One of the most troublesome subjects for interpreters who work with Australian languages is finding acceptable ways to refer to the concept of a sacred site. In Kuninjku, these are known as Djang. In central Australia, the term Tjukurrpa is becoming more well known by non-Indigenous people. These terms involve more than just a location, but also ideas about deep history, the period of creation and the association between specific groups of people and totemic aspects which have their historical focus in these places. The term ‘Dreaming’ is so inadequate and misleading and so many Indigenous people are starting to reject this term, although others continue to use it.
Cultural recognition & sensitivity, jobs, affordable housing (including during occupation), tourism opportunities, environmental protection, identity, community, and the much touted “liveable city”. We live in a town that is being moulded by traffic engineers instead of strategic thinkers like urban designers, demographers and economists.
For James Jeffrey, it is not about the politics, but the people, which is probably why he has managed to survive for so long in the toxic political environment at the Oz, stuffed as it is with Liberal Party operatives and conservative thinkers (forgive the oxymoron). He is genuinely (not, unlike many News Corpse writers, unintentionally) funny. Deeply funny. The kind of funny that leaves you in tears, but not always tears of laughter.
The field spreads out before us as a jacket of a tradie after a Saturday night at Monsoons nightclub in Darwin. We feel a level of regret akin to those Sunday mornings at having parted with 35 precious dollars to observe a wide scale recreation of the lightbulb section of Aisle 12 Bunnings.
Further to the previous post by John Birmingham published at his Alien Side Boob website, this just popped into my inbox from Chips Mackinolty. It is a poster—among many—that he knocked up while at the Earthworks Poster Collective in Sydney around this time. Chips also sent through the following short note … see, even New South […]
I took a stroll around Alice Springs the other day … well, really I took a drive, it was 40C or so outside of the air-conditioned Troopie … here are some things I saw.
Now after the Catholic church has spent over a century stripping us of everything they could get their thieving hands on including our culture and our children, they have managed to find themselves another role to play. To add insult to injury they now present themselves to the world as the preservers and keepers of Tiwi culture.
Ben the Dingo has a combination of freedom, security, love and wildness that suits him perfectly. He is an entity to himself and well loved in the community and beyond. He has been given a chance in life and has thrived.
This is a guest post by Sean Davey, a freelance photographer, curator and gallery director based in Canberra, Australia. For the last week and a half, Judy Bamberger has been staging a one-woman protest at the front of Parliament House in Canberra, sitting under a makeshift awning in the constant rain. Judy is protesting the treatment […]
I spent a few days in Geelong (yes, I have a good reason) earlier this week. Inspired by the photos of Koulla Roussos of empty shops and premises in Darwin, I thought I’d document a few of the fag ends of capitalism scattered around the Geelong CBD. Your comments are welcome …