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                    National Reconciliation Week

                    National Reconciliation Week 2023 logo
                    National Reconciliation Week is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures and achievement, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

                    ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Running from 27 May to 3 June, it recognises two significant dates ​in Australia’s history: 

                    • 27 May 1967: Australians voted to remove clauses in the Australian Constitution that discriminated against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.   
                    • 3 June 1992: The Mabo decision was made in the High Court of Australia, recognising Native Titles and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people having rights to the land. The decision further recognised that, in some cases, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples Native Title had survived British colonisation.  

                    The 2023 theme is ‘Be a Voice for Generations’. This theme encourages all Australians to be a voice for reconciliation in our everyday lives, and to act today for a more just, equitable and reconciled country the benefit of all generations.​​​

                    National Reconciliation Week Oration 2023 – Antoinette Braybrook ​

                    Antoinette is a Kuku Yalanji woman born on Wurundjeri Country and the 2022 Melburnian of the Year. Antoinette gives a voice to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who have experienced family violence. 

                    The oration took place at 1pm on Monday 29 May 2023. View the video of the event below, and read our Melbourne News​ article to learn more about Antoinet​te.

                    ​​Briggs Town Hall O​​​ration – National Reconciliation Week 2022

                    While we prepare our 2023 program, watch the livestream fro​m our 2022 oration, where Adam Briggs was our incredible guest orator. Briggs is an Aboriginal rapper, record label owner, comedy writer, actor and author.​

                    Important note for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
                    Please be advised that the photos and videos shown on our webpages may contain images and voices of deceased persons.

                    ​2021 events

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                    Useful resources

                    Recordings of interest

                    Reconciliation Week Q & A – Senator Pat Dodson and Hans Bokelund, Aboriginal Melbourne

                    A special Q & A with Senator Patrick Dodson and Director Aboriginal Melbourne, Hans Bokelund. Senator Dodson is a Yawuru man from Broome. He has been chairman of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation, a Commissioner into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, and a Roman Catholic priest. 

                    A real history of Aboriginal Australians, the first agriculturalists – Bruce Pascoe: TEDxSydney

                    Indigenous writer and anthologist Bruce Pascoe draws on first-hand accounts from colonial journals to dispel the myth that Aboriginal people were hunters and gatherers and 'did nothing with the land that resembled agriculture'. In this powerful talk, Pascoe demonstrates a radically different view of Australian history that we all need to know – one that has the potential to change the course of Australians' relationship with the land.

                    National Reconciliation Week 2021 Oration – Professor Marcia Langton

                    ​Professor Langton is an Aboriginal woman of Iman descent. She is an anthropologist and geographer with a strong research track record on Aboriginal alcohol use and harms, family violence, Aboriginal land tenure, management of environments and native title. In addition to aspects of Aboriginal culture, art and performance and the shift to modernity. Professor Langton has held the Foundation Chair of Australian Indigenous Studies at the University of Melbourne since 2000 and is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences, a Fellow of Trinity College, Melbourne and an Honorary Fellow of Emmanuel College at the University of Queensland. 

                    Educational videos

                    The Land

                    Lady of the Lake is the story of Gunditjmara Elder Aunty Iris Lovett-Gardiner and her life at Lake Condah in the western districts of Victoria. 'The Land' is an excerpt.

                    Spirituality

                    Wominjeka profiles Victorian Koorie culture and Koorie organisations across Victoria. In this excerpt we learn about Koorie spirituality.

                    Baranjuk: Dance

                    Uncle Wally Cooper, Yorta Yorta Elder, shows and tells about dance.

                    Stolen Children

                    An excerpt from 'Lady of the Lake', the story of Gunditjmara Elder Aunty Iris Lovett-Gardiner and her life at Lake Condah in the western districts of Victoria.

                    Life on the Mission

                    Stories of life on the Lake Tyers Aboriginal Mission are shared by Aboriginal Elders.​

                    Colonisation

                    The colonisation of Australia had a devastating impact on Aboriginal people, who have lived on this land for thousands of years.

                    Invasion

                    This video provides an insight into Aboriginal peoples view of the invasion of Australia.

                    Yes: The Ongoing Story of the 1967 Referendum

                    Hunter Page-Lochard puts the 1967 referendum in its historical context and talks about why it is still important today.

                    Other resources

                    Indigenous design thinking conversations

                    Originally broadcast as part of Melbourne Knowledge Week 2019.

                    Recognition, treaty, sovereignty and self-determination: facts and ambition – Melbourne Conversations, June 2016

                    Early June 2016 with the Referendum Council about to begin its national consultation and the Recognise Campaign proceeding, Victorian Aboriginal communities have been meeting across Victoria to discuss treaties, constitutional recognition, sovereignty and self-determination. Listen to the different positions from a variety of experts, have your say and get those complex questions answered.

                    Panellists: 

                    • Dr Gary Foley – Professor in History, Moondani Balluk, Victoria University
                    • Aunty Margaret Gardiner – Wurundjeri Wamba Wamba Barapa Barapa Dja Dja Wurrung Waywurru Ngurai Illum Wurrung
                    • Shireen Morris – Lawyer and Senior Policy Advisor and constitutional reform research fellow at Cape York Institute
                    • Uncle Gary Murray – Victorian Traditional Owner Land Justice Group and Dhudhuroa Barapa Barapa Djupagalk Yorta Yorta Wamba Wamba Dja Dja Wurrung
                    • Uncle Larry Walsh – Taungurung Elder.

                    Schedule a reconciliation tour of our city

                    Take a wander from Fitzroy Gardens to the Docklands Harbour to learn about Melbourne’s Aboriginal heritage and culture, including scarred trees, historical meeting places and monuments. Schedule your self-guided Aboriginal Melbourne walking tour, or take a virtual tour.

                    Reading list for National Reconciliation Week

                    Expand your understanding of Aboriginal history, culture and achievement with this reading list for National Reconciliation Week featuring books by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander writers, new literature and thought-provoking topics.

                    Useful resources

                    Reading list for National Reconciliation Week

                    Expand your understanding of Aboriginal history, culture and achievement with this reading list for National Reconciliation Week featuring books by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander writers, new literature and thought-provoking topics.

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