Advocating for change
Reconciliation Week commenced across the region on Friday with National Sorry Day.
A morning tea at Horsham Town Hall marked the occasion, with Horsham Rural City Mayor Robyn Gulline saying a few words to welcome people to the event.
Cr Gulline said this year’s Reconciliation Week was a chance to build on last year’s theme ‘be brave, make change’.
National Sorry Day focuses on survivors of the Stolen Generation and encourages people to reflect on the healing process of both Indigenous people and the nation.
Aunty Annie Nikkelson told her own story of hardship as part of the Stolen Generations.
She said she grew up in Ballarat after being taken away from her mob aged two, being passed through the foster care system.
She said her upbringing had a negative effect on her relationship to her own cultural identity.
“It took me a while to realise who I was,” she said.
Aunty Annie said she was brought back to the Wimmera region, where her people were from, during her 20s.
On Sorry Day, she urged people to make change and educate themselves.
Aunty Annie said it was okay for people to say sorry, but education and positive change needed to follow.
“It’s those actions that are coming into play,” she said.
Aunty Annie is chairperson of the committee behind the Stolen Generations Reparations Package, which was brought into effect by the State Government last year.
“Trauma doesn’t just affect us. It’s our kids, grandkids, entire generations. For me, it was a journey – for a lot of us it is a journey,” she said.
Sorry Day also saw flag raising ceremonies in Stawell and St Arnaud.
Northern Grampians Mayor Kevin Erwin spoke of the role of local government in pursuing reconciliation.
“The process to heal the divide and to acknowledge the past must be taken seriously,” he said.
“As a council, we are wholeheartedly committed to this journey.”