Wominjeka fellow travellers, welcome again to FNF. Last week the road took me to Camp Sovereignty at the Kings Domain in Naarm, Melbourne CBD.
What is Camp Sovereignty? Well Camp Sovereignty came about initially in 2005 as a site where a protest movement from the Australian-based ‘Black GST’, campaigning to end genocide (G), acknowledging sovereignty (S), and making treaties (T) with Indigenous Australians, occurred. The Camp Sovereignty protest initially organised and led by various well-known Indigenous activists including Marg Thorpe, Gary Foley and Robbie Thorpe. Over the years since 2005 a number of peaceful protests and demonstrations have occurred at the site in an effort to promote Aboriginal activism and highlight the deficiencies suffered by many first nations people in modern Australia.
The main site of the protest at Kings Domain is a sacred burial site for repatriated deceased Wurundjeri and Bunurong people and is also a significant gathering site for the Kulin people, and a former Aboriginal reserve.
Last Sunday’s event was a ‘snap action in response to the attack on Camp Sovereignty by a so-called Neo-Nazi group the previous weekend and a stand against fascism.’ The genuine warmth of the large crowd in attendance, the fantastic music and dance from a myriad of Indigenous performers could only make one feel how good we are when we come together and the fracas of the previous week was hardly mentioned. We are all different yet all Australian and all traveling on a road that sometimes climbs, bends, curves and meanders, but the road is the more pleasant for the company you keep along the way.
Till next week Triganin – see you soon.
Learn about more events like this on the Victorian Aboriginal Community Events Facebook page.
