r/aboriginal

The poll only allows 6 sections, which is personally ridiculous... otherwise, this would've been PERFECT!!

Those unsure of where your tribe resides, you can read below of where said region is located based on English language;

Mentioned Above;

• Nauo: Port Lincon and surrounds, spanning from Cape Radstock to near Darke Peak and down to the coast, including Port Lincoln, Coffin Bay, and Elliston.

• Anangu: Central Australia.

• Yolngu: North-East Arnhem Land.

• Koori/Koorie: NSW and Victoria.

• Murri: Queensland and north-west NSW.

Not Mentioned in Poll;

• Nunga: South Australia.

• Palawa: Tasmania.

• Yamaji/Barna: Murchison region of WA.

• Biik: Woiwurrung language term for Melbourne.

. . .

I've also included "Nauo" as an option as it's sitting on my mind atm wandering if there are others from that tribe.. considering how little left there were of them.

You can specify what tribe specifically you are if you so choose to in the comments.

*This is more of a curiosity thing. Nothing about this will be documented online anywhere for privacy of those in Reddit group.*

View Poll

Hi,

I've been a supporter of nuclear energy, off and on, since I was a kid (off and on because I've changed my mind a few times based on what I've been told about the pros and cons).

Currently, I'm for it, but I've been told that uranium extraction in Australia is directly at odds with indigenous interests, but the explanation was lacking details.

Long story short, all the uranium is under sacred sites.

I want to ask if that's entirely/partially true, if there'sa different issue at play, if issues are possible to work around or not, if there's a way to advocate for First Nation people to be in control of and reap the benefits of it, and basically anything else I can learn about indigenous perspectives on the issue.

[For transparency, I'm 1st Gen Italian Australian, a socialist, and was speaking with (predominantly) other white socialists on the issue.

Didn't feel right taking their word on it without reaching out, and I didn't want to bother Elder Robbie, here in Naarm.]

I have been listening to the artist, BARKAA recently and i’ve been listening to her song, “Blak Matriarchy” and at the end of the song there is a voice clip saying “You know, I have a culture. I am a cultured person. Don’t try to suppress me. And don’t call me a problem. I have never left my country. I am not the problem.” and i was wondering if any of you knew who that was at the end saying that and where it’s from, or if its just exclusive to Blak Matriarchy

Hello,

I know your hearts are going to sink reading this so I apologise in advance!

I am a white British disabled woman and I’m writing a fictional story that features a Wiradjuri woman, c. 1925-1930. I want to know how to do this appropriately, respectfully and accurately.

My research suggests various things, one of which is that I shouldn’t be doing this at all. But how could I write about NSW, mid-1920s, and feature only white people? That would seem very wrong.

Other reading suggests I should contact the Wiradjuri Elders and get permission before even starting. I have tried to do this but the various places that I have contacted have, understandably enough, refused to supply any contact details so I am not sure how to do it?

It was always my intention to find a sensitivity/authenticity reader - I’ve done this myself for books featuring disabled characters - but in order to do that, I need to have a fairly polished manuscript, which I can’t do if I don’t have permission to write!

I have written a first draft and I really want to go about this correctly but I’m going round and round in circles. Have I got things wrong? Am I trying to do them in the wrong order?

I should also say I’ve never written a book before so this might go nowhere, but even if it never makes it beyond a few enquiry letters and then a lifetime on my laptop, I want to ensure I haven’t written anything damaging or inaccurate.

Any guidance would be hugely appreciated, with great thanks.

Hey all, I want to get a proper Yolŋu yidaki in the future, but for now, the best I could get was a cheap second-hand that was also bought second-hand, almost certainly a tourist-type one, for practice.

Would it be considered okay to repaint it, seeing as the current markings (likely) hold no significance beyond trying to emulate Aboriginal art?

I'll double check if there's an artist name when I receive it, of course

hey you mob, anyone else struggle with not feeling aboriginal enough sometimes? it sucks cause like i know i am. i’ve identified and known im aboriginal my entire life, my whole mums side of the family is, ive even started learning my dalang (language/mother tongue) but sometimes i really feel down cause my people lived in missions, i didnt grow up on country, i look white and im not the most close with my fam cause intergenerational trauma and family conflict (though ive tried my hardest, my mum just doesn’t talk to lots of her family anymore)

i know its not a competition but damn. i’m proud of who i am but sometimes the gubba mindset gets in ur head. drop your thoughts below if you wanna yarn about it.

Hello lovely people. I don't really know how to word any of this but someone else mentioned getting imposter syndrome as someone with lighter skin, and I have much yapping and questions about it.

I'm disconnected by much more than just the colour of my skin. It was my grandfather on my dad's side who was Aboriginal but he passed when my dad was young and we don't have any documents of him, so I can't even find out what mob he's from. I feel like a fraud and I avoid talking about it because I hate to get grouped in with the people that are straight up lying about their heritage.

I don't know how to interact with mob and I feel like an idiot when they ask what mob I'm from, so I avoid associating (for lack of a better word) with groups (Indigenous clubs at school and such) to avoid questions.

I was told by my mother's side (who I live with and interact with a lot more as my dad's side is from NSW) not to worry about/talk it, not to put it on forms when prompted (I don't anyways), and to not bother with clubs or trying to connect with mob (they're all white/english descent/whatever)

Do I bother with trying to connect with other mobs? What do I say if people question me or press me? Will I ever really be accepted if I can't find my family history?

I’m white, not indigenous and very disconnected from my own roots since my ancestors who moved to ‘australia’ did so in a way to cut themselves off from their cultural roots for one reason or another. I want to learn a language that isn’t germanic/romance to help me decolonize my own ways of thinking.
I have done some research about people like me learning first languages and I’ve seen that the sentiment is generally positive if it’s approached the right way and not taking up undue resources, but I was curious to hear from mob what your personal individual thoughts and experiences are.

peripheral details:
I am interested in learning the dharug dhalang because I live on the land that this language is about and i love being able to exist in this place, and the opportunity to change my way of thinking to bring me closer to it is exciting. but i wonder if instead i should put my energy towards learning about my own roots and find a language more linked to my personal ancestry (AFAIK Ashkenazi and scottish but not really sure). I’m also interested in urdu for the philosophy and poetry.

would love to hear any thoughts or your personal experiences on this topic

edit: I just saw another post from last night also discussing first languages sorry for the similar topic

I don’t know how to explain to my children
Why their father weeps tonight
For a baby they do not know

A restless week of worry bears unforgiven
Where none of this is alright
And faith in humanity hits a new low

I do not know how I can explain to them
In a way that does not fright
The perils of tomorrow

So silently I mourn again
A gaping hole in my heart
A heart which their love grows

I'm Nauo. My language is practically dead. But of course... we have German folk recalibrating it (i think that's the wrong word, yall...), we only have maybe 5 words confirmed. Turns out only 7 of my people had survived the shit the white folk did...

So I was wondering if there were anyone else in my shoes, wanting to learn your language but finding out it's basically dead...

Or even those who have a full language to learn. I don't know many who try around my area. It'd be awesome to know if y'all do?

Hi Reddit,

I'm not aboriginal, but I am curious and have a question I'm hoping you're able to answer for me regarding Kumanjayi Little Baby and the wider Warlpiri community.

My understanding is that after her passing was confirmed, the family requested that the media (and others?) use Kumanjayi Little Baby instead of her name. Who decides on this name? Is it her family? The community? Elders? Is there ever a time where it would be appropriate to use the name she went by in life? How do I even refer to this name without sounding awkward and insensitive? Birth name? What other practices do the Warlpiri people have around death? I assume using her image (and voice) would come with a disclaimer statement at the top of articles too like I sometimes see for historical articles/entries.

I'm weary about googling for answers because I feel like this is receiving a lot of white media attention and I'm not sure how accurate it is. I'm sorry if my question is insensitive or out of place here :( Please help me understand in a respectful and tender way.

My heart breaks for her, her family, and your wider community.

Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions.

One of my favourite tracks. What are some of you favourite mob songs?

I'm 21F Indigenous from a Kurdish (Middle East) background - living in SA, and I’ve been following the case of Kumanjayi Little Baby with a really heavy heart. I know a lot of people have been really struggling with this, especially over the past week or so.

Thinking of everyone affected and hoping for brighter days ahead, where our kids can just laugh and be kids again. Please remember you’re not alone in how you’re feeling, and don’t be afraid to reach out to someone you trust if things feel heavy.

My DMs are open if anyone needs to vent or talk ❤️

Hey you mob, I'm just gonna chuck some of my thoughts on here to maybe get some feedback? Support? Criticism? I'm not sure exactly. But if you have a helpful perspective, especially if you're an elder (unlikely on here I know) would be much appreciated. It's mostly aimed at a non-indigenous audience, but I would like to get opinions from mob too.

I'm sure it's one in a big pile of perspectives on the Sorry Business happening in Alice Springs at the moment but it's mine, and I've been pushing myself to share these kinds of feelings rather than keeping them bottled up.

Here it is:

Following the tragic loss of Kumanjayi Little Baby, a sentiment has appeared in the wider public that the just response would have been to let the the Aboriginal community exact their own punishment upon the monstrous human who committed this unconscionable act.

The story purported by the mainstream media is one of chaos and unruliness. This is almost exclusively what the wider Australian public hears about Alice Springs. 

What I would ask a (non-indigenous) listener/reader is that have you ever advocated for the preference of Indigenous Law before now? If not, why only now? Is it convenient that the perpetrator was also an Aboriginal man? What would change if he was a white man, or the victim a white child? 

I ask because I am conflicted. A student and subject of many different cultures. I am a believer in the rights of Aboriginal people to self determination, and their (our) right to make decisions on our own terms, and to practice our culture in effect to bring it back from threatened extinction and allow it to thrive once more. But I am also a believer in the universal rights of human beings, one of which being that everyone has a right to fair trial and judgement. I am also generally against the idea of capital punishment altogether; which may well have been the likely outcome had the Alice Springs mob been left to their devices.

I suppose I am just curious as to why it has to take such a tragic and horrific incident to bring out feelings of solidarity with the Aboriginal community, and why only when it pertains to one of the admittedly ugly, but still important, parts of it.

Even alongside these expressions of solidarity I see judgement and condemnation of Kumanjayi's family:

"What were they doing? Getting pissed I bet."

"Look at their house! What a shithole."

This backhanded sympathy makes me sick. I rarely see a response that seeks to understand and empathise, and when I do, it is almost always from other blackfullas. I find the former kind of sentiment is often paired with the one I mentioned earlier, one of advocacy for mob justice, eye for an eye. What does this say about us as an Australian public?

Just curios post. I am from Africa working as an agecare in remote areas here in Australia with majority indeginius communities. While I have for sure experienced racism from white people, nothing can compare to the racism I have experienced from Aboriginal people.

I have two siblings who are also doctors here in Australia and theur sentiments are the same. I thought we are in the same camp but clearly not.