Recognition, Response, Reconcilation

By Ashley Saulog, 1st year MDP student

Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islanders' flags

Ninna Marni

Magandang araw

Hello

I would like to acknowledge that the land I am on today is the traditional lands of the Kaurna people and that I respect their spiritual relationship with their Country. I also acknowledge the Kaurna people as the traditional custodians of the Adelaide region and that their cultural and heritage beliefs are still as important to the living Kaurna people today.

I am grateful and honoured to be able to be a visitor and student amongst amazing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders, community members, educators, and government officials here in Adelaide, South Australia.

For 12 weeks, Reconciliation South Australia (SA) has graciously taken me under their wing to learn and participate in the reconciliation activities and efforts among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and the broader Australian society. Reconciliation South Australia is a non-profit organization with the vision of increasing understanding of the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to live in a just and equitable society. I was fortunate enough to arrive in South Australia during Reconciliation SA’s busiest time of the year consisting of Reconciliation Week, NAIDOC Week, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Day.

The Reconciliation SA team is led by Executive Director Shona Reid, who has guided me into the reconciliation space at the state level. She has welcomed me into conversations surrounding pushing reconciliation across different systems to create social change through the five critical dimensions that together represent a holistic and comprehensive picture of reconciliation in Australia. Reconciliation SA works within the five dimensions identified to measure reconciliation in Australia: race relations, equality and equity, institutional integrity, unity, and historical acceptance.  

Generations of Change program in Mount Gambier, South Australia

A highlight of my placement was my involvement with the Generations of Change program that is delivered in partnership of Reconciliation SA and ActNow Theatre Company. Students and teachers experience the ‘Responding to Racism’ interactive theatre performance delivered by ActNow Theatre which is crucial to encouraging the students to interject and inspire responses about safe responses to racist microaggression.  In the first segment of the program called Learn, students are paired with actors or Reconciliation SA staff and are asked to share personal or second-hand stories of encountering racism. Hearing the youth voice their opinions and lived experiences of racism made me reflect and share my own experiences of growing up in Canada as a first generation, Filipino Canadian. We discussed the difficulties of identity, the contradictions of home life and school life, and the importance of cultural representation at schools. The safe environment and open conversations allowed the students and me to bond over how similar our stories are.

I am looking forward to sharing more of my relationships and adventures with Reconciliation SA over the next few weeks!