Voice Treaty Truth: Has the Christian Voice Been Heard?
Book Trailer
DISCOUNT ON VOICE TREATY TRUTH EBOOK
I have a 5-day 99c USD promotion on Amazon from 7 November 8am PST or 8 November 1am Brisbane time. I would love a review.
Race relations in Australia has become more divisive. Is reconciliation dead? Activist and pastor explores the issues not just facing Australia but the West generally.
Australia is currently divided 60/40 over a referendum that has just been held to enshrine an Indigenous representative body in the constitution. There was pushback into creating a race-based body in the constitution and having two classes of citizens. This is likely to continue with division over the need for a treaty and debating about the truth of Australia’s history. This book, Voice Treaty Truth, examines all the issues from political, historical, and spiritual viewpoint.
Amazon AU link:
Amazon US link:
Left – William Cooper. Right – the Miller family meeting with Israel Ambassador to Australia Amir Maimon when he spoke recently at a function in Cairns along with Norman and Barbara Miller of Indigenous Friends of Israel.
WHERE ARE TODAY’S WILLIAM COOPERS? FREE RESOURCE AVAILABLE
Aboriginal leader, William Cooper, led the Australian Aborigines’ League in a protest to the German Consulate in Melbourne against Kristallnacht, the start of the Holocaust or Shoah in 1938. Where are today’s William Coopers? The Indigenous Friends of Israel is continuing his legacy. See more
You can do something too. If you want to lead a group in your home, workplace, place of worship or social group learning how to deal with antisemitism today and find out more about the Holocaust, then there is a free resource available. If you don’t want to lead it yourself, you can put this resource in the hands of someone who can and is willing to. It is a resource I wrote at the request of Eli Rabinowitz of the WE ARE HERE! Foundation.
HANDBOOK – THE HOLOCAUST AND THE AUSTRALIAN ABORIGINAL RESPONSE
The author Barbara Miller would like to thank Eli Rabinowitz, founder of the WE ARE HERE! Foundation and Gabriele Maluga, the Honorary Consul of the Federal Republic of Germany in Western Australia for initiating and sponsoring this handbook which can be used for upper secondary students and adult education in Australia and internationally.
We also acknowledge the support of Yad Vashem Photo Archives Jerusalem.
V.E. VINE VOICE 5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read Reviewed in the United States on October 29, 2023 Verified Purchase In “Voice Treaty Truth,” Barbara Miller delves into the impending Australian referendum concerning the Voice to Parliament, alongside the profound legacy of colonialism on First Nations communities. If this is a new issue to you, this is a great book to become more educated on this tenuous subject. Drawing on her wealth of experience as an activist and researcher, Miller offers a Christian point of view, looking at how religion, racism, and inequality come into play. The book is quite detailed and is a balanced evaluation of arguments on both sides of the referendum while offering real ideas for unity in Australia. With extensive research and insightful information, this book is an indispensable resource for individuals seeking a well-informed perspective on this important problem.
BOOK OF THE MONTH FEATURE See this in the next newsletter
FIND THESE WILLIAM COOPER BOOKS WHCH GO TOGETHER- HERE
Have You Always Dreamed of Being a Published Author? – The Successful Author Kit is for You.
Bestselling author Barbara Miller has produced the following guides to help you on your way to fulfilling your dream. It is called the Successful Author Kit. She knows what it takes to have a successful writing career. You can get the following guides in the kit:
Guide to Choosing Your Niche
Guide to Finding Your Book Topic and Title
Guide to Structuring Your Non-Fiction Book, and as a bonus
List of Resources for Authors
If you would like more information, check it outHERE
My books can be found at the Munganbana Reef and Rainforest Aboriginal Art Gallery at 33 Lake St Cairns, at Cairns Books bookshop at Cairns Central Shopping Centre, on Amazon, and on my website – www.barbara-miller-books.com
Happy reading!!
Left – Who were the first Europeans to set foot on Australian soil and where did it happen? Find out in “The European Quest to Find Terra Australis Incognita: Quiros, Torres and Janszoon.” Check it out here.
Right – Available as an audio book – a first-hand account of the Holocaust from a Polish Jewish woman who faced death daily in “If I Survive.” Find out more here.
The Dying Days of Segregation in Australia: Case Study Yarrabahgives a blow-by-blow description of the days of apartheid in Qld and how an Aboriginal community lobbied tirelessly for local government and finally got it in 1984 and their progress to today with land rights and native title. Hear the words of Aboriginal leaders themselves. Find it HERE.
William Cooper Gentle Warrior: Standing Up for Australian Aborigines and Persecuted Jews is the first book by Barbara Miller on William Cooper and tells his amazing story and that of the Australian Aborigines’ League as they work for the uplift of their people and stand up for Jews at Kristallnacht, the start of the Holocaust when Aborigines were not citizens in their own nation. Find it HERE
Discover the essential guide to making an informed decision about the Voice to Parliament and government referendum. In this book, Barbara Miller, a pastor, sociologist, and historian, offers an insightful Christian response to the Uluru Statement From the Heart. She shares her 50 years of experience as an activist and researcher in First Nations affairs to help readers understand why she has changed her opinion. Readers will gain a deeper understanding of the issues at stake and the consequences of voting yes or no.
The book will empower readers to:
Make an informed decision on this critical issue in Australian history
Reconcile the impact of colonialism on First Nations people
Develop a vision for a more unified nation
Transform their lives with deeper insight into racism, inequality, and separatism
Inside this book, readers will find:
An expert look at the original sin of colonialism
A comprehensive view of the referendum’s consequences
A reflection on the impact of the Christian voice
Don’t wait – get your copy now before the price changes!
BOOK OF THE MONTH FEATURE See this in the next newsletter
FIND THESE WILLIAM COOPER BOOKS WHCH GO TOGETHER – HERE
Have You Always Dreamed of Being a Published Author? – The Successful Author Kit is for You.
Bestselling author Barbara Miller has produced the following guides to help you on your way to fulfilling your dream. It is called the Successful Author Kit. She knows what it takes to have a successful writing career. You can get the following guides in the kit:
Guide to Choosing Your Niche
Guide to Finding Your Book Topic and Title
Guide to Structuring Your Non-Fiction Book, and as a bonus
List of Resources for Authors
If you would like more information, check it out HERE
My books can be found at the Munganbana Reef and Rainforest Aboriginal Art Gallery at 33 Lake St Cairns, at Cairns Books bookshop at Cairns Central Shopping Centre, on Amazon, and on my website – www.barbara-miller-books.com.
Happy reading!!
Left – Who were the first Europeans to set foot on Australian soil and where did it happen? Find out in “The European Quest to Find Terra Australis Incognita: Quiros, Torres and Janszoon.” Check it out here.
Right – Available as an audio book – a first-hand account of the Holocaust from a Polish Jewish woman who faced death daily in “If I Survive.” Find out more here.
The Dying Days of Segregation in Australia: Case Study Yarrabahgives a blow-by-blow description of the days of apartheid in Qld and how an Aboriginal community lobbied tirelessly for local government and finally got it in 1984 and their progress to today with land rights and native title. Hear the words of Aboriginal leaders themselves. Find it HERE.
William Cooper Gentle Warrior: Standing Up for Australian Aborigines and Persecuted Jews is the first book by Barbara Miller on William Cooper and tells his amazing story and that of the Australian Aborigines’ League as they work for the uplift of their people and stand up for Jews at Kristallnacht, the start of the Holocaust when Aborigines were not citizens in their own nation. Find it HERE
Hi all you wonderful readers – May you find time to relax and read in the busy lives many of us lead. Whose interesting life story have you read lateley? Reading biography can give us wonderful insights into the lives of others, seeing them go through their challenges and seeing the inspiring decisions they have made and journeys they have had.
Do you have a favourite historical period or do you prefer current events? Reading history gives us a context for our lives and the lives of others and helps us have greater perspective on today and sense future possibilities. I am greatly interested in both history and current events!! As others have said, if we don’t learn from our mistakes, we are likely to repeat them.
Yarrabah Statement in Support of Uluru Statement From the Heart by Megan Davis 10.4.22 and Garma Festival
The Garma Festival has been a media highlight in the last couple of days and a time of great celebration for the Yolngu and other Aboriginal people of Australia. It is a yearly time of displaying and enjoying Aboriginal culture through dance, story and song. It is also a time of serious discussions about current issues affecting First Nations people in Australia and Prime Ministers often attend. New Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese did just that and announced that a referendum will go ahead in this term of Parliament to ask the Australian people if they would change the constitution to include a First Nations voice to Parliament. There are prominent First Nations leaders supporting and not supporting it. What we have in this video is one of the architects of the Uluru Statement, Aboriginal lawyer Megan Davis speaking at Yarrabah Aboriginal community near Cairns. My husband Norman and I were invited to attend by the mayor of Yarrabah, Ross Andrews. The team working on the Voice from around Australia met in Cairns and then in Yarrabah in April. One of the reasons for this was to honour Alf Neal and the Yarrabah community for their tremendous support of the 1967 referendum which enabled First Nations people to be counted in the census.
As the referendum for the Voice will be the first referendum for First Nations people held since the successful 1967 one, it was considered an important symbolic act to have the Voice referendum on the anniversary of the 1967 referendum victory. Hence the statement from Yarrabah that Megan Davis read out and is recorded here declaring that the referendum should be held in May 2023.
My book Secrets and Lies has a detailed discussion on Voice Treaty Truth and how we have got to our current situation. CHECK IT OUT HERE
This is an excerpt from a recent interview I did regarding my books on Aboriginal leader William Cooper. I have written 3 – William Cooper Gentle Warrior (2012) White Australia Has A Black History (2019) and Shattered Lives Broken Dreams (2020)
If I Survive: Nazi Germany and the Jews,100-Year-Old Lena Goldstein’s Miracle Story is available here
William Cooper Gentle Warrior: Standing Up for Australian Aborigines and Persecuted Jews is available with FREE SHIPPING. Find it here.
Re White Australia Has A Black History
Some say William Cooper was Australia’s Martin Luther King Jr. William Cooper saw his Aboriginal people dying around him and decided black lives matter. Starvation and discrimination took their toll. He became passionate that they should have a voice in Australia’s federal parliament.
But his people could not vote and were not even counted in the census. How could he get the government to listen to him? Would his skills in oratory, letter-writing and organizing his people into the first national black organization achieve his goals or would his activism bring backlash?
Betrayed by the Prime Minister who would not forward his petition to the King of England, Cooper joined with other leaders in Sydney for the 150th anniversary of white settlement and organized a protest called the Day of Mourning. This set in train the controversy that still surrounds Australia Day today. Cooper campaigned for the truth of the black history of white Australia to be told. He mentored future generations of leaders who are still calling for “voice, treaty, truth” today. This book covers the history of the struggle for First Nations peoples’ human rights from settlement to today.
William Cooper was born in 1860 to his tribal mother who saw the first white settlers come to the Murray River. Learn more Re Shattered Lives Broken Dreams
The Nazis shatter glass and shatter the lives of European Jews at Kristallnacht, the start of the Holocaust. An Australian Aboriginal, William Cooper, leads the campaign for civil rights for his people who are dying of poverty and mistreatment around him. 1938; two worlds, far apart. Cut to the core after Kristallnacht, can he do anything to stop it?
Described as Australia’s Martin Luther King, Cooper leads the Australian Aborigines’ League on a protest to the German Consulate in Melbourne. Would the Third Reich pour out its wrath on them? Would they make a difference?
A Chair of Resistance to the Holocaust was named in honour of Cooper at Yad Vashem. His grandson, Alf Turner, becomes passionate about fulfilling his grandfather’s unfinished business and taking the protest to Berlin itself. How will he be received?
This true story will inspire you to stand up and be counted and to make a difference.
“Extensively researched and presented in a near novel-like manner” – Grady Harp Top Contributor: Children’s Books HALL OF FAME TOP 50 REVIEWER
“What will you like? Exceptionally interesting and astoundingly detail, including photos of many of the events that took place during the journey.” – DD GOTT – Donadees Corner FIND IT HERE
BOOK OF THE MONTH FEATURE
Dear Son: Letters and Reflections from First Nations Fathers and Sons
By Thomas Mayor
Dear Son shares heartfelt letters written by First Nations men about life, masculinity, love, culture and racism. Along with his own vivid and poignant prose and poetry, author and editor Thomas Mayor invites 12 contributors to write a letter to their son or father, bringing together a range of perspectives that offers the greatest celebration of First Nations manhood.
This beautifully designed anthology comes at a time when First Nations peoples are starting to break free of derogatory stereotypes and find solace in their communities and cultures. Yet, each contributor also has one thing in common: they all have a relative who has been terribly wronged – enslaved, raped and dispossessed – because of their Aboriginality.
Featuring letters from Stan Grant, Troy Cassar-Daley, John Liddle, Charlie King, Joe Williams, Yessie Mosby, Joel Bayliss, Daniel James, Jack Latimore, Daniel Morrison, Tim Sculthorpe and Blak Douglas.
A gentle and loving book for families from anywhere in the world. Artwork by proud Kaurna/Ngarrindjeri/Narrunga/Italian Australian artist Tony Wilson, with illustrations and design by Gamilaraay designer Tristan Schultz of Relative Creative.
WHAT CAN I DO NOW THAT I HAVE A TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY
By Patina Malinalli
This book may not be relevant to you but you may know someone it will help as it is a survivor’s heartfelt story. She says:
“Your traumatic brain injury will change your life forever – in so many ways. There are some simple ways to compensate though faith in Jesus Christ. When you have trouble accomplishing anything, hold on to Jesus – He is your Everything. Through Him, you can find hope and still lead a productive lifestyle despite the hardships surrounding the situation that has changed your life. Includes discussion questions.
First, let me assure you I understand. I incurred a traumatic brain injury in 2005 and suffered some circumstances similar to what you are going through now. However, you don’t have to be or feel incapacitated. You do have options. Another effect of a traumatic brain injury is that time slows down. It is easier not to feel rushed. Whether it’s working from home, or finding hobbies to start enjoying yourself again, your life can still be fulfilling. Let me show you how.”
White Woman Black Heart: Journey Home to Old Mapoon, a Memoir
Oppressed Aborigines forced off their land at gunpoint. Over a decade later, one passionate young woman would take up their fight…
Melbourne, 1970’s. Twenty-three-year-old university student Barbara Miller always stood her ground, even when it made her an outcast in her own family. So when she became a radical Christian advocate for social change, she didn’t think twice about joining the movement for Aboriginal justice. Boldly relocating to tropical Cape York and linking up with a Black activist and mentor on the frontline, she plunged into a life-changing battle despite the State’s threat of legal prosecution.
In this powerful story of a people’s violent removal from their ancient land, Miller recounts how she joined a decade-long struggle to restore the Mapoon people to their beloved homeland. Working with a team of campaigners pushing against a hostile administration, she lands in the center of the explosive political climate of the Seventies. But by following her heart, the unexpected happens: She finds her true home and family in the most unlikely of places.
White Woman Black Heart: Journey Home to Old Mapoon is an eye-opening memoir that showcases critical events in Australian history. If you like cross-cultural relationships, real-life activism, and rising up against colonialism, then you’ll love Barbara Miller’s gripping story of fundamental human rights.
AVAILABLE HERE Secrets and Lies: The Shocking Truth of Recent Australian Aboriginal History, A Memoir (First Nations True Stories)
My book is a bestseller in the Discrimination Law category on Amazon Australia
Barbara Russell, a young woman from a white working-class family. A ruthless Premier Bjelke-Petersen enforcing legal discrimination. How could Barbara stand by and watch the feud of the people with governments and miners strip Australian Aboriginal communities of all they held dear? But what could she do to make a difference?
Would her passion make a way for her? Was she strong enough to face the full weight of the police state, resist the temptation of love, and stand up to her family too?
In this story of ideological conflict and racial discrimination laws, Barbara teams up with Mick, an Aboriginal schoolteacher. They organize remote Australian Aboriginal people to fight Bjelke and the mining companies that encroach on their land. But Bjelke has a few tricks up his sleeve and uses all in his powers in this police state to stop them. The strength of the Aboriginal people shines through the story but, if the Aboriginal people fail, more of them will die in poverty and desperation.
What price will the church pay for standing with Aboriginals against the government? Can they win this epic battle? Can the Aboriginals internationalize their struggle for human rights?
With the current debate in Australia of Voice Treaty Truth and the worldwide issue of Black Lives Matter, this book gives many key Aboriginal people a voice and reveals the shocking truth of the hidden history of 1975 to 2021 in a near-novel manner. Every important historical event is covered. This is one of the social justice books that you will want on your shelf. The political activism examples are not those of keyboard warriors but those of people who took to the trenches.
What secrets lie hidden? What lies are being told?
Historical memoir, Secrets and Lies is another sizzling story in the First Nations True Stories series. Because if you like fast-paced action, real-life heroes, and the window opened on another culture, this book is for you. If you like books with political intrigue that bring to life an interesting historical period, you’ll love Secrets and Lies.
Left – Barbara holding an early copy of the Dying Days of Segregation in Australia: Case Study Yarrabah. I was privileged to be asked by the Yarrabah Aboriginal Shire Council to write a piece on the history of the leaders of Yarrabah for the new Council building opening. As I have had a long association with these leaders, it was something that aligned with my passion to tell their story. Right – Barbara on the Duyfken boat replica in Perth at an earlier launch of her book The European Quest to Find Terra Australis Incognita: Quiros Torres and Janszoon. Both books are available from her website www.barbara-miller-books.com
Hi all you wonderful readers – I usually only send out one newsletter a month but as there is an international book summit in early June you may be interested in, I will send some info on that shortly. There may be aspiring authors reading this who want to enter the self-publishing milieu or seasoned authors who’d like some tips from experts in the field. I’m privileged to be one of the many contributors with a session on writing memoirs.
White Woman Black Heart: Journey Home to Old Mapoon, a Memoir
Kindle Customer Review 5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating read.
Reviewed in Australia on March 18, 2022 Verified Purchase
Just finished reading this book. Couldn’t put it down. To see people’s names in it that I know was amazing.
So glad it had a happy ending & people came home. The community is going from strength to strength now. A new church opened recently. The Rugapayn store is being run by locals and is due to be upgraded. I miss being there.Find the book HERE
Secrets and Lies: The Shocking Truth of Recent Australian Aboriginal History, A Memoir Amazon Customer
As an American, I learned something new from this book. Either Voice Treaty Truth in Australia or Black Lives Matter in America, this book brings out many eye-opening critical social issues and an opportunity to adapt and change for a better world.
If I Survive: Nazi Germany and the Jews: 100-Year Old Lena Goldstein’s Miracle Story Review from Amazon
Meera 4.0 out of 5 stars Not a memoir!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 4, 2022 Verified Purchase
This is a hard read, mainly due to the fact that only 1/3 of this book is actually about Lena Goldstein and the rest is a timeline of the atrocities done to the polish Jewish community and what they faced. Hard to read and even harder to stomach. Saddening to see the difficulties and hatred brought on by so many. I applaud this woman for sharing her story and what I did learn of her survival was a large mixture of determination as well as good deeds returning the favour. I hope some people can learn from this.
This book resonated a lot with me. As someone that has lived on the African continent all my life (and in South Africa the last 27 years), I could see the parallels with the apartheid regime & the current unresolved land wrangles & struggles of indigenous people on the continent. I kept saying OMG! OMG! this is where these guys here got these crazy ideas of separation from! Gosh! The experiment worked! And now we are still feeling the impact.
I like the way the author, Barbara Miller, has documented the historical progress of the indigenous people in this book. It is definitely a well-researched book and I hope it can be used as a history book in schools around the world. It has certainly given me hope in humanity once again.
Left – Barbara delivering her books to a bookshop in Port Douglas
Right – Munganbana Norman Miller presenting a canvas painting to Aviva Wolff of the Sydney Jewish Museum at the earlier launch of Barbara’s White Australia Has A Black History book. The canvas is a replica of the cover of Barbara’s first book William Cooper Gentle Warrior.
First let me begin by saying that I am of Native heritage, so I perhaps took a look at this novel in a different light than others, but perhaps not. As I read this novel, I often felt tears, and silent sobs, I read the struggle and thought there are so many of us around this world who are struggling yet today to be heard. This novel was written with such feeling, and honesty, a living history, not just facts, and liturgy, but her words breathed the life into what was and what is! Barbara Miller is a gifted author who has found her passion and has invited along for the journey, to learn, to grow, and to look at our own selves, and our countries history, what have we done? What have we left undone? What is the next step that can be taken? Shortly our world will be recalling International Holocaust Remembrance Day. We have children who have never heard of the Holocaust and there were so many disseminations in so many countries. Thank You Ms Miller for teaching us all a lesson, by reminding us of the history of what was!
…The response of the indigenous people of Australia to Germany’s injustices and outright attempts of annihilating the Jews in Germany during the Nazi regime is reminiscent of the 1960s in America when the African-Americans were fighting for equality.
Added to the amazing actions of the Aborigines, as wonderfully disclosed to the reader in this book, is that they themselves did not enjoy their own personal freedoms in Australia. However, they were fighting for the rights, indeed the lives of others. Recognition for the native people of Australia wasn’t realized until decades later…
Shattered Lives Broken Dreams: William Cooper and Australian Aborigines Protest Holocaust Number 2 by Barbara Miller is a comprehensive, motivational and inspirational narrative that captures the actions of standing up to the inhuman treatment of others. Added to the education and study of this extensive chronicled period of time is the inclusion of memorable photographs. The combination makes for a remarkable reflection of this dynamic time period.
The author has gifted the reader with an incredible and exhaustive work that captures the spirit of the protest as well as the burning heart of the movement’s leader William Cooper.
Question – WhO IS YOUR FAVOURITE AUTHOR AND WHY? Let me know via email
BOOK OF THE MONTH FEATURE
Sister Girl: Reflections on Tiddaism, Identity and Reconciliation (New Edition) By Jackie Huggins
Book description
“The pieces in this seminal collection represent almost four decades of writing by historian and activist Jackie Huggins. These essays, speeches and interviews combine both the public and the personal in a bold trajectory tracing one Murri woman’s journey towards self-discovery and human understanding. As a widely respected cultural educator and analyst, Huggins offers an Aboriginal view of the history, values and struggles of Indigenous people.
Sister Girl reflects on many important and timely topics, including identity, activism, leadership and reconciliation. It challenges accepted notions of the appropriateness of mainstream feminism in Aboriginal society and of white historians writing Indigenous history. Jackie Huggins’ words, then and now, offer wisdom, urgency and hope.”
Check it out HERE
It is also the 10th anniversary of the honouring of William Cooper at Yad Vashem with a Chair of Resistance to the Holocaust being named after him and my husband Norman and I were privileged to be there for that event.
White Australia Has A Black History and Shattered Lives Broken Dreamsare on sale on Amazon as ebooks from December 5 at 8am PST to Dec 12 at 12am PST. It is a kindle countdown sale so the price starts at 99c USD if you get in quickly and progressively goes up.
Convert Pacific Standard Time (PST) to AEDT or your own time zone on https://www.worldtimebuddy.com/pst-to-aest-converter
You can also get the above paperback books from my website. You can get the original paperback of the William Cooper story “William Cooper Gentle Warrior: Standing Up for Australian Aborigines and Persecuted Jews” from my website with free shipping – https://www.barbara-miller-books.com
82nd Anniversary of Australian Aborigines’ League’s Kristallnacht Protest (Free event) 6 Dec 1.30 pm AEDT. Online event also.
The William Cooper Legacy Project invites you to a screening of our new video on the 82nd Anniversary of the very day that the Australian Aborigines’ League marched in protest to the German Consulate, back in 1938.
Arrive at 1.30pm for formalities preceding the World Premiere at 2pm (AEDT) Screening Sunday 6 December
at Temple Beth Israel Synagogue, 76-82 Alma Road, St Kilda
All Covid-Safe protocols will be strictly in place – please be prepared to Sign-In, Sanitise, Wear Your Mask and be seated where directed.
BACKGROUND BRIEFING:
In preparation for this Sunday’s 2020 event, the German Government of today, on behalf of Chancellor Angela Merkel, were invited to reflect on the impact of the visit by William Cooper’s grandson, Uncle Boydie, to Berlin in 2017. Chancellor Merkel has now issued an unprecedented Apology for Germany’s 1938 actions… about what happened at the Melbourne Consulate on 6 December 1938.
Womenjika and Shalom
On Sunday 6th December, will be the 82nd anniversary of an act of great moral leadership, where an Upstanding group of Aboriginal people took a stance on behalf of a distant population of persecuted Jews – that has since brought together 2 communities, who now Walk Together in solidarity evermore, connecting and healing.
And 10 years ago saw two seemingly-random and disparate events occur again on opposite sides of the world:
– In Jerusalem in December 2010, the most significant Holocaust Memorial in the world, Yad Vashem, hosted a group of 10 Aboriginal people along with then-Foreign Minister of Australia, the Hon Kevin Rudd, as he unveiled a Chair of Resistance and Resilience to the Holocaust, honouring an Australian from the Yorta Yorta “mob”, a man who lived many years at a place called Cummeragunja.
– And back in Australia in 2010, on Country, there was the Premiere of the Short Black Opera Company production of Pecan Summer, telling the story of the “Walk-Off” by a group of Aboriginal activists, from that very same Aboriginal Mission, Cummeragunja.
Both of these events have huge and fascinating back-stories – which each weave their way to a remarkable organisation called the Austalian Aborigines’ League, explored for us by educator and orator, Dr Lois Peeler AM.
This year, on 6 December 2020, the story will be told, including footage and photography from that (and other) trips to Israel, and to Berlin, Belgium and even Buckingham Palace.
Amongst other appropriate entertainment, you will get to witness the Prelude “Pecan Summer”, composed by Yorta Yorta’s Prof Deborah Cheetham and performed by the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra conducted under the Jewish community’s Dr David Kram.
Additional celebrity performances include Kate Ceberano, Lior and Paul Grabowsky, along with multilingual productions of cultural music like Ngarre Burra Ferra and the Partisan’s Song.
Barbara Miller launching her 2 books on William Cooper the Sydney Jewish Museum Feb 2020. Barbara wrote “White Australia Has A Black History” and “Shattered Lives Broken Dreams”. The first focuses on William Cooper and the Australian Aborigines’ League’s Aboriginal activism and the second on their activism for Jewish people re their Kristallnacht protest at the German Consulate in Melbourne 6 Dec 1938.
