This Black Skin

Upon visiting Australia I realized that I have not seen a lot of black people here. My original explanation had to do with the fact that there may not be a lot of immigrants here. This was quickly disproven when I went out and talked to locals. Most of the people who had either immigrated here or were visiting were of Anglo Saxon or of Asian descent.  In fact, Australia is a whopping 92% White 7% Asian and 1% Aboriginal and other. When you take into consideration that Aboriginals used to be the only people inhabiting this land these numbers are incredible. THIS is when the power of knowledge became handy.

His name was Martin Crotty and he is an associate professor in the school of History, Philosophy, Religion and Classics at the University of Queensland. Though he hails from New Zealand, he knew quite a lot about Australian history. He broke his lecture down into three categories: European “discovery”; “Settlement” and Nation Building and Australia Since 1901. His lecture opened my eyes to the world around me and really helped me get a historical reference point that helped the reasoning behind my earlier mentioned demographic breakdown unfold.

When Europeans got here in 1788 there grand, fanciful theories about what the continent would look like. Cartographers made it out to be a much larger landmass and there were grand notions of it either being a land full of gold or women. They were quickly disappointed to find none of that there. When they realized that they didn’t immediately find anything profitable, they decided to make solve their overcrowded prison population by sending prisoners there instead.  After these early inhabitants set up infrastructures to make this place more like home, the British decided to exploit the abundance of land and wool in the area.

Settlers knew that there were other people in Australia. In fact, early drawings of Aboriginals painted them as noble savages, almost Greek in nature. 

 Before Australia landed on their colonial radar, early "settlers" looked at the Aboriginal population as a classical, noble savage. This changed when they started getting comfortable and wanted to take over. Europeans couldn’t understand the hierarchal structure of Aboriginal tribes so they took it upon themselves to “tame” these people and civilize these dark skinned natives they now portrayed as wild beasts. There was quite a lot of resistance from the locals but they just couldn’t keep up with the guns, horses and dogs that Anglo Saxons were fighting with. They had pretty much lost the battle by 1901 when Australia was extremely settled and very rich in production and trade.

A depiction of Aboriginal Resistance. 

Propaganda for White Australia Movement.

And then came White Australia. Australia made it evident that foreigners, especially those of different skin colors, were not welcome. They set up complex dictation test and even militarized themselves when other over crowded countries began to complain. They received pressure from Japan, China, India and Germany to open their doors to diversity.  The country held out for a while but WWI took a lot out of the Australia. They had to fight with the British and lost a large amount of people. This forced the government to open up their definition of whiteness and they began to let Eastern Europeans into the mix. When WWII came around Australia, desperate to bring its economy up to speed, made an alliance with the U.S and decided that White Australia was a thing of the past in this progressive, war torn world. They switched to a model of multiculturalism but alas the damage seems to have already been done. Aboriginals have been forced out of a lot of the urban areas of Australia due to racism and historical injustice.  It is interesting because in America, black people were forced in, but here it seems that they were forced out. I’m not saying that I prefer either but it would be nice to see another beautiful, black familiar face.

Beginnings

Yesterday, after my doctor’s appointment, I had the privilege of going to the Queensland Museum where I had a wonderful experience. I missed the chance to get enlightened by an Aboriginal speaker but I did get to see an exhibit on Aboriginals in the museum which was informative and quite beautiful.

   The exhibition entitled Dandirri Maiwar meaning “meet the river” presented the history of the Aboriginal and Torres Islanders cultures. The exhibit consists of six walk-in circles, three devoted to aboriginals and three to Torres Strait Islanders, giving equal weight to both indigenous cultures. One daunting experience for me was to learn the differences between the two.

Torres Strait Islander Flag Made in 1992

Torres Straight Islanders are people living along the Torres Strait between Australia and New Guinea.  They are sea faring people but according to the museum’s website 8,500 of them inhabit the islands. Most islanders—30,000— live in Australia and are concentrated in Queensland. They have a distinct culture where three different languages are spoken. They are similar to aborigines, meaning the first people to inhabit a place because they are proud or their connection to the culture of Papua New Guinea as well. The colors of their flag are:

Blue for the sea

Green for the land

Black for the people

White for Peace

There is also a Dhari head dress which is a ceremonial artifact and stands for Torres Strait culture.

Aboriginals with a capital A refer to a specific culture that has been in Australia for over 60,000 years. They are known as the oldest surviving vulture in the world. With 700 languages spoken among them, Aboriginals are categorized not as one but many people. They share cultural traditions like dances, food and ancient art but there are no distinctive kings or queens in their culture. This actually worked against them when Europeans began to colonize Australia in 1888. New comers did not understand this culture and ended up claiming the land for themselves in Terra Nullius, a law meaning that the land was basically unsettled and open for claiming. This, of course, was not true and the Aboriginal people have been oppressed for years due to this history. The colors of the Aboriginal flag are:

Black for the people

Yellow for the sun (The giver of life)

Red for the earth (the spirit of Australia)

Aboriginal Flag made in 1970 by Harold Thomas. It was made an official flag of Australia in 1995.

Both of these cultures have had to resist European influence and share an incredible resilience when it comes to their cultural art and traditions.  They have been able to preserve their cultures and have unique flags representing the way that they see as important part parts of Australia. They are intrinsically linked through the land and it is important that their cultures are not forgotten and that their issues and cultures are remembered in contemporary Australian culture. The director or the Australian Broadcast Corporation points out problems with the reality of this notion. When asked if viewers care about Aboriginal issues he honestly answered “No, they don’t”. A silence filled the room and spoke to the helplessness of preserving Australia’s origin. A fight that seems to have no fair outcome when considering the fact that Aboriginals are already expected to die 17 years before other Australians due to the stresses put on their way of life.

Welcome to Brisbane!

Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital where I began my stay Down Under.

So it’s my second night in Australia and I’ve just spent 6 hours in the hospital. WELCOME! Right? Long story short, a pre-existing condition and my long travels may have caused a blood clot to form in my lung but what has been most fascinating about all of this is what I have learned about this trip and, more importantly myself. I will share both of these epiphanies with you in due time. Yes, this is unfortunate and a bit scary but, all things considered, my second day in Australia has been quite a unique and eye opening experience.

Upon my arrival, I experienced a phenomenon known as culture shock quite immediately. None of my electrical devices worked, I became aware of all of the things I forgot and I really missed my loved ones back home. I also noticed a growing pain in my side, which is the reason for my hospital stint down under. I’ve traveled internationally before when I was in high school so I thought this would be the proverbial “piece of cake”.  I was frustrated that everyone seemed to be accepting this change so well and I couldn’t get with the groove. Then it occurred to me that this was the farthest I’d ever really gone from home. I finally got to tell people back home that I was here and maybe I just needed some food and some sleep in me and all will be well.

Fast forward to the next day. We were to go to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, which was AWESOME! We got to see a multitude of animals including the Dingo, a wombat, and tons of koalas! 

A female on a man-made Eucalyptus tree area at the Lone Pin Koala Sanctuary

Unfortunately, all of this was still over shadowed by the fact all of these outside influences which were mostly superficial but my health was something that I could not ignore. I had to go through multiple tests that involved hours at the hospital but I actually learned a lot about the Australian people from being there. First of all, I learned that they are an extremely friendly heap of people. Most of the people that I encountered were incredibly friendly. It took a little getting used to because, in my experience, they don’t exactly go out of there way to help you but when they give you their attention everyone kept there focus on you. It wasn’t like in America where people laud multi-tasking even when they are interacting with other humans. I was also surprised that I haven’t been discriminated once for being a foreigner and not automatically knowing the customs of Aussie culture. I’ve asked people what the proper word for something is or how exactly you respond to “G’day mate” and they’ve just given  me the answers without being completely annoyed at my ignorance and it felt really nice when I was in such a vulnerable situation.

I am also really thankful for this country’s medical attitude toward it’s patients. Though there were a fair share of logistical hiccups, I was seen without much question of insurance. It felt like my health mattered first and I really attribute that to the beauty of medicare, which is a socially funded form of health care in Australia that ensures that everyone receives proper medical attention, regardless of economic stature. In the end, I’m alright but I honestly think that the road could have been A LOT bumpier.

This may have been a bit of a tangent from climate change but it has been a big part of my first couple of days here. Expect more beauty and culture as we go on. G’day! Hope you had a great Memorial Day. Not a thing here, obviously, but I try to stay connected where I can.