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Next I want to share some resources on how to read, listen and understand First Nations books, poetry & storytelling. There's a lot of articles that list book recommendations, and this week's #BlakBookChallenge has great suggestions. However, it's not enough to pick up a book. >
Readers and reviewers need to learn how to read and discuss Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander literature/story. Building capacity is essential. It begins with being aware of your bias & worldviews, acknowledging the white lens that literature is unconsciously seen through.
Reviewers that apply words such as legends, myth or mythology to First Nations writing are (usually unconsciously) reading through a white lens, and otherising the work. Non-Indigenous reviewers need to build their capacity to read, listen and write about First Nations literature
Adding labels such as speculative fiction and magic realism (as examples) - when the work is clearly not - is another form of misunderstanding and othering First Nations writers and their work. And this misunderstanding comes, again, from not acknowledging bias, whiteness etc.
While I gather resources to help people to build their capacity to read and review First Nations literature and storytelling, here's a recent podcast featuring Ambelin Kwaymullina: The Importance of Truth Listening. https://www.abc.net.au/radio/melbourne/programs/evenings/ambelin-kwaymullina/12524060
And while writing this, I got sent a query from a mainstream paper. Umm...what??? I thought my days of working in cultural safety training was over. I thought getting published was the hard bit. Looks like I'll be spending a lot of unpaid time/energy educating white reviewers.
Alexis Wright: "Writing through the lens of my own cultural background, I know the antiquity of roots grown here are fundamental to this land. I have also thought about the replanting of old roots formed elsewhere..." https://meanjin.com.au/essays/the-power-and-purpose-of-literature/
Melissa Lucashenko: "It can be hard sometimes to reflect that the stories about us, told by Australia, are so harmful and so dangerous to us. But the other side of that coin is that only something very powerful can be so harmful..." https://meanjin.com.au/essays/writing-as-a-sovereign-act/
Alexis Wright: "A most insidious form of self-censorship is the way in which we distract ourselves from the truth, through our deliberate self-chosen ways of shielding ourselves from what we either do not want to hear, or see. We do not want to know..." https://overland.org.au/2019/02/telling-the-untold-stories-alexis-wright-on-censorship/
Anita Heiss: "...the desire to learn, to understand, to be part of the necessary process of change...it gives hope. But it doesn’t come without a lot of extra work on the part of Indigenous people, and an enormous amount of handholding..." https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/jun/25/the-surge-in-sales-of-indigenous-books-is-heartening-but-education-takes-many-forms
Karen Wyld: "Targeted awards, fellowships, scholarships and other opportunities have made a difference, but there is more that can be done to support First Nations writers - including addressing biased worldviews and systemic barriers." https://publishing.artshub.com.au/news-article/opinions-and-analysis/writing-and-publishing/karen-wyld/australian-writing-has-a-blak-past-and-future-258565
[Jie Eccles] Ambelin Kwaymullina: “the world of literature is largely a culturally unsafe world. In a just future it would be culturally safe and we could speak our stories without fear of our words - and lives - being misappropriated...” https://junkee.com/reading-indigenous-stories/262047
Lisa Fuller: "Most reviews have been genuinely nice, and I’m grateful that they enjoyed it enough to share their thoughts. But it’s been…interesting, reading what some people see in my book." https://www.killyourdarlings.com.au/article/why-culturally-aware-reviews-matter/?utm_content=buffer8da14&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer
https://www.killyourdarlings.com.au/article/why-culturally-aware-reviews-matter/?utm_content=buffer8da14&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer
Teela Reid: "The architecture of society is shaped by structures that form the power to tell a nation’s story. And our capacity to create a narrative that respects First Nations sovereignty depends on the value we place on hearing..." https://www.griffithreview.com/articles/the-heart-of-seeding-first-nations-sovereignty/
Alexis Wright: "Aboriginal people have not been in charge of the stories other people tell about us. The question then was, how should I be an Aboriginal writer when the stories that were being told nationally about us would shape and impact on...?" https://meanjin.com.au/essays/what-happens-when-you-tell-somebody-elses-story/
I better stop and give you all a chance to catch up. I'll share more links and resources this week. I'm here until Thursday evening.
