NAIDOC Week at St Dominic’s College
NAIDOC originally stood for ‘National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee’. This committee was once responsible for organising national activities during NAIDOC Week and its acronym has since become the name of the week itself.
NAIDOC Week celebrations are held across Australia each July to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. NAIDOC is celebrated not only in Indigenous communities, but by Australians from all walks of life. Our College assembly is our opportunity to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of our nations first peoples.
By Mr R Peake
The Theme- Voice, Treaty, Truth
By Cooper Hill – Year 11
Today’s assembly is to celebrate 2019’s NAIDOC week. The theme this year revolves around the words Voice, Treaty and Truth. This combination of words invites all of us as Australians to walk together towards a better future.
Voice stems from the Indigenous voice of this country that has been around for over 65,000 yrs. These are the first words spoken on this continent, and the languages have been passed down, bringing with them the culture, hopes, knowledge and ambitions of Indigenous Australians. These words connect all of us to our country and reveal the understanding of all Indigenous teachings.
Indigenous voice has sadly been oppressed for many years, but by teaching Australians about the truth of our past and encouraging all of us to use our voices for the improvement of our nation, we can come to some true reconciliation and genuine healing for all.
Still to this day, Indigenous people are pushing for their voice to be heard, and for their own selves to be acknowledged. Australia is one of the few liberal democracies around the world which still does not have treaties or some other kind of formal acknowledgement with its Indigenous minorities. Because of this, Indigenous people are continuing to feel invalid and subdued. The only way to combat this is to realise and own the past and use what is has taught us to continue to better our society.
The Voice, Treaty and Truth theme of 2019 intertwines all these elements regarding Indigenous and Torres Straight Islander efforts to strive for a positive future. Our stories must be told, heard and acknowledged in order to, as a nation, work together in building a future that we are not only proud of, but happy to know we were a part of it.
