Aboriginal Comedy AllStars
On 14 April 2023, approximately 15 members of the AISN attended the ‘Aboriginal Comedy AllStars’ performance at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. The event featured a mix of hilarious stand-up performances, dance numbers, and even a ukulele solo, by a handful of Australia's most prominent Indigenous comedians, including Kevin Kropinyeri, Sean Choolburra, Andy Saunders and Steph Tisdell. The AISN looks forward to attending similar events at the 2024 Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
The Art of Incarceration
On 1 June 2023, the AISN hosted a screening of the documentary ‘The Art of Incarceration’ followed by a Q&A with the film’s director, Alex Siddons, and an artist featured in the film, Christopher Austin (Gunditjmara Keeray-Woorroong). The event was held during National Reconciliation Week and was attended by the AISN and guests invited by the film’s director.
The Art of Incarceration is a powerful depiction of how art and culture can empower Australia's First Nations people to transcend cycles of imprisonment and recidivism. The Q&A with Christopher Austin and Alex ‘Siddo’ Siddons that followed the screening was a thought provoking and engaging discussion both of the film-making process, the inspiration behind the film and Christopher’s engagement with The Torch, an organisation that provides art, cultural and arts industry support to First Nations offenders and ex-offenders in Victoria.
NAIDOC Week
NAIDOC Week celebrates and recognises the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This year, NAIDOC Week officially commenced on Sunday 2 July and ran to Sunday 9 July 2023. The theme for NAIDOC week 2023 was ‘For Our Elders’, and paid respect to the cultural knowledge, nurturing, strength and tenacity of generations of Elders, not only in advocacy and activism, but in everyday life, and how Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples place themselves in the world.
Annual NAIDOC Morning Tea and March
The AISN held a NAIDOC morning tea on 5 July 2023.
Each year, during NAIDOC Week, rallies are held across the country advocating for the rights of First Nations peoples. The first of these rallies was staged well before the establishment of NAIDOC, in 1938, when protesters called for full citizen status and equality for First Nations peoples. Approximately 6 Arnold Bloch Leibler staff attended the annual NAIDOC March on Friday 7 July 2022.
Uncle Greg Muir: Retrospective, No Vacancy Gallery
During NAIDOC Week, members of the AISN visited the Uncle Greg Muir exhibition at the No Vacancy Art Gallery in Melbourne. Uncle Greg’s facilitator Phil toured attendees around the gallery and spoke to Uncle Greg’s life, his battle with cerebral palsy, and his art as an expression of his story as an Aboriginal man with a disability.
In addition to the above, the AISN compiled a list of other events held across Melbourne and Sydney during NAIDOC week that celebrate First Nations art, music and culture, as well as advocating for change and justice for First Nations communities. This list was distributed to all Arnold Bloch Leibler staff, as well as externally on the firm’s website.
Rebel With a Cause Screening and Q&A
On 9 August, members of the AISN were invited to attend a screening at the Melbourne International Film Festival. We attended Part 1 of ‘Rebel With a Cause’, an NITV-commissioned docuseries.
Rebel With a Cause is a four-part documentary series showcasing the unparalleled efforts of four trailblazers from Queensland who altered the course of Australian history: Senator Neville Bonner, Magistrate Pat O’Shane, radio host Tiga Bayles, and poet and activist Oodgeroo Noonuccal. Interweaving never-before-seen archival material with interviews with loved ones and peers, Rebel With a Cause dives into the philosophies that guided these four figures to present an inspirational, vital account of First Nations-led change-making.
Dominic Bilton wrote the following reflection on the event:
“On 9 August 2023, I attended the premiere screening of Rebel With a Cause (Part 1) at ACMI as part of the Melbourne International Film Festival together with a number of other AISN members.
Rebel With a Cause is a 4 x 51-minute documentary series, commissioned by NITV, that follows the stories of four outstanding individuals from Queensland that impacted the course of Australian history.
On the night we attended, we watched the documentaries on Senator Neville Bonner and Magistrate and activist Pat O’Shane. Neville Bonner was a Jagera Elder and the first Indigenous person elected to Parliament, where he served for 12 years. Pat O’Shane, a Kuku Yalanji woman, enjoyed illustrious careers as a teacher, barrister, public servant and activist, and was Australia’s first Aboriginal magistrate – a position she held for 27 years.
The documentaries showcased stunning archival footage around heartfelt interviews with family members, friends and peers, and focused on the impact the individuals had on their social and political landscape. I enjoyed learning about Neville Bonner’s authentic and people-focused style of campaigning, and Pat’s fearless and intelligent advocacy for the causes she cared most about. As a Queenslander myself, I was happy to see such inspiring examples of activists celebrated as part of the Melbourne International Film Festival.
It was a fantastic night and another great example of how AISN events can contribute to meaningful continuing education of ABL staff.”
Dominic Bilton, Lawyer