A story about aboriginal identity

Website design By BotEap.comMy story begins as a descendant of the original inhabitants of Australia; I am Aboriginal, with a mixture of English and Dutch ancestry. During my infant and elementary school years up to the age of 8, I lived with my extended family in a place called “Blackman’s Point”. Like most state towns in eastern New South Wales, this was also a site of massacre for Aboriginal ancestors and mothers that occurred during the settlement of the coastal town of Port Macquarie in the mid-19th century. “Blackman’s Point” is called “Goolawahl”. (Pronounced gool-a-wall.) in birripi culture.

Website design By BotEap.comThe many rivers that flow from the western mountains and the Great Diving Range to our coastal sea (Pacific Ocean) mostly have aboriginal stories of “creation” tied to them. Just as the “Noongar” people of Western Australia/Northern Territory and the “Pitjanjarra” of South Australia have their “dream time” culture and beliefs. So do the Aboriginal lineages of New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria.

Website design By BotEap.comThe Aboriginal people of Australia in New South Wales refer to themselves as “Goori”, “Boori” or “Murri” and are related in this way as opposed to the European version of “Koori”. The kinship we all shared in the 1960s was strong, as I remember our old rented cottage at “Blackmans Point” (as did we) endure three major floods in 1963, 1964 and 1966.

Website design By BotEap.comVirtually the entire town of Port Macquarie was under water at some point during those summer occasions when months of heavy rain caused masses of water from the mountains to flow down along the Hastings River (Dhoongang) only to reach the sea. to be pushed inward by the enormous king tides of the Pacific Ocean.

Website design By BotEap.comIt was during the 1964 flood (the largest on record in Port Macquarie) that our family lost Sister Patricia as we were both hospitalized with the onset of double pneumonia. Patricia was one year old, I was 3 years old. After the floods of 1966 and until 1968 our extended families of cousins, sisters, brothers, uncles, aunts, mother, father, grandmothers, grandfathers had to leave the old country houses (they were two country houses separated by a bridge over a tributary to the river), had suffered much damage as the floods raged and no wooden structure could have held up as they did when the bridge was swept away, roads washed away, cattle, sheep, farmers’ crops, and whatever other living creature that had no wings. Luckily Uncle Trevor Rumbel (he had a fisherman’s license) had two boats to save us as the Hastings River poured in through the front door at 2am in the morning. The front door was raised 6 feet with wooden stairs down to the creek. (tributary)

Website design By BotEap.comMy sister Tanya was born in 1966 and Jo-anne was born in 1968, the Vietnam War was on TV and there was little room for all the kids (there were 13 of us) to fit in front of the only black and white TV. place. We had plenty of other swimming, fishing and tree climbing activities to do most of the time. After leaving Port Macquarie and the extended family, Dad, Mom, Tanya, Jo-anne and I moved further north about 160 miles to the town of Evans Head. Yes, another important aboriginal place, from “Bunjalung” people. Evans Head (Goanna Headland) is a mythological “dreaming hour” site.

Website design By BotEap.comCorroboree and ceremonies were held on that promontory (bora land) to honor their spirit totem Goanna, as well as to increase fish supplies with their Bungalung tribal songs. Evans Head is today as then a fishing village with fishing trawlers and recreational boats moored at the Fish Cooperative along the Evans Head River.

Website design By BotEap.comEvans Head had large clay banks (used for ceremonial body painting). After leaving in 1969 we headed back up the coast to Sawtell which is 10 miles south of Coffs Harbor (pioneer cedar lumber mill) with a large jetty built for ships to transport the rich cedar to England and Europe. Starting sixth grade was in a town called “Woolgoolga” (currently population 25000) approximately 15 miles north of Coffs Harbor (population 100,000) on the mid north coast of New South Wales. Woolgoolga, Sawtell and Coffs Harbor are cities located in the country of “Gumbaynggir” or “Gumbangar”. “Woolgoolga is a variation of the word Gumbaynggir for “Weilga” or native plum. My grandfather William “Goola” (koala) Holten (1923 -2002) used to tell me that when disputes between the tribes of the “Birripi” and the neighboring ” Dunghutti” (raven people) it so happened that it was the Gumbaynggir who mediated the fights. The Birripi and Dunghutti people have a long association with the Gumbaynggir. I also learned that the spirit biripi goanna “Booral-men-den-di” (Boeing size 767) caused sand to be placed on top of the “Yarrahapinni” mountain (three koalas rolling down the hill – legend of Gumbaynggir) while moving its giant tail in the sandy loam to escape the attacks of the giant “Crows” (Dhungutti) According to “Dreamtime” the giant birripi goanna spewed fire at the giant crows (Dhungutti) and that’s why all crows are black today.

Website design By BotEap.comDuring the European colonization of Port Macquarie as a penal colony in the 19th century, a major battle between the Europeans and the Birripi, Dhungutti and Gumbaynggir peoples was fought at “Goolawahl”. The story of the battle describes how the Hastings River had turned red with the blood of the fallen.

Website design By BotEap.comMy mother and sister remain in Woolgoolga and my sister Tanya, my father and my grandmother passed away there. After the Aboriginal Land Rights Act was passed in 1983, which allowed Aboriginal people to claim crown land for members of their community in NSW, there were many important improvements in education, employment and self-determination for Aboriginal people. aborigines in NSW.

Website design By BotEap.comIn 1993, the Australian High Court struck down the “terra nullius” doctrine that Australia was unoccupied when Europeans settled in Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour). Eddie Mabo, Meriam village elder, claimed common law title to his island Murri off the north Queensland coast and asserted the common law rights through the Queensland federal courts for 10 years that his people held unconquered ownership and occupation of their island and that no government in Australia had a better title than they.

Website design By BotEap.comEddie Koiki Mabo (1936-1992) passed away before the High Court passed judgment.

Website design By BotEap.comIn 1997, the Native Title Act 1993 was virtually watered down with amendments enacted by the Liberal Government of Australia and the then Prime Minister Hon John Howard MP. The so-called “Wik Plan” of 10 points

Website design By BotEap.com(Wik was the name of the tribe from the Northern Territory, Gulf of Carpentaria) who faced a scheme to be granted native title, would also have to agree to allow pastoral leases to coexist with their native title claim in the Gulf of Carpentaria Australia. In addition, the customary rights of all Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders claiming native title were subject to the 10-point Wik Plan.

Website design By BotEap.comAs the “Wik” people planned:

Website design By BotEap.com(who spoke neither English nor could understand a word) voted in the affirmative for proposed amendments to the Native Title Act of 1993 to allow pastoral leaseholds on tribal land to co-exist with native title holders and for the remainder of the aboriginal race of Australia to prove Native Title in a Federal Court for each application to claim Native Title rights.

Website design By BotEap.comI was informed (names were not given) that due to the supervision of the (government appointed) interpreter at the 1997 “Wik” conference, it took some time before the Wik representatives lowered their hand from the call to vote . Apparently, the interpreter had forgotten to tell them to stop voting. (tongue in cheek)

Website design By BotEap.comSince 1993 ten native title claims have been determined.

Website design By BotEap.comAs of 2000, 561 native title claims by claimants had been filed in Australia.

Website design By BotEap.comAs of 2000, 63 native title claims had been made for the Northern Territory.

Website design By BotEap.comI have worked for and am a member of the Aboriginal Land Council since 1992. I was elected to the board of the Darkinjung Aboriginal Land Council in September 2009.