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.