Filter by:
-
Significant Aboriginal events in Sydney
Author: Anita Heiss January 26 was nominated as Australia Day to celebrate the anniversary of white settlement. It commemorates the ceremonious unfurling of the British flag at the head of…
-
Imagining the people
Author: Anita Heiss The ways in which Aboriginal people have been portrayed by non-Aboriginal people reflect Euro-centric values and have been largely negative. Strong representations of Aboriginal people and society…
-
Government policy in relation to Aboriginal people
Author: Anita Heiss Since the European invasion until very recently, government policy relating to Aboriginal people has been designed and implemented by non-Aboriginal people. The common justification for most policies…
-
Charles ‘Chicka’ Dixon
Charles ‘Chicka’ Dixon was born at Wallaga Lake and worked as a stevedore on Sydney’s wharves. He worked in the Seamen’s Union as a shop steward before following the political…
-
Charles Perkins
Born on the Todd River in Alice Springs, Charles Perkins moved to Adelaide in 1945. Spotted by a soccer talent scout, he played for Everton in England and returned after…
-
Ricketty Dick
Author: Laila Ellmoos Ricketty Dick (c1795-1863) was an Aboriginal man who lived in Sydney in the early to mid-19th century. He was also known as Warrah Warrah or William (Bill)…
-
Pemulwuy
Pemulwuy was a courageous resistance fighter who led a guerrilla war against the British settlement at Sydney Cove from 1788 through to 1802. Because of his resistance to the invaders,…
-
Cora Gooseberry
Cora Gooseberry was wife to King Bungaree and was an identity in Sydney for 20 years after his death. Her Aboriginal name was recorded as ‘Carra or Kaaroo’. She was known…
-
Bennelong
Bennelong (who also went by the names Wolarwaree, Ogultroyee and Vogeltroya) was from the Wangal people and is regarded as one of the most significant and notable Aboriginal people in…
-
Bungaree
Known for being able to straddle both black and white societies, Bungaree was from the Garigal clan at Broken Bay and moved to the Sydney area. He was a diplomat, mediating between…
-
Colebee
Colebee (also known as Coleby) was a warrior of the Gadigal clan at Port Jackson when the British First Fleet arrived in 1788. The customs and lifestyle of the local Aboriginal…
-
Arabanoo
Arabanoo (c1760-89) was the first of Governor Arthur Phillip’s protégés. Phillip’s plan was to learn the language and customs of the local people. He believed that if some of them…
-
Aboriginal involvement with the church
Author: Anita Heiss Much of the early interest in Sydney’s Aboriginal people was as a study of ‘primitives’ in need of salvation. Catholic priests, Fathers Therry and Power baptised around…
-
Aboriginal labour in Sydney
Author: Anita Heiss Because mainstream histories of Australia often render Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as invisible or describe them in negative terms, these histories often fail to recognise…
-
Aboriginal arts and culture in Sydney
Author: Anita Heiss Apart from rock paintings and engravings, there is little evidence of the artistic and cultural activities of Aboriginal people prior to the white invasion. However, there are…
-
Western science and Aboriginal people
Author: Steven Ross Imperialism has devastating effects on Indigenous peoples the world over, and science is often used to ‘prove’ western superiority over so-called ‘primitive’ Aboriginal groups. This justified the…
-
Foundation for Aboriginal Affairs
The Foundation for Aboriginal Affairs was established in December 1964 to provide assistance to Aboriginal people living in Sydney. Although it was originally intended as a non-political and non-religious organisation,…
-
First Contact
Author: Anita Heiss In 1770 Captain James Cook met few Aboriginal people on the Eastern Australian shoreline. Because they did not grow crops and because he assumed there were no…
-
Our Lady of Mount Carmel Primary School
A number of private and public schools in Sydney’s inner-city suburbs have provided primary education for Aboriginal people. Our Lady of Mount Carmel Primary School at Waterloo, originally known as…
-
Darlington Public School
A number of private and public schools in Sydney’s inner-city suburbs have provided primary education for Aboriginal people. Darlington Public School was established in 1878, moving to new premises on…
-
Cleveland Street High School
A number of private and public schools in Sydney’s inner-city suburbs have provided primary education for Aboriginal people. Cleveland Street High School has educated generations of Redfern and Waterloo children…
-
Alexandria Park High School
A number of private and public schools in Sydney’s inner-city suburbs have provided primary education for Aboriginal people. In 1982, Cleveland Street and Waterloo High Schools were merged to become…
-
Waterloo Town Hall & Library
Waterloo Town Hall was converted to a library in the early 1970s. The Koori Collection is a dedicated Aboriginal history collection held at the library which was officially launched in…
-
Federal Match Factory
Sydney has long been a magnet for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people seeking work opportunities, shelter and connections with community and family. Many worked in private industry in Sydney’s…
-
Australian Glass Manufacturers
Sydney has long been a magnet for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people seeking work opportunities, shelter and connections with community and family. Many worked in private industry in Sydney’s…