The Victorian Government has kicked off the first ever Victorian Aboriginal Honour Roll NAIDOC Exhibition in celebration of NAIDOC Week.
The inaugural exhibition celebrates the extraordinary contribution Aboriginal Elders have and continue to make to Victoria, with special installations now available to view in Queens Hall at Parliament House until Friday, 12 July 2019.
The installations feature the stories of all 107 Victorian Aboriginal Honour Roll inductees, including Victorian Treaty Advancement Commissioner Jill Gallagher, singer-songwriter Archie Roach and Australia’s first Indigenous Paralympian Kevin Coombs.
NAIDOC Week celebrations kicked off in Victoria on 1 July 2019 with the NAIDOC Flag Raising Ceremony, followed by the National NAIDOC Week that runs until 14 July 2019.
2019’s NAIDOC theme is Voice. Treaty. Truth. Let’s Work Together for a Shared Future, providing an opportunity to reflect on the importance of Aboriginal peoples’ voices and to come together to learn more about Aboriginal cultures, histories and aspirations, including Treaty.
The Victorian Government is supporting a variety of NAIDOC events, such as the NAIDOC Awards, Flag Raising Ceremony, LGBTQIA+ Pride Crowning, the NAIDOC March and NAIDOC Ball.
Victoria is the first Australian state to commit to negotiating Treaty with First Peoples as part of its pledge to progress self-determination.
An election will take place later in 2019 to establish the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria, which will be the voice for Aboriginal communities during the treaty process.
Aboriginal Victorians are encouraged to enrol to vote in the election and nominate potential assembly members.
Source: Vic Government