Parlour acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country across Australia’s many nations and recognises their continuing connection to land, waters and culture. We pay our respects to their elders past, present and emerging, and extend that respect to the Indigenous people who are part of the Parlour community.
We acknowledge the pain and conflict that is being felt and experienced around the world at the moment. Further, we acknowledge that the recent death of George Floyd, as deeply upsetting as it is, is not an isolated incident. Rather, it is the latest in a series of unnecessary deaths at the hand of systemic racism, not only in the US but also in Australia. We all have a responsibility to dismantle these systems. We all hold different and specific skillsets that we can contribute to the change required. We can each find agency to support change in different ways and different places. It is up to each of us to determine what and how we can contribute, but for all of us it starts with listening and education.
Yesterday was the last day of Reconciliation Week. If we ask you to do one thing, it is to take some time to learn something about Australia’s history that you didn’t know before, and where possible from Indigenous voices. Wilful ignorance cannot be acceptable.
There are many resources out there to help you learn, and many established organisations to which you can donate time and money to support overcoming the injustices imposed on Indigenous people.
First Nations Resource Directory
An excellent place to begin. This directory calls on us all “to invest in the future and fund change now”, and includes links to donate, learn, take action and listen.
Anti-racism resources from Australia and beyond
A list of books, podcasts, activists “assembled to support anti-racism self education” by the Victorian Women’s Trust – this includes many Indigenous women’s voices.
