Standing in Solidarity
We here at Windmill have been spending time listening and learning.
We have the privilege of living and working on Kaurna Land, and creating theatre on the lands of the oldest storytelling culture in the world.
As a company that tours locally, nationally and internationally, we’re connected to people in every corner of the community. We’ve had the privilege to work with artists, creatives and audiences all over the globe. We stand with African American communities in the U.S.A and with Australia’s own First Nation’s Communities in the fight against systemic racism.
At Windmill we believe everyone has the right to feel safe, valued and loved. This is an important time for us to listen and assess how we live, work and create.
The work of dismantling systemic racism is never done. It takes time. Below is a list of causes and other resources that you can support or use to educate yourself during this time.
Somewhere to donate:
This list of causes has been a helpful starting point for our staff to engage with this issue.
- The Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement: Promotes legal, cultural, economic, political and social rights for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as dispossessed peoples within South Australia
- National Justice Project: Combining strategic legal action with effective advocacy to advance human rights and social justice in Australia
- Sisters Inside: Advocating for the human rights of women and girls in prison
- Justice for Yuendumu: Inquiry on Police shooting
- Justice for David Dungay Junior: Inquiry into Aboriginal death in custody
- In Memory of Joyce Clarke #JusticeforJoyce: Inquiry on Police Shooting
- Day Family Fundraiser: Support the Family of Aunty Tanya Day for her death in custody coronial inquest
- Support LGBTQIA+ First Nations community via Black Rainbow
- Pay the Rent Australia
- Bridge the Gap foundation: Bridging the gap between the health and education opportunities and outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, through the funding of essential and continued research
- The Indigenous Literacy Foundation: Providing books and literacy to remote Australian communities
Something to read:
In addition to donating, it’s vital that we all work to educate ourselves and listen to First Nations people where we can. Here is a short, non-exhaustive list to get you started. We encourage you to go beyond this list and continue to learn. We’ll be updating this with other things we find useful over the coming weeks and months. Please check back for updates. If you have resources that you have found helpful, please get in touch.
‘There Cannot be 432 Victims and no perpetrators’
By Amy McQuire
Numbers conceal the full extent of the violence, just as official explanations for deaths – “natural causes” – have a way of rendering invisible the multiple forms of state-sanctioned violence that force Aboriginal people into jail in the first place.
Amy McQuire is one of the Australia’s finest writers. In this landmark article she expertly explains how First Nations people have been let down by Australia’s legal system. Read it via The Saturday Paper here.
The work of Doctor Chelsea Bond
Doctor Chelsea Bond’s research and writing is a fascinating, and very informative, look at how the dominant narratives underpinning Australian culture often work against First Nations people.
You can read some of her work here.
Magabala Books
Magabala Books is Australia’s leading publisher of First Nations voices and have worked with writers including Bruce Pascoe and Alison Whittaker. They publish books for all age groups and make an excellent addition to your home library.
View their catalogue here.
Something to Watch:
An Excerpt from City of Gold by Meyne Wyatt
Meyne Wyatt’s City of Gold is one of the most exciting new Australian plays of the past decade. His fierce performance on Q&A has ignited debate all over the country. You can watch it here.
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