This post originally appeared in 2022, around the time of the release of The Australian Wars documentary. It is a very useful podcast and accompanying text.
Many of the remarks in the podcast echo Rachel Perkins' and Henry Reynolds' contributions to the documentary (summarised on Defending Country), particularly on how the Australian Wars were essential to the foundation of the modern Australian state, or refer to Ms Perkins' family history, the National Museum's holdings of Aboriginal relics and bones, and the toll of the Native Police in Queensland. There is also discussion of the implications and contradictions of the terra nullius doctrine.
It is, however, the comments of White Tasmanian historian, Dr Nick Clements, which hit particularly hard. He, too, appeared in The Australian Wars documentary. Here, he says:
Aboriginal resistance [in Tasmania] was striking. Everybody knew somebody in the colonial world who had been killed or wounded by Aboriginal people, who had their farms burnt down. It was absolutely terrifying.
Whether someone's ancestors were involved or not, we are all the inheritors of Aboriginal land, which was stolen land. At a minimum, we all have a role to play in unveiling this history, coming to terms with this history and playing a role in a positive future.
Dr Clements believes that "lest we forget", the phrase commonly used to honour Australian fallen soldiers, should be extended to those warriors who fought against the British occupation of their lands.
“I would feel so much prouder if my country acknowledged with courage its own past, the wrongs of its predecessors, and fully committed to righting those wrongs to the best of its ability in the future … I want my children to go up where, in the landscape, whether it's with memorials or whether it's with dual naming, Aboriginality is there, it's present, it’s acknowledged.”
Defending Country review of The Australian Wars book. Peter Stanley's report of book launch at the Australian War Memorial with Ms Perkins and Professor Reynolds. Rachel Perkins on the ABC.
Picture credit: Promotional poster for The Australian Wars TV documentary, Dir. Rachel Perkins, reproduced by permission SBS.
