Our Stories are our Survival

Our stories are our survival centres on the continuity of Wiradjuri culture. It is a celebration of storytelling and the joys of life within an Aboriginal Australian community. It offers an alternative to the commonly told stories of Aboriginal disadvantage.

Using sport as a lens, the book brings to light the continued strength of Aboriginal culture.

It places contemporary representations of Aboriginal people and communities into historical context and calls for readers to rethink what they know about Australian Indigenous communities.

Bamblett places a high value on Wiradjuri storytelling and includes testimony from within the community. As a member of the Erambie community he has been given unparalleled access to stories and photographs. His love of community shines through.

Lawrence Bamblett is a Research Fellow at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS). He combines community development work with tertiary teaching and research. His work has a central focus on understanding the nature and impact of the way Aboriginal people have been and continue to be represented, and how they choose to represent themselves. His work engages with a number of spheres, particularly education, sport and health. He aims to uncover and improve understanding of the link between representations of Indigenous identity and outcomes for Indigenous Australians.

The videos below show an interview with the author and an extract from a talk he delivered about the book at Manning Clark House on the 27th of May 2013.

Awards

Runner-up, 2011 Stanner Award
Shortlisted for the 2013 University of Southern QLD History Book Award