The UWA Student Guild stands in solidarity with First Nations students. The UWA Student Guild is located on the lands of the Whadjuk Noongar people and the Menang Noongar people at the Albany campus. This land was stolen, and sovereignty was never ceded. It was, and always will be, Aboriginal land.
January 26th is not a day to be celebrated. It marks the unlawful invasion of Australia, genocide of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and the start of a long history of intergenerational trauma, racism, oppression, dispossession, and the dislocation of Indigenous peoples from their family, country, and community - the effects of which are still felt across Indigenous communities today. Despite this painful history, Indigenous people have not allowed invasion to define them. The cultures, languages, and communities of Indigenous nations remain resilient, and their peoples powerful advocates for social justice.
Failure to be honest and frank about Australia’s colonial history only exacerbates intergenerational trauma, and stands as a major obstacle on the path to reconciliation. While UWA is closed on January 26th, Guild President Amitabh Jeganathan and the 109th Guild Council will be in the office like on any other day. The UWA Student Guild is committed to advocating for reconciliation and decolonisation, and urges all students to actively support the Indigenous community both on and off campus by doing the following:
- Attend the Invasion Day rally on January 26th
- Get involved with National Reconciliation Week
- Enrol in units delivered by the School of Indigenous Studies
- Follow WASAC on social media and support their events
- Get involved with NAIDOC Week in Perth
- Support culturally significant dates for Indigenous peoples
