(Click to enlarge)
By Ray Jackson
thanks to the input of some feisty men and women the seminar and art exhibition shown below has been pulled together for a fascinating two days of looking at the subject of war and who fought in those wars, and including the why. very importantly several sessions will be dedicated to the frontier wars in the 'unsettling' of the invasion of the traditional nations of this country, australia.
also seriously considered will be those who, very much for their own reasons, went to fight on behalf of either the interests of the british crown or for usa hegemony. from the boer war to afghanistan and possibly iraq, again, or even on to iran.
the input of turkish and indian armed forces, including women, is also given as a matter of importance. as will the horrors of war that were visited upon the women who became the victims of those wars and massacres.
to my mind, gallipoli in turkey to coniston in the northern territory, among other sites remembered, is a good fit. the first, gallipoli, was nothing but a butchery and a loss and a retreat. however noble it may be depicted today as some type of jingoistic patriotic amnesia as being presented as the birth of the australian (white) nation. i see no glory here despite all the politicians brain-washing.
coniston, the alleged final massacre of aborigines in 1928, was also a butchery. but this was a butchery of, mainly, aboriginal women and children. the loss was ours but we did not retreat. the traditional nt mobs survived despite the white man's theft, their guns and their courts. it is many years since i have seen the documentary on the coniston massacre and i no longer remember whether or not it was the francis jupurulla kelly one that i saw but i am eagerly looking forward to seeing it again as it will be shown during the seminar.
a good number of people have contributed to this seminar and art exhibition, myself included, and i can assure you of your time being well spent. and i know, you will learn.
for further information and the full program and/or bookings, please make contact with heather.goodall@uts.edu.au
fkj
