Drugs hurting indigenous culture
WELLINGTON’S drug culture has had a profound impact on the tight-knit town, particularly its indigenous community. Former resident and proud Wiradjuri man Jeff Amatto remembers a childhood where life was relatively carefree.
“It was great growing up on Nanima,” he said. “I miss it a lot. It was a massive part of my life. We did a lot of hunting, rabbiting, fishing, and I was fortunate to go to preschool with my cousins,” he said.
Going to primary school in town was when life began taking a wrong turn for Mr Amatto, who sadly started taking drugs from a young age.
“I became disconnected from culture,” he said.
“I started realising there wasn’t a lot of cultural stuff happening and our culture was sliding out the door.”
Gambling, alcoholism and domestic violence were also common.
“In the indigenous community, it is normal. I started believing it was normal. I started to veer off track.”
Mr Amatto says they struggled as a family, and he felt low self-esteem at school.
“My mum had her own demons. Trauma gets passed down to each generation. Going to school and seeing kids better off than me affected my self-esteem. Doing it tough with no lunch was hard when you were sitting next to a kid with nice tucker. That caused low self-esteem as a youngster.”
As a teen, Mr Amatto’s drug addiction worsened.
“The love of my life was alcohol
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and marijuana,” he admits. “But I spent years in misery and pain.
“At the age of 16 to 17, I needed heavier drugs and became a heroin user. In the ‘80s and ‘90s, there was a lot of heroin around town – it’s like any town. That’s when my life started spiralling downhill. Jail became part of my life.”
Eleven years ago, Mr Amatto was released from Bathurst Correctional Centre and was at his lowest point.
“I’m not proud of it, but I needed to do crime to feed my habit. I couldn’t afford it any other way. After my release, my mental health was shot through the roof. The walls were closing in on me. On top of my addiction was losing my family.”
Mr Amatto went to The Glen Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Centre on the Central Coast and
“A lot of drug and drink is because you don’t know any different. That’s the reason that I do what I do. If you haven’t lived the life, it’s hard to see what’s happening.
“We’ve got to start talking about it, it saddens and it hurts me. I see my mob in the struggle. They are left there on their own and drugs are part of the problem. What is there for people struggling with alcohol and drug addiction?
Mr Amatto said Wellington has been flooded with ice, heroin and cocaine from Sydney.
“Ice is the number one drug flooding our community. It’s a sad reality because I know the feeling it’s a very lonely, dark feeling.”
His message now is that communities like Wellington need rehabilitation centres instead of jails.
“We need more cultural rehabs. A lot of rehabs at the moment won’t take people with a criminal record. There’s no beds. If you commit a crime, there’s a bed straight away but if you want help, you have to wait for three months. With the cost to build one jail, we could have 40 rehabs.”
Mr Amatto says more counselling services for struggling indigenous people goes a long way but there is still more work to be done.
“By the time I was 22 or 23 I wanted to stop but there wasn’t enough help, I could speak to a counsellor but there was a lot of stuff to it.
“I look back and I wish there was a lot more support. Today, there are indigenous support workers and drug and alcohol workers.
“I was a kid that wouldn’t listen. I couldn’t focus. I saw DV in my home and in the community. There are still a lot of kids in that lifestyle today.”