IQ2 Racism Debate: Stan Grant
Summary
TLDRThe speaker addresses the Australian public, reflecting on the nation's identity and confronting its history of racism, particularly towards Indigenous Australians. Highlighting the case of Adam Goodes, an Indigenous Australian of the Year who was booed by crowds, the speech underscores the systemic injustices faced by Indigenous people, including shorter life expectancies and higher incarceration rates. The speaker calls for a reevaluation of the 'Australian dream', urging the nation to rise above its troubled past and embrace a future of equality and respect for all.
Takeaways
- 🙏 The speaker expresses gratitude for the audience and acknowledges the significance of the topic discussed.
- 🏟️ The script addresses a pivotal moment in 2015 when Australia faced introspection about its identity and values, sparked by events on the football field.
- 🗣️ The public humiliation of Adam Goodes, an indigenous Australian of the year, symbolizes a broader pattern of racism and exclusion experienced by indigenous people.
- 🌐 The 'Australian Dream' is critiqued as being rooted in racism, with indigenous Australians facing disparities in life expectancy, incarceration rates, and social inclusion.
- 📰 Historical references to the treatment of indigenous Australians, such as the war of extermination and the language used to dehumanize them, highlight the deep-seated nature of racism.
- 🏞️ The speaker recounts personal and familial experiences of hardship and resilience, emphasizing the struggle against systemic racism and the Australian Dream.
- 📜 The script mentions the absence of indigenous Australians in the Constitution and the subsequent race-based laws that further marginalized them.
- 🏛️ The speaker challenges the romanticized view of Australia's history, pointing out the violence and injustices committed against indigenous people.
- 🌟 Despite the adversity, the speaker acknowledges the achievements of indigenous Australians and the potential for a better, more inclusive future.
- 🤝 The script calls for unity and reconciliation, recognizing the efforts of those who stand against racism and work towards a more equitable Australia.
- 🎉 The speaker concludes with a hopeful vision of being able to celebrate the Australian Dream in a way that includes and uplifts all its citizens.
Q & A
What significant event in Australian history is being referred to in the script?
-The script refers to the racial controversy surrounding the indigenous Australian football player Adam Goodes in 2015, which sparked a national conversation about identity and racism.
What does the speaker mean by 'the Australian dream is rooted in racism'?
-The speaker suggests that the concept of the Australian dream, which is often associated with freedom and opportunity, is fundamentally flawed due to its historical roots in the dispossession and mistreatment of indigenous Australians.
What is the term 'terra nullius' and why is it significant in this context?
-'Terra nullius' is a Latin term meaning 'land belonging to no one', which was used by British colonizers to justify their claim over Australia, ignoring the long-standing presence and rights of indigenous peoples.
How does the speaker describe the treatment of indigenous Australians in the past?
-The speaker describes a history of violence, dispossession, and marginalization, including being shot on sight, subjected to diseases, and being rounded up and forced into missions.
What is the term 'Stolen Generations' and why was Kevin Rudd's apology significant?
-The 'Stolen Generations' refers to the indigenous children who were forcibly removed from their families by Australian government agencies. Kevin Rudd's apology in 2008 was significant as it was the first formal acknowledgment of this historical injustice by an Australian Prime Minister.
Why does the speaker mention the disparity in life expectancy and incarceration rates among indigenous Australians?
-The speaker highlights these disparities to illustrate the ongoing systemic inequality and social issues faced by indigenous Australians, which are a direct result of historical and ongoing racism.
What is the historical context of the speaker's family being affected by racism and discrimination?
-The speaker's family has faced multiple instances of racism and discrimination, including being denied education, being jailed for speaking their language, and being subjected to violence and forced removal from their land.
What is the 'night of the burning' incident mentioned in the script?
-The 'night of the burning' refers to an event in 1963 when police forcibly evicted the McCune Aboriginal community in Queensland, burned their homes, and gave the land to a bauxite mining company.
How does the speaker describe the impact of racism on the Australian dream?
-The speaker argues that racism is not only a part of the Australian dream's foundation but also actively undermines it, as it leads to social injustice and prevents the country from reaching its full potential.
What examples does the speaker provide of Australians standing up against racism?
-The speaker mentions people who supported Adam Goodes, those who marched for reconciliation, and those who supported Kevin Rudd's apology to the Stolen Generations as examples of Australians standing up against racism.
What is the speaker's hope for the future regarding the Australian dream?
-The speaker hopes for a future where they and others can proudly and loudly sing about the Australian dream without the taint of racism, indicating a hope for a more inclusive and equitable society.
Outlines
🏟️ Indigenous Struggle in Australia's Sporting Culture
The speaker begins by acknowledging the audience and expressing respect to the indigenous community, recalling the winter of 2015 when Australia faced a self-reflective moment about its identity and values. The focus was on the football field, where Adam Goodes, an indigenous Australian of the year, was subjected to public humiliation and booing, reflecting the deep-seated racism and dispossession that indigenous people have faced for centuries. The speaker highlights the stark contrast between the Australian dream of freedom and the harsh reality of indigenous Australians, who suffer from shorter life expectancies, higher imprisonment rates, and a history of extermination and marginalization. The narrative delves into the historical context of terra nullius, the denial of indigenous existence and rights, and the brutal treatment they received, including being hunted for sport and having their lands taken without consent.
🌏 Overcoming Adversity: The Australian Dream's Dark Side
In the second paragraph, the speaker continues to unravel the complexities of the Australian dream, sharing personal anecdotes of his family's struggles against systemic racism and the resilience that has allowed him to succeed despite these challenges. He recounts stories of his forebears who faced injustices such as denial of education, segregation, and violence. The speaker emphasizes that his achievements are not a result of the Australian dream but rather in spite of it. He also addresses the audience's potential comments about his mixed heritage, using his family's experiences to illustrate the ongoing impact of racism. The narrative concludes with a call for a better Australia, one that acknowledges and moves beyond its history of racism, and the speaker expresses hope for a future where his children can fully embrace the Australian identity without the taint of the past.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Indigenous
💡Dispossession
💡Humiliation
💡Australian Dream
💡Incarceration
💡Terra Nullius
💡Extermination
💡Stolen Generations
💡Racism
💡Reconciliation
Highlights
The speaker opens with gratitude and extends respect to indigenous Australians, setting a tone of acknowledgment and recognition.
Reflection on Australia's self-contemplation in 2015, sparked by a sporting event, highlighting the national identity crisis and the question of what kind of country Australia aspires to be.
The public humiliation of Adam Goodes, an indigenous Australian of the year, symbolizes the broader issues of racism and exclusion faced by indigenous people.
The 'howl of humiliation' is described as echoing two centuries of indigenous suffering, reflecting the deep-rooted injustices in Australian society.
Indigenous Australians' life expectancy is significantly lower than the national average, pointing to systemic health disparities.
A stark contrast is drawn between the small percentage of the indigenous population and their overrepresentation in the prison system.
The speaker's personal connection to the 'sunburned country' is revealed, with a painful history of indigenous people being killed on the very lands they are from.
Historical accounts of the war of extermination against indigenous people in the 1820s, showing the violent origins of the Australian nation.
The concept of terra nullius, or 'empty land', is critiqued as a legal fiction that erased 60,000 years of indigenous history and occupation.
Indigenous culture, including law, art, and politics, is acknowledged, yet its significance was dismissed by British colonizers, dehumanizing indigenous people.
The speaker recounts personal family history of struggle and resilience, including the jailing of family members for speaking their language.
The Australian Constitution's exclusion of indigenous people and the subsequent race-based laws that further marginalized them.
The dispossession of indigenous lands for commercial interests, exemplified by the McCune community's forced eviction in 1963.
The speaker's birth in 1963 coincided with a time when indigenous people were not recognized as citizens, likened to flora and fauna.
Personal success stories are shared, emphasizing that achievements come despite, not because of, the Australian dream.
A call to action, asserting that Australia can and should be better than its history of racism and injustice.
The speaker envisions a future where they can proudly join in celebrating Australia's national identity without reservation.
Transcripts
thank you thank you so much for coming
along this evening and I would also like
to extend my respects to my gullible
brothers and sisters from my people that
were HIV people in the winter of 2015
Australia turned to face itself it
looked into its soul and it had to ask
this question who are we what sort of
country do we want to be and this
happened in a place that is most holy
most sacred to Australians had happened
in the sporting field
it happened on the football field
suddenly the front page was on the back
page it was in the grandstands thousands
of voices rose to hound an indigenous
man a man who was told he was an
Australian a man who was told he was an
Australian of the year and they hounded
that man into submission
I can't speak for what lay in the hearts
of the people who booed Adam Goodes but
I can tell you what we heard when we
heard those boos we heard a sound that
was very familiar to us we heard a howl
we heard a howl of humiliation that
echoes across two centuries of
dispossession injustice suffering and
survival we heard the howl of the
Australian dream and it said to us again
you're not welcome the Australian dream
we sing of it and we recited in verse
Australians all let us rejoice for we
are young and free my people die young
in this country we die ten years younger
than average Australians and we are far
from free we are fewer than 3% of the
Australian population and yet we are 25%
a quarter of those Australians locked up
in our prisons and if you are a juvenile
it is worse it is 50% an indigenous
child is more likely to be locked up in
prison than they are to finish high
school
I love a sunburned country a land of
sweeping plains of rugged mountain
ranges reminds me that my people were
killed on those planes we were shot on
those planes disease ravaged us on those
planes I come from those planes I come
from a people west of the Blue Mountains
there were a jewelry people where in the
1820s the soldiers and settlers waged
war of extermination against my people
yes a war of extermination that was the
language used at the time go to the
Sidney Gazette and look it up and read
about it martial law was declared and my
people could be shot on sight those
rugged mountain Rangers my people women
and children were herded over those
ranges to their deaths
the Australian dream the Australian
Dream is rooted in racism it is the very
foundation of the dream it is there at
the birth of the nation it is there in
terra nullius an empty land a land for
the taking
60,000 years of occupation a people who
made the first seafaring journey in the
history of mankind
a people of law are people of law lor
air people of music and art and dance
and politics none of it mattered because
our rights were extinguished because we
were not here according to British law
and when British people looked at us
they saw something subhuman and if we
were human at all we occupied the lowest
run on civilizations ladder
we were flyblown Stone Age savages and
that's was the language that was used
Charles Dickens the great writer of the
age when referring to the noble savage
of which we were counted among said it
would be better that they be wiped off
the face of the earth Captain Arthur
Philip a man of enlightenment a man who
was instructed to make peace with the
so-called natives in a matter of years
was sending out raiding parties with the
instruction bring back the severed heads
of the black troublemakers
they were smoothing the dyeing pillow my
people were rounded up and put on
missions from where if you escape you
hunted down you have roped and tied and
dragged back and it happened here it
happened on the mission that my
grandmother and my great-grandmother of
Robert Warren gazed her on the dark
darling
point of the Murrumbidgee River read
about it it happened by 1901 when we
became a nation when we federated the
colonies we were nowhere we're not in
the Constitution saved for race
provisions which allowed for laws to be
made that would take our children that
would invade our privacy that would tell
us who we could marry and tell us where
we could live the Australian dream by
1963 the year of my birth the
dispossession was continuing police came
at gunpoint under cover of darkness to
McCune an Aboriginal community in
Queensland and they ordered people from
their homes and they burn those homes to
the ground and they gave the land to a
bauxite mining company and today those
people remember that as the night of the
burning in 1963 when I was born I was
counted among the flora and fauna not
among the citizens of this country now
you will hear things tonight you will
hear people say but you've done well yes
I have and I'm proud of it and why have
I done well I've done well because of
who has come before me my father who
lost the tips of three fingers working
in sawmills to put food on our table
because he was denied an education my
grandfather who served to fight fight
wars for this country when he was not
yet a citizen and came back to a
segregated land where he couldn't even
share a drink with his digger mates in
the pub because he was black my
great-grandfather who was jailed for
speaking his language to his grandson my
father jailed for it my grandfather on
my mother's side who married a white
woman who reached out to Australia lived
on the fringes of town until the police
came put a gun to his head
bulldozed his tin humpy and ran over the
graves of the three children he buried
there that's the Australian dream I have
succeeded in spite of the Australian
dream not because of it and I've
succeeded because of those people you
might hear tonight but you have white
blood in you and if the white blood in
me was he
tonight my grandmother she would tell
you of how she was turned away from a
hospital giving birth to her first child
because she was giving birth to the
child of a black person
the Australian dream we're better than
this I have seen the worst of the world
as a reporter
I've spent a decade in war zones Morocco
Afghanistan and Pakistan we are an
extraordinary country we are in so many
respects the envy of the world if I was
sitting here where my friends are
tonight I would be arguing passionately
for this country but I stand here with
my ancestors and the view looks very
different from where I stand the
Australian dream we have our heroes
Albert no meteora wrote that painters
the soul of this nation Vincent Lee Ari
put his hand out for Gough Whitlam to
pour the sand of his country through his
fingers and say this is my country Cathy
Freeman lift the torch to the Olympic
Games but every time we are lured into
the light we are mugged by the darkness
of this country's history of course
racism is killing the Australian dream
it is self-evident that it's killing the
Australian dream but we are better than
that the people who stood up and
supported Adam Goodes and said no more
they are better than that the people who
marched across the bridge for
reconciliation they are better than that
the people who supported Kevin Rudd when
he said sorry to the Stolen Generations
they are better than that my children
and their non-indigenous friends are
better than that my wife who is
non-indigenous is better than that and
one day I want to stand here and be able
to say as proudly and sing as loudly as
anyone else in this room Australians all
let us rejoice thank you
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