Last night Tomorrow Movement ran a Solidarity and Justice in Action Training.
We run this training because as a Movement of mostly settlers, we benefit from living on stolen land. We therefore take responsibility for educating ourselves on the history of colonisation and build solidarity into all of our campaign plans and actions. Edie Shepherd, a proud Wiradjuri and Noongar community organiser, wrote this training for us so that we can continue to bring our whole movement along on the never-ending learning journey that’s necessary for us to work in solidarity. Thank you Edie.
We shared two pre-readings for the session. The first is the Timeline of Resistance, developed by Original Power. The second is some useful definitions we used throughout the training, also sourced from Original Power.
We Are All Connected to Colonisation
On the call we shared our personal stories, how each of us ended up living on the land that we do, and how those stories connect to the ongoing system of colonisation that is happening on this land. Personally, I reflected on what it means to be a settler across place. My ancestry is from British/Irish settlers in Aotearoa, before my parents migrated across Te Tai-o-Rehua/Tasman Sea to settle on Dharawal country in Wollongong, so-called Australia when I was a child. In all periods of my life I have benefited from living on colonised lands, on both sides of the Tasman. Growing up on stolen Dharawal land has shaped who I am and how I see the world, and I have been unaware of the true history of this land for most of the time I have benefited from living on it.
We shared what solidarity means – grounding this in the quote from Aboriginal Rights groups in Queensland in the 1970s and popularised by Gangula visual artist, activist and academic Lilla Watson: “If you have come here to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.”
We spoke about the nature of accompliceship – where there is an essential element of recognising the privilege of being a settler and taking on personal risk (e.g. in relationships, in interactions with police, in calling in/out harmful behaviours) with that privilege front of mind. Being an accomplice is a practice, not an identity, and comes with a responsibility and commitment to challenging colonial power structures for mutual liberation.
Towards Truth-Telling
We then dived into the strong history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander resistance across so-called Australia (shout out to Original Power for creating this resource!). We learned about some peak moments of protest since colonisation, a couple of which are summarised below.
Gurindji Strike/Wave Hill Walk Off (1996)
- 200 Gurindji workers walked off work on the Wave Hill Cattle Station, asserting their right to live and work on Country.
- Not the first or the only demand by Aboriginal people for the return of their Land – but it was an early call to attract wide public support within Australia
- Some white unionists supported the Gurindji workers’ fight for better wages and conditions, the underlying motivations and outcomes of this support were not always aligned with the Gurindji’s broader goals of land rights and self-determination
- The strike lasted 7 years, and demonstrates the bravery and strategy in economically disruptive protest.
Tent Embassy (1972)
- Set up by a group of First Nations activists, calling for Land Rights. Calls now include for sovereignty and decolonisation
- Continues to this day, the longest running protest in so-called Australia’s colonial history, and is a platform for current resistance organising
- Shows the unending commitment to continuous resistance modelled by Mob and the value of symbolic protest.
Noonkanbah Oil Protests (1980)
- Yungngora People and allies blockaded mining access to the Noonkanbah station, controlled by Traditional Owners. Amax was attempting to drill for oil near Yungngora sacred sites.
- An early example of public resistance to police & the mining industry on so-called Australia
- Won support from the union movement: delegates at a Trades and Labour Council (TLC, today called UnionsWA) meeting in Perth 2,500 km away, passed a solidarity motion on hearing about the traditional owners’ stand.
There are so many lessons in strong community organising we can learn from the continued resistance to colonisation led by Mob since colonisation, many more than are listed here. It is crucial to learn these lessons not only as part of truth-telling about the history of the lands on which we live, but also to strengthen our organising practices in the struggle for mutual liberation. Please check out the timeline for more great examples.
Solidarity in Practice
Learning on its own is not acting in solidarity, and not being an accomplice. With that in mind we spent some time brainstorming and sharing ways to tangibly demonstrate the practice of accompliceship with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Some points included:
- Getting to know community leaders when you see them at protests and public events, to start the process of building trust.
- Committing weekly to responding to and amplifying mutual aid calls from First Nations sources.
- Learning the true history of the Land on which you live, and actively sharing that learning in conversation with friends and family.
- Adjusting priorities in your life so you have space to show up more when calls come out from First Nations organisers for support.
- Keeping up with current events via First Nations-run media, following Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander sources on social media and making showing up a priority.
Living as a settler on stolen land I am thinking about how I will change the way I live to practice being an accomplice. If you are living on stolen land too – will you do the same?
Jack, on behalf of Tomorrow Movement.
P.S. looking for an immediate way to practice solidarity? Donate to the Mob Strong Fund, an open, ongoing mutual aid fund set up by Mob, for Mob. This fund quickly and directly responds to financial support requests from Blakfullas. Whether it’s rent, groceries, health costs, or crisis needs, we see the requests and we move funds straight to community, no strings attached or state involvement. via @ngurambang (follow them on instagram).