survival day success

Belgrave was abuzz with people at Survival Day on Australia Day. Survival Day was an idea hatched by a handful of community members back in 2007 who wanted to run a community event that celebrated the survival of indigenous culture and heritage. The event has grown and grown over the 3 years it has been running. At this years event the crowd was bigger than ever with over 1000 people attending, it was also broadcast on 3CR community radio too, which was a fantastic addition to the day.

Aunty Dot Peters gave the official welcome.

Judith Durham OAM and Kutcha Edwards treated the crowd to Judith’s all inclusive version of Advance Australia Fair.

Nigel Wilkes and his dance troupe kept the crowd mesmerised with their dancing.

Uncle Henry Atkinson talked about history, the constitution and the terrible atrocities indigenous people have endured since the arrival of white man. Sparkleland provided entertainment for the kids and the Stray Blacks rounded off the program.

I have been proud to be a supporter of Belgrave Survival day since its inception. As part of the proceedings I spoke about some of the ongoing issues that need to be resolved in order to achieve reconciliation and self determination.

“….the Victorian Constitutional and Human Rights Charter provisions do not yet adequately recognise the prior occupation of Victoria by Victoria’s indigenous Peoples, nor does it recognise their strong cultural and spiritual connection to the land or their rights as owners and custodians of the land.

We have an obligation to recognise self-determination as a right of all Peoples recognised by international law and the UN declaration of rights of indigenous peoples….”

I went on to talk about the shire’s commitment to our indigenous community.

“The Shire of Yarra Ranges has a rich Indigenous history. In partnership with our Indigenous community, the Shire seeks to
- strengthen relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities
- raise awareness of Indigenous history and issues
- reduce Indigenous disadvantage by the provision of culturally appropriate services, and
- promote Reconciliation on an ongoing basis through our Reconciliation Strategy and Action plan….

….The Shire of Yarra Ranges council takes indigenous issues very seriously, we are one of the only municipalities in Victoria who employs a full time indigenous development officer to work with our indigenous community.

We are proud to acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land. We are proud to fly the aboriginal flag. We recognise the uniqueness and diversity of our Indigenous community and we are committed to Reconciliation….”

“Indigenous communities in Victoria continue to face intolerable inequities in health, education, employment, the provision of public services and justice. We must focus on grassroots and state-wide solutions that result in local, regional and systemic reconciliation. We must eradicate individual and institutional racism. Only with these measures we can start to address these intolerable inequities and work to true reconciliation and self determination.”

“You have chosen to celebrate your Australia day by coming here committed to reconciliation and self determination and I thank you.”

survival day - belgrave 26 jan

The third annual Belgrave Survival Day is being held at the Cameo Outdoor Cinema on the 26th January. I have been proud to be able support this event since its inception in 2008. This year I was pleased to be able to assist organisers with a grant to secure Judith Durham OAM and Kutcha Edwards and his band to perform on the day.

Survival Day provides the community with an opportunity to celebrate Australia Day by recognising and celebrating the survival of indigenous culture locally and nationally. It is a great celebration of indigenous culture and heritage.

Indigenous elders, Aunty Dot and Uncle Henry will be there as well as Sparkleland children’s entertainer and the Healesville traditional dance troupe, indigenous artists the Stray Blacks will be making an appearance too. Judith Durham OAM will treat Belgrave Survival Day participants to her version of the Australian national anthem at 10:45am.

It is a great day out, I encourage you to come along and bring the family too, don’t forget to bring a hat and sunscreen! I look forward to seeing you there.

Details:
When: Tuesday 26th January, 2010 10am to 3pm
Where: Cameo Outdoor Cinema, Burwood Highway Belgrave (map)
Cost: Gold coin
Access: plenty of parking nearby and close to Belgrave railway station too (Mel Ref 75E10)