, but it also calls out to the wider community and asks them to rally around us, think about what they’re currently doing and what we can all do better.
“NAIDOC is an opportunity for all Australians to acknowledge and reflect on our history, our people, our good work and what we can do to enable change.”
Ms Dillon said that she often thinks back and is inspired by the courageous acts undertaken by trailblazers from Aboriginal communities, across our region.
“The Cummeragunja walk-off is a prime example of families defying authority and walking off the Cummeragunja Mission 83 years ago, in protest of the terrible mistreatment and conditions they were being forced to live under,” she said.
“Two hundred plus First Nations peoples crossed the Murray River into Barmah in Victoria. It was a powerful and defining moment in our history and placed a national spotlight on our fight for self-determination.”
A long list of Elders and community members with links to the Echuca-Moama region were at the forefront of that movement, including William Cooper, a founding member of the Australian Aborigines’ League, Margaret Tucker, a civil rights activist and writer who was the first Aboriginal person to publish an autobiography, Jack Patten, who set the agenda for the civil rights movement in Australia and published the first Aboriginal focused newspaper and Sir Douglas Nicholls, who was an athlete, the first Aboriginal person to be knighted and hold a vice-regal office, as the Governor of South Australia.
More recently, Wollithiga Elder Henry Atkinson has also paved the way for change, having just been named as Victoria NAIDOC Patron/Elder for 2022 for his efforts in facilitating the return of Aboriginal remains.
Ms Dillon said NAIDOC week was not only the ideal time to reflect on the remarkable accomplishments achieved by Aboriginal people, but it also provided Aboriginal people with a platform to stand on and have their voices be heard.
“As First Nation peoples, we are still behind in education, health, housing, and employment, but too far in front on incarceration and welfare dependency,” she said.
“NAIDOC is a vital platform for our communities because there is always more that can be done to support Closing the Gap on Aboriginal health, improved education outcomes, increase employment outcomes, and reduce incarceration rates.”
Ms Dillon said she welcomed the opportunity to work with others during NAIDOC week and beyond.