Makarrata is imbedded in Aboriginal histories: after struggle, the coming together truthfully for a better future of justice and self-determination.
David Unaipon (1872-1967), the man on the 50 dollar note - Australia's Leonardo da Vinci - was multi-talented: philosopher, theologian, inventor, musician. Born in a wurley at Tailem Bend on the lower Murray River, he was raised a gifted Ngarrindjeri at the Port McLeay mission, South Australia. His family suffered massacre by invading colonists.
As an Elder, he wandered from country town to county town as a bush preacher and speaker on invitation. He argued powerfully on the essence contained in the Uluru Statement from the Heart. He spoke eloquently that reciprocity between blacks and whites was the keystone to solving social problems in Australian society. He believed racial prejudice should be laid aside and equal rights be given to Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians. He stood for co-operation - not amalgamation.
His mantra was: "You can play a tune of sorts on the white keys of the piano. You can play a tune of sorts on the black keys, but for harmony, you must use both the black and white".
His rich voice echoed a great message now in the Statement from the Heart.
As a performer of Mendelsohn in organ recitals, he knew what he was talking about: Aborigines needed the power to reconstruct their lives shattered by colonisation. He advocated for the right of Aborigines to occupy a worthy place. That is why we need to vote "Yes" in the referendum.
Unaipon's book, Native Legends (1929) was the first by an Aboriginal to lay the foundations of the 2017 Uluru Statement. He sought to demonstrate the similarity of Christian and Aboriginal cultural values: "... Aborigines know that the Great Spirit is in all things and speaks through every form of nature. Thalung speaks through the voice of the wind, he rides the storm, he speaks out from the thunder. Thalung is everywhere, and manifests through the colour of the bush, the birds, the flowers, the fish, the streams; in fact everything that the Aborigine sees, hears, tastes and feels ..."
The Voice of the Great Spirit, David Unaipon
We need to be aware of the inequalities between Aboriginal and white people in Australia.
Many Indigenous people grew up on reserves and missions in poverty.
We long for a time when black and white respect each other. We need to erase thoughts that Aboriginals are inferior. Thoughtful compromise is needed. "Yes" represents hope; "No" represents despair.
The gentleness of the voice does not imply weakness, as the Aboriginal singer Jimmy Little stated throughout his long career.
Support of the referendum is significant for wellbeing. Progress towards "Yes" has taken a long time through the Freedom Ride, the Foundation for Aboriginal Affairs, Black Theatre in Redfern, Aboriginal legal and medical services, Aboriginal-run childcare centres, Aboriginal Tent Embassy, NSW Koori Rugby League Knockout, Sorry Day and many, many more.
I recall a bigger brighter world
a world of books
and silent times in thought
and then the railroad
the railroad taking him home
through the fields of cattle
through fields of cane
"Cattle and Cane", sung by Jimmy Little
Jimmy Little (1937-2012) had a brilliant 50-year career as a writer, actor and singer that was revived by The Messenger selection of songs. These relied on their force of precise enunciation and considered phrasing, similar to the Uluru Statement. They reveal something of the isolation Jimmy must have experienced in the time of segregation and assimilation. A Yorta Yorta man, he was born on the banks of the Murray like David Unaipon. His father carried him out in the Cummeragunja strike against the evil treatment of the reserve's manager. Jimmy's autobiographical song Yorta Yorta Man tells it all.
His family suffered hardships living at Wallaga Lake on the south coast of NSW. And yet, he had a quiet charm and a perseverance that carried him into the hit parade. His burning ambition, like Albert Namatjira, was to prove that First Nations People can take their place at the top of their chosen profession, if given the opportunities.
