On January 26th approximately 1000 people gathered in Borthwick Park in Belgrave to share and learn about indigenous culture, reflect on the experience and consequences of colonization for Aboriginal people since 1776 and to celebrate the Survival of indigenous culture. The day began with a talk from Wurundjeri elder Uncle Bill Nicholson about the challenges the Wurundjeri face reconstructing and maintaining their culture given their dispossession from their lands and being stopped from using their language at Coranderrk. He also explained to the attentive crowd about some of the structures and aspects of Wurundjeri culture. Bill then invited the crowd to participate in a welcoming smoking ceremony. This was followed by the Wurunjderi dance troupe Jindi Worobak. Other performers during the day included Gnarnayarrahe Waitairie who treated the crowd to both traditional storytelling, didgeridoo meditation and an impromptu performance in his guise as “Black Elvis”. Lou Bennett kept the crowd entertained with a great performance and the day finished with a set from the Yung Warriors that literally got the crowd to its feet. Speakers on the day also included noted historian Gary Presland who stated that we should not be celebrating Aboriginal Survival but the aspects of Aboriginal culture which have proved so adaptive over tens of thousands of years to ensure the oldest living culture on earth continues. Jaxon also informed the crowd about the campaign to keep culture alive in the Save the Kimberly Campaign. Throughout the day people also participated in the activities on hand at the stalls which included children’s activities, purused indigenous art, learnt about various campaigns and also learnt about both the history of Cooranderrk Reserve and the local plant it was named after. Respect was also paid to the Tent Embassy in Canberra with documentaries about its establishment were played in a symbolic tent embassy that was also set up in the park. This excellent video put together by Fair Projects explains both the day and includes interviews with Bill Nicholson, Aunty Dot and organiser Jordan Crook.
The day could not have proceeded without the generous support of the Yarra Ranges Council, the hard work of the volunteers and support from organisations like 3MDR, RRR, and PBS. Given the acrimonious response to the demands for justice and sovereignty at the tent embassy this year and the following outburst of racism from so many, it is great that in one park in Belgrave at least Australians gathered with open hearts and minds to listen to the stories and voices of Indigenous Australia. Yung Warriors has crowd dancing Yung Warriors play Just a Thought Note: some of the photos in this article are copyrighted so please before use elsewhere, email survivalday@gmail.com to find out who to attribute the photos too
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