Activities of the Shepparton Region Reconciliation Group
The Uluru Statement from the Heart outlines a way forward for recognising First Nations in Australia’s Constitution. SBS Radio – in consultation with the Uluru Dialogue – is sharing the Uluru Statement from the Heart with multicultural communities by translating it into more than 60 languages, available now as a podcast and in written form.
Young Lilia Tan moved to Australia from Singapore three years ago but she already understands that her school in Canberra is on Ngunnawal land.
The school’s welcome to country acknowledges its traditional owners, the Ngunnawal people, before ending with Always Was, Always Will Be, the theme of this year’s NAIDOC (National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee) week.
Coinciding with NAIDOC, the Uluru Statement of the Heart’s invitation to all Australians to walk with them for a better future has been translated into 64 languages ranging from French to Arabic, Armenian, Urdu, Rohinga, Hebrew and Mandarin.
The Munarra Centre for Regional Excellence (Munarra) will be a new precinct for excellence in sports, health sciences and education for the entire community.
The Victorian Government will establish a truth and justice process to formally recognise historic wrongs – and address ongoing injustices – for Aboriginal Victorians.
Shepparton Region Reconciliation Group members together with members and supporters of Shepparton’s indigenous community have organised a silent vigil in which 437 stakes bearing messages will be placed around Victoria Park Lake marking the number of indigenous people who have died in police custody since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody ended in 1991. The “Line of Remembrance” will commence at 09:30 am Saturday, 18 July 2020. The earlier event was a washout, due rain and vandalism.
What is it like to grow up Aboriginal in Australia?
This anthology, compiled by award-winning author Anita Heiss, attempts to showcase as many diverse voices, experiences and stories as possible in order to answer that question. Each account reveals, to some degree, the impacts of invasion and colonisation – on language, on country, on ways of life, and on how people are treated daily in the community, the education system, the workplace and friendship groups.
Accounts from well-known authors and high-profile identities sit alongside newly discovered voices of all ages, with experiences spanning coastal and desert regions, cities and remote communities. All of them speak to the heart – sometimes calling for empathy, oftentimes challenging stereotypes, always demanding respect.
Shepparton Region Reconciliation Group members together with members and supporters of Shepparton’s indigenous community have organised a silent vigil in which 437 stakes bearing messages will be placed around Victoria Park Lake marking the number of indigenous people who have died in police custody since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody ended in 1991. The “Line of Remembrance” will commence at 10:00 am Saturday, 11 July 2020.
There will be a silent Community Voices Exhibition at Victoria Park Lake Shepparton on Saturday 13 July 2020 from 10:00am – 4:00 pm. Social Distancing will be strictly enforced at this event. This event is not a gathering at one place; it is an opportunity to walk and reflect, walk and learn: 437 deaths to reflect upon.
We, gathered at the 2017 National Constitutional Convention, coming from all points of the southern sky, make this statement from the heart:
National Reconciliation Week 27 May – 3 June 2020 National Reconciliation Week is an annual celebration and is a time for all Australians to reflect on our shared histories. National Sorry Day is a nation-wide observance held on May 26 each year. Shepparton’s Sorry Day event – usually held in Monash Park – will be held online this year.