Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up!’ The theme for this year’s NAIDOC week reminded us all what must continue in order to progress the Reconciliation effort.

During NAIDOC week and every week, Slattery acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which we work and live. We give thanks to Elders, past and present, who have been fighting for change for hundreds of years – generously sharing wisdom on how we can move forward as a country. We recognise First Nations communities as the heroes and champions of Reconciliation.

Congratulations to Yemma Egan!

We would firstly like to congratulate Yemurraki Egan on being crowned Mr NAIDOC at the Victorian NAIDOC Awards. A proud Yorta Yorta, Wemba Wemba and Gunditjmara man, Yemma also recently moved into a new role as Outreach and Engagement Team Leader with Murrup Barak (Indigenous Knowledge Institute) at the University of Melbourne. Slattery are so proud and thankful to have Yemma on our RAP Working Group and look forward to progressing our Reconciliation journey with his insights and wisdom.

NAIDOC Week Activities

Slattery kicked off NAIDOC week with a morning tea catered by the fabulous Mabu Mabu, and introduced several books by incredible First Nations authors into our Melbourne office lounge. These are for staff to read at leisure and can be taken home and brought back. We look forward to building the collection up further – which currently includes works such as Bruce Pascoe’s ‘Dark Emu’ and Veronica Gorrie’s ‘Black and Blue: A Memoir of Racism and Resilience’.

Closing off a slightly extended NAIDOC week – several Slattery staff visited the Shrine of Remembrance on Thursday the 14th of July to see ‘The Mission’.

The Mission is a powerful dramatic performance that follows the journey of “Fighting Gunditjmara” man, Allan McDonald – one of the first Aboriginal soldiers from Victoria to enlist for war. Allan fought at Galllipoli and Be’er Sheva – but upon his return to Australia, was denied the settlement promised to each soldier and forced away from his land at the Lake Condah Mission.

Performed by Allan’s great, great nephew, acclaimed Gunditjmara actor Tom Molyneux, Slattery were blown away by the talent and captivated by the story. With Allan’s lifelong fight for country and justice exemplifying the theme of NAIDOC 2022, Slattery will continue to get up, stand up and show up, as we work with First Nations Australians to narrow the gap between aspiration and reality, good intent and outcome.

For more information about NAIDOC, including the history of the week, this year’s events, and the story behind this years poster designed by Rhia Dank, click here: https://www.naidoc.org.au/