Cinema

from Beagle Weekender Vol 263 June 10th 2022

Reading ……………………..22 to

Gadfly 234 By Robert Macklin The declaration by the Prime Minister-elect at the start of his victory speech: ‘I commit to the Uluru Statement from the Heart in full’, was electrifying to many Australians. It certainly sent a bolt of lightning through your columnist, in the midst of writing the biography of the scientist, journalist, adventurer and war hero, Donald Thomson who fought like no other of his era for the Aboriginal cause. Born in 1901, he was our first home grown Anthropologist after graduating B.Sc. from Melbourne University and collecting the Diploma of Anthropology from the new department at Sydney Uni in 1927. By then, the 1788 Aboriginal population of about 800,000 had been halved and halved again. Only a percentage of those in the far north of Australia still lived the traditional life, but over the next 40 years he spent much of his time living with them in Far North Queensland, Arnhem Land and the Central Deserts. In doing so, he was able to appreciate like no other the engaging humanity and cultural sophistication of a truly remarkable people. Invited to address the Cabinet of the Lyons Government of 1938, he bared his soul. ‘I am speaking not from hearsay, nor from any personal motive,’ he told the seventeen Ministers around the table, ‘but from the hard experience of living with these people. And not just among them, but as no white man is ever known to have lived...in their camps, travelling with them, hunting with them, eating their food, attending their ceremonies, talking their language. ‘I say this only to give force to my plea – to impress upon this government that I am speaking not so much as a white man, but rather as a friend and advocate of these people for whom I have great regard…and an infinite pity.’ In the great movement we are now embarked upon to embrace and honour the First Nations who had occupied the continent for at least 65,000 years, Thomson’s role has been largely overlooked. Yet it was he who contributed in so many ways to the foundation from which the delegates to Uluru produced their historic Statement from the Heart. It is Thomson, a whitefella whom the Aboriginal people said, ‘thought Black’, who suffered from his own people the blows of hatred and prejudice that they knew so well. And while he died in 1970, as I have discovered in three years of research, he filled that life to the brim with more positive achievements than a dozen of his critics and antagonists… and to a triumphant climax. Thomson’s insights and his tireless advocacy won him extraordinary international recognition, and all the glittering academic prizes of his profession. As recently as November 2021, the Federal Court returned more than 2000 square kms to the Aboriginal people based on his work on Queensland’s Cape York. Indeed, 50 years before Eddie Mabo took his case to the High Court, Thomson was pleading with government to recognise the Aboriginal people’s land rights.

The pandemic has been tough on those of us who write Australian history and other non-fiction works. Readers and publishers have turned to escapist fiction to ease the stress of life’s Covid limitations. This was especially so under a government that scoffed at the simple reality that only by incorporating our unique Aboriginal past will we make Australia whole.

It is said that biographers must take care not to ‘fall in love’ with their subjects. But when Anthony Albanese finished that stunning commitment, I must admit, while outwardly I was nodding sagely, inside I was shedding a shower of tears. robert@robertmacklin.com

Reading—A beer with Baz Along with the other old blokes around the open fire in the pub, Bazza shuffled ever so slightly to make room for young Simon. “By gee……you old blokes must be feeling the cold.” There was the odd bone creak in the silent and passive compe on for heat from the open fire. Mick, feigning nonchalance to the cold in shorts and thongs, steadied his shaking schooner with both hands and turned to Simon. “Not really, young Simon…….You need to toughen up a bit. It’s nowhere near as cold as it used to get.” There were nods of agreement and old Bill cleared his throat. “When I was your age, Simon we used to gather like this around the fridge with the door open to keep warm. Now that was cold.” There were a couple of chuckles and Mick’s bald head was apparently trembling in agreement. Old Bill sucked in a deep breath. “That doesn’t even rate with the cold down Gundagai way. You see, there was this dog down there that used to piss on his owner’s tuckerbox……..” Simon’s jaw dropped. “Hang on, Bill that’s a tale about a dog being loyal and guarding his master’s food. There’s a statue and a song…..” Old Bill cut him off with a shake of his head. “No mate……. The real story is this bloody dog decided to piss on his owner’s tuckerbox one night in mid winter and a cold snap froze it in the act. It was so cold the dog remained frozen like that all winter. Well…… every dog owner in the district brought their mu to witness it as a lesson. The arts community thought it was a mystery ice sculpture by some kind of 19th Century ‘Banksy’ type ar st so it became a tourist a rac on. Of course, come summer they had to build a statue, change the story and make up a song to keep the tourists coming and save the good name of Gundagai…… but the point is……that’s how cold it used to get.” ‘Timeless Tom’s’ long sigh broke the pause. “Ahhhhh….. you are all a bit so . Crikey, Simon….. when I was your age we would call this weather spring. In ‘59 I was fencing for this bloke up the Clyde Mountain in the middle of winter. It got so cold his wife used to grow ice flowers. Anyhow, this bloke forgot all about me working one day and I had to spend the whole night in the far paddock. It was so cold the moon even balked at coming out. By nine o’clock there were stalac tes of ice on the barb wire fence I was trying to sleep under and that was before the real cold set in around midnight. By then, you needed an ice pick to blow your nose.” Mick’s knees knocked together and Simon let out a long “Bloody…….hell. How did you survive the night?” ‘Timeless Tom’ took a long sip and relished the short silence. “Well luckily, I had a spare cigare e paper I could use for a blanket.”

Mayor's column - June 2022 Lately I've been asked to lay out my vision for the shire at different local events. Being lucky enough to speak with large groups of residents at these events reminds me how unique the Eurobodalla is. Residents of each town and village want different things and it's clear to me there is no cookie-cu er op on for where we go as a community. So what do I see? Respec ul and genuine engagement between our Council and community is key. We will lead by example and we are trialling different approaches to that now. I would like to retain our unique and relaxed coastal character. We all love the environment around us and we want to protect the unspoilt aspect while balancing the need to house our community. I want to facilitate more job opportuni es, whether that be through con nued traineeships at council, pilot programs, or encouraging new industry. I want to see more cohesive communi es that turn within during disasters to support themselves - we need to be more resilient. I want to see a more strategic shi in tourism towards sustainable eco-tourism and arts/culture tourism that will bring visitors outside of the tradi onal mes. A more robust events schedule supported by Council will help to bring tourists when we need them most, but also provide opportuni es for residents to get out and enjoy what we have to offer. Above all else I want to see open and transparent dialogue between Council and community. I’m excited to have an amazing group of councillors who support this. It’s also very encouraging to get support on ini a ves from the staff who want the same goal. The feedback so far has been great but what’s important is we all realise, as do I, that we can always do be er. We must con nue to look at new ways to engage and get the best outcome. Ul mately my vision is your vision as I will be guided by you. We won't all see the same goal but we will work together on the journey to try to bring as many as we can along for the ride. Mayor Mathew Hatcher June 2022