Hate, Fear and Greed: A personal Indigenous reflection on the discourse of Australian Native Title

I share my reflective experiences, both personal and as a PBC Chair, on the hegemonic influences of Native Title in Australia. This paper assesses the history of the Native Title on the people, to make aware and inform the barriers Indigenous peoples of our PBC face not only from the white colonists, but also from each other through structured and introduced Lateral Violence discourses. These cumulatively make it doubly difficult for the ‘blackfulla’ to become self-empowered as a unified community, dividing Indigenous people for their own benefit; the division that pleases the white oppressor.

My paper draws on our PBC's experience in attempting to make this Native Title process work, enabling the progress of the PBC to become a conduit that benefits the Riverland community giving the opportunity for them to move forward as a unified group. I demonstrate how colonial attitudes and whiteness are still prevalent and prevent successful Cultural business practices being conducted; it is ironic that Indigenous peoples are fighting for their Cultural Waters and Lands from governments which stole it in the first instance, and now appear to have Indigenous peoples conducting their own Cultural business under the microscope of white man’s law of ‘Native Title’.