Yaama! Welcome to our monthly CIE Newsletter! We are really excited to share with you some news about our CIE (Community Is Everything) campaign, our Firestick Flick for this month and much more!
But first, let us introduce ourselves – Uncle Rodney Dillon is a Palawa man, and our Indigenous Rights Advisor. Kacey Teerman is a Gomeroi woman, and our Strategic Campaigner. And the newest member of the team is Rach McPhail, Gomeroi woman and our Campaign Organiser.
Together, we make up the Indigenous Rights team at Amnesty International Australia. We work to amplify the voices of First Nations communities, and campaign for increased funding for community-led diversion programs and a fairer and more humane youth justice system. We are honoured to be able to do this work for our communities, and couldn’t do it without the support of activists right around the country just like you!
CIE News
The Indigenous Rights team are continuing to develop our strategic campaign for the next 5 years. We will continue to work on this throughout the first half of 2025 to ensure that we have a really solid, culturally informed campaign plan.
As attention recently turned to WA, our team renewed our call on the WA Government to raise the age of criminal responsibility to at least 14, end its use of tortuous confinement practices, fund Indigenous-led diversion programs that address the root causes of trauma and disadvantage, and close Unit 18 and Banksia Hill youth detention centres immediately. Please sign and share the petition if you live in WA or have friends and family who do.
Firestick Flicks
Firestick Flicks is a monthly film club, which aims to encourage Amnesty activists, staff, and supporters to watch First Nations films and documentaries, by providing supporting resources, discussion prompts, and reflections to foster deep learning and understanding on the path to reconciliation.
This month’s Firestick Flicks film is Living Black: Freedom Rides (season 22, episode 2), which is available to stream for free on SBS on Demand.
Content warning:
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware that this film and discussion resource contains images, voices and names of deceased persons.
The content discusses systemic and blatant racism and oppression of First Nations peoples.
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the historic Freedom Ride, on which a group of 30 University of Sydney student members of the Student Action For Aborigines (SAFA) group, led by Arrernte and Kalkadoon man Uncle Dr Charlie Perkins OA, journeyed through western New South Wales in February 1965. Over 15 days, they travelled through the towns of Walgett, Moree, Bowraville and Kempsey to draw attention to substandard living conditions for First Nations peoples and widespread endemic racism in the state’s country towns.
This episode of the Living Black series hosted by Karla Grant revisits the monumental journey. What they encountered along the way showed just how prevalent segregation and injustice was in Australia, and became a major milestone in the Australian civil rights movement.
Winangala (Listen)
Freedom Ride – Troy Cassar-Daley, featuring Paul Kelly
Freedom Ride is the title track from Troy’s album Freedom Ride, released in 2015.
As Uncle Troy says, “it’s just nice to reflect back on the progress made by people like Charlie Perkins”
Remember 1965
The story of the freedom ride
On a bus they road from town to town
East to west north to south
To get it from the horses mouth
Those true stories on the ground
On a blazing summers day
Charlie Perkins lead the way
At the public pool in Moree
Step back said the man you can’t get in
You’ve got the wrong coloured skin
We don’t want no trouble here you see
Biibabiiba (Book)
Always Was Always Will Be – Aunty Fay Muir & Sue Lawson
From Magabala Books website:
From the first protest of January 26th as a Day of Mourning in 1938, to the Pilbara Strike of 1946, to the struggle for the right to vote and be counted; the fight for justice for First Nations people takes many forms.
Always Was, Always Will Be takes a closer look at some of the iconic First Peoples protest movements of the last 200 years, celebrating the strength, wisdom, and bravery of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people defending their land and asserting their right to self-determination through history.
Blak Business
Led by Uncle William Tilmouth, Children’s Ground is a First Nations organisation creating change for future generations with a First Nations approach.
They have a 25 year strategy that aims to change the status quo through delivering an integrated Learning, Wellbeing and Development platform in communities surrounding Mparntwe / Alice Springs.
“Elders are involved and leading. Knowledge from the old people is being passed on, learned and respected by children and our young people and families.”
Support their work by following @childrensground on instagram
Mob Who Inspire Us
Rachel Perkins
We cannot talk about Uncle Dr Charlie Perkins without also shining a spotlight on his remarkable daughter, Rachel Perkins.
Rachel is a proud Arrernte and Kalkadoon woman, and is a writer, director and producer of award-winning television drama, documentaries and films such as the Australian Wars, Total Control, Redfern Now and First Australians.
Through her storytelling, Rachel has been able to take the audience on truth-telling journeys, unlearning and relearning the true histories of colonisation and assimilation in this country, ensuring that First Nations peoples stories and voices are heard and seen on screen.
She is one of the most significant storytellers of our time, and has become a leader and mentor for First Nations activists and the future generations of Indigenous film makers.
Maliyaa (Friend) – Activist Shout Out
Do you know of an Amnesty Activist or Action Group in your local area who is doing some really great work in fighting for Indigenous rights and amplifying First Nations voices? Send us a short yarn (50-100 words) to tell us about the work they’ve done, so we can put a shout out in our next issue.
Please send to activism@amnesty.org.au with subject “Activist Shout Out”
Coming up this month:
March 21 – National Close the Gap Day
National Close the Gap Day is held on the third Tuesday of March each year, and was started in 2006 by First Nations and mainstream peak health and advocacy organisations to advocate for health equity between First Nations and non-Indigenous peoples.
This is different to the government’s Closing the Gap strategy launched in 2008, which is a series of policies and health targets in which there has been little progress.
Thank you to Common Ground for their excellent dates of significance resource, where you can find further information about these dates.
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