National Aboriginal & Islander Day Observance Commitee: 50th Anniversary

The flag above represents the indigenous people of Australia. Today my uni celebrated the 50th Anniversary of NAIDOC at the quadrangle. For this occasion, there was:

• free balloons
• free bush tucker tastings of emu, kangaroo and crocodile meat (although I only tried emu meat. *yummy*)
• sausage sizzle.
• some band playing. Not sure who.

NAIDOC stands for National Aboriginal and Islander Day Observance Committee. The aim of NAIDOC is to promote the rich Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander heritage to all people on a regional, national, and even International level. It is also a celebration of the uniqueness of Indigenous traditions and cultures and recognition of the on-going struggle for justice and equality for Indigenous people.

I gave my balloon away to my lecturer, Karen. I thought she might like one as she looked stressed out after a long day's work. Ha ha. I would loved to have taken pictures, but it was a pity I didn't bring my camera. It was really a grand affair.

There are indigeneous children in the primary school classes that I meet when I go out on professional experiences which you may not realise at first, or you may have trouble differentiating those from PNG. Each nation has their own type of indigenous people issues and culture. Like Malaysia (with our bumiputras), Canada, America (the Red Indians), New Zealand and maybe many more others that I do not know about.

What among the creations I like of the indigenous culture are their their mural paintings as it can be quite eye catching and striking, and I have bought some of their created artefacts in Melbourne last year. There is also a display of all things indigenous in the museum in SouthBank, Brisbane. However, picture photography is not allowed due to cultural reasons.

Related links: NAIDOC