Looking back to move forward: Indigenous woman Nikki Robson calls for change to help support future generations
As the Torres Strait, Aboriginal, and Australian flags were raised in unison, hundreds gathered to the sound of the didgeridoo. An Indigenous leader is calling for the end of an ongoing battle so future generations are ready to step up.
Toowoomba
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Nikki Robson remembers drawing pictures of the British boats that claimed the land her ancestors had walked on for thousands of years, when her primary school taught her about Australian colonisation.
The Carers Queensland First Nations manager said the education system has come a long way in teaching younger Australians about Indigenous history, but there was still a way to go and this year’s NAIDOC week is bringing the next generation to the forefront.
Ms Robson said looking back on Indigenous history was key to bringing on change for the future generations and the outcome from the Indigenous Voice vote in 2023 showed her how important it was for non-Indigenous Australians to learn from NAIDOC week.
“The yes, no vote certainly showed a bit of a divide, particularly out in these regions,” she said.
“When you’re so passionate about your family and your mob and to actually know that you live in a region that was such a strong no vote, it doesn’t sit well.
“It feels like there’s always a constant fight to get First Nations recognised within this country.
“It feels like every time that we want and every time we try to have a bigger voice or a more important voice or one that is at the forefront, it seems to be a battle.”
For the future generations Ms Robson wants to see change.
“It would be really lovely if we could set up our next generation to not have to battle and do the trailblazing that we’ve had to do so for so many years,” she said.
“There’s a lot of work to do around educating some of our non-First Nations people around some of that history.
“You’ve got to understand the history to understand what it is that you need to do to help people move forward.”
Ms Robson said she thinks there would have been a different outcome from the vote if people knew more about First Nations history and had an understanding of how it still impacts people today.
“I just don’t think we’ve ever learnt the history or understood it enough and I think that if we had done more in that space, I actually don’t know that that outcome would have been the same,” she said.
Ms Robson said despite the failed vote it was great to see the overwhelming support from younger generations and now it is time for them to step up.
“We need those young people to be sitting at the table and learning from the people before them, so that we can give them the skills and the knowledge that they need to be the next leaders,” she said.
Paityn Wilson, a 15-year-old Mardigan girl, said she was proud to learn from the generations before her and carry that knowledge on.
The St Joseph’s student came to the Toowoomba NAIDOC Expo on Monday with her mum, aunty, nan, and cousins who all pointed at her as the next generation.
“We get to pass down stories from way back and keep sharing them through the family lines,” she said.
“We get to keep the culture going, and keep it spreading.”
Last week the Yoorook Justice Commission in Victoria became Australia’s first formal truth-telling inquiry to label the injustices perpetrated against First Nations people as genocide.
Yorook Truth be Told was officially tabled by the Victorian government on July 1, but the Queensland government hasn’t followed suit.
In November last year the Crisafulli government repealed the Path to Treaty Act 2023, a Truth-telling and Healing Inquiry for Queensland.
Despite the Act being repealed, Ms Robson hopes the work from that inquiry can continue with or without the support of the government.
“If government doesn’t allow us to have those cases, that doesn’t mean we can’t create our own,” she said.
“Just give people the time and the space to tell their stories to the people that are here today to hold that history and that knowledge.
“I think we can do that anyway, we don’t need the government to actually tell us that that’s something we can do.”
Photo gallery from Monday, July 7
Originally published as Looking back to move forward: Indigenous woman Nikki Robson calls for change to help support future generations
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