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Stolen Generation
This section will tell the story of some Yanyuwa children who were removed from their families and taken to be educated in Darwin. It will tell how that affected the two succeeding generations. That story will not be ready for a while.
One such
family is Hilda Muir's. She was taken away at about 8.
Here is her daughter, Jeannie and Jeannie's son, Gordon Chalmers.
John Kundereri Moriarty AM is Chairman and Design Director of Balarinji Australia, the country's leading indigenous art and design studio that markets its work domestically and internationally.
Born at Borroloola in the Gulf of Carpentaria in the Northern Territory, he was taken away from his mother at the age of four and brought up in a number of boys' homes in Sydney and Adelaide under the then government's assimilation policy.
Today a full member of the Yanyuwa people of his birthplace, and belonging ceremonially to the rainbow snake and kangaroo Dreamings, John has held senior and executive positions in Departments of Aboriginal Affairs at both Federal and State government levels.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Flinders University, and was granted a Churchill Fellowship for overseas study of the history and culture of indigenous peoples.John was named South Australian Aboriginal Businessman of the Year in 1992, and was the recipient of the Advance Australia Award for service to industry and commerce. John is an Honorary Doctor of the University of South Australia.
John Moriarty has held numerous Board appointments. Currently he is Chairman of the National Aboriginal Sporting Corporation of Australia, Deputy Chairman of the Commercial Development Corporation, and a Member of the National Indigenous Advisory Committee to SOCOG. Previous appointments include Chairman of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Board of the Australia Council, Board member of the Visions of Australia Committee, Board member of the University of South Australia Foundation and the South Australian Museum, and President of the Aborigines' Progress Association of South Australia.
In establishing the Balarinji studio in 1983 with his wife Ros Moriarty, he sought to celebrate his Aboriginal heritage and that of his three children through art and design. He also aimed at fostering and maintaining his links with other indigenous peoples and communities, networking his extensive circle of corporate associates in Australia and overseas, and presenting Balarinji's design vision for Australia to media and public audiences. The result is an extremely successful national and international enterprise, operating across five continents.
John has just published his autobiography, Saltwater Fella (Viking Press, 2000), which tells of his being taken away, the ways in which he maintained his contacts with Yanyuwa people and found his mother, and his career as a sportsman, public servant and design studio businessman.
A stolen generation person taken from Borroloola as a child, Luke is a cyberpoet with his own site. His poetry gives a sense of what it is to be a stolen person.
| Click here to see Luke's site and read a poem about being a stolen generation person | |
| Take me to his site |