Here are 7 facts you need to know about Australia’s First Peoples.
Identity is tied to the cultures a person is raised in and how they identify with that culture
Source: SBS
One of the biggest myths about Aboriginality is that if you have fair skin you can’t be Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander.
Culture represents the ways of living that are built up by groups and transmitted from one generation to another
Source: Getty Images
The essential features of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures include a special connection to the land and commitment to family and community.
Rights of citizenship were not extended to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples at Federation in 1901
Documentary, Vote Yes For Aborigines celebrating its historical significance and contemporary relevance of the 1967 Referendum. Source: Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies/Audio Visual Archive
‘Dreaming’ or ‘Dreamtime’ are English words that describe a rich Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander concept
Source: NITV
For Aboriginal people ‘Dreaming’ is more than a mythical past: “It prescribes our connection as Aboriginal people with the spiritual essence of everything around us and beyond us. Dreaming stories are not in the past, they are outside of time – always present and giving meaning to all aspects of life.” –
Language identifies who Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are and where they come from
Angelina Joshua keeping the language alive at the Ngukurr Language Centre (Photo by Elise Derwin for SBS) Source: Photo by Elise Derwin for SBS
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are connected to country through lines of descent (paternal and maternal), as well as clan and language groups
Source: NITV
"When we say country we might mean homeland or tribal or clan area and in saying so we may mean something more than just a place; somewhere on the map. We are not necessarily referring to place in a geographical sense. But we are talking about the whole of the landscape, not just the places on it." – Professor Mick Dobson AM
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples established effective ways to use and sustain resources of the land
Source: Supplied - NITV
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