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The People of K'gari/Fraser Island

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The People of K'gari/Fraser Island genealogy Article The People of K’Gari/Fraser Island: Working through 250 Years of Racial Double Coding Fiona Foley y Queensland College of Art, Griffith University, South Brisbane 4101, Australia; fi[email protected] Note: Fiona Foley is an artist, academic and provocateur. Over a career now spanning thirty years y she has explored the frontier wars waged against Aboriginal peoples and brought the ‘hidden histories’ of the massacres and Queensland state sanctioned opium use into galleries, public spaces, and a broader, society-wide debate. Received: 28 May 2020; Accepted: 2 July 2020; Published: 8 July 2020 Abstract: Genealogy is important to Aboriginal societies in Australia because it lets us know who has a right to speak for country. Our genealogy binds us to our traditional country as sovereign nations—clans with distinct languages, ceremony, laws, rights and responsibilities. Since the Native Title Act 1993 was passed by the Keating government, hundreds of Native Title claims have been lodged. The first Native Title claim to be lodged on Badtjala/Butchulla country was in 1996 by my great aunty, Olga Miller, followed by the Butchulla People #2 and the Butchulla People (Land & Sea Claim #2). Consent determination was awarded for K’gari (Fraser Island) in 2014 and for the mainland claim in 2019. As a sovereign nation, we have undergone many decades of deprivational longing—physically separated from our island, but in plain view. This article is written from a Badtjala lens, mapping generations of my Wondunna clan family through the eyes of an artist-academic who has created work since 1986 invested in cultural responsibility. With the accompanying film, Out of the Sea Like Cloud, I recenter the Badtjala history from a personal and local perspective, that incorporates national and international histories. Keywords: de-colonial; sovereignty; Aboriginal art; Australian history; K’gari (Fraser Island) 1. Introduction: The Badtjala Nation I am from the Wondunna Clan of the Badtjala nation. Our traditional country is the region encompassing all of K’gari/Fraser Island off of the southern coast of Queensland, Australia. K’gari, the largest sand island in the world, is under the management of Queensland National Parks and Wildlife Service. She (the island) is also listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. On the mainland, our traditional boundaries extend from Double Island Point in the south, to Bauple Mountain in the west, and to the mouth of the Burrum River in the north (Reeves and Miller 1964). We speak as a sovereign nation as our rights have not been ceded. Our ongoing commitment to our country, and the reintroduction of our language back into common usage, have been long and active processes full of tenacity. See Figure1. Like my known and unknown ancestors, my life has been about the fight for justice for Aboriginal people. My platform has been through the visual arts, which has included solo exhibitions, public art commissions, public speeches, a Ph.D., and a publication entitled Biting the Clouds (Foley 2020). See Figure2. Genealogy 2020, 4, 74; doi:10.3390/genealogy4030074 www.mdpi.com/journal/genealogy Genealogy 2020, 4, x FOR PEER REVIEW 2 of 16 Genealogy 2020, 4, 74 2 of 15 Genealogy 2020, 4, x FOR PEER REVIEW 2 of 16 Figure 1. Fiona Foley’s mother, cultural activist Shirley Foley, on K’gari (Fraser Island). Photograph courtesy of Fiona Foley. Like my known and unknown ancestors, my life has been about the fight for justice for Aboriginal people. My platform has been through the visual arts, which has included solo exhibitions,Figure 1. public Fiona Foley’sart commissions, mother, cultural public activist speeches, Shirley a Foley, Ph.D., onon and K’gariK’gari a (Fraserpublication(Fraser Island).Island). entitled Photograph Biting the Cloudscourtesy (Foley of 2020). Fiona See Foley. Figure 2. Like my known and unknown ancestors, my life has been about the fight for justice for Aboriginal people. My platform has been through the visual arts, which has included solo exhibitions, public art commissions, public speeches, a Ph.D., and a publication entitled Biting the Clouds (Foley 2020). See Figure 2. Figure 2. The cover of Fiona Foley’s forthcoming book, Biting the Clouds, which refers to a Chinese Figureexpression 2. The for cover smoking of Fiona opium. Foley’s The photograph forthcoming by book, Foley Biting is a field the ofClouds poppies., which refers to a Chinese expression for smoking opium. The photograph by Foley is a field of poppies. Throughout my career, I have joined other Aboriginal artists, public intellectuals, academics and writers who have been at the forefront in changing the dominant colonial narratives and confronting structural racism. As Bruce Pascoe states, “Any nation’s artists and thinkers set the tone and breadth Figure 2. The cover of Fiona Foley’s forthcoming book, Biting the Clouds, which refers to a Chinese expression for smoking opium. The photograph by Foley is a field of poppies. Genealogy 2020, 4, x FOR PEER REVIEW 3 of 16 GenealogyThroughout2020, 4, 74 my career, I have joined other Aboriginal artists, public intellectuals, academics3 ofand 15 writers who have been at the forefront in changing the dominant colonial narratives and confronting structural racism. As Bruce Pascoe states, “Any nation’s artists and thinkers set the tone and breadth of national conversation” (Pascoe (Pascoe 2019,2019, p. p. 100). 100). Decolonizing Decolonizing the the histories histories of of Queensland Queensland has has been been a alifetime lifetime passion passion of of mine. mine. In In this this article, article, I Idemonstrate demonstrate that that while while English English colonists colonists and and the the Western academy wrote a history for our people, thethe gazegaze hashas alwaysalways gonegone bothboth ways.ways. See Figure3 3.. Figure 3.3. FionaFiona Foley’sFoley’sWatching Watching and and Waiting Waitingfrom from her her series seriesHorror Horror Has A Has Face A, #8.Face (2017), #8. Fujiflex(2017) Fujiflex Digital Print.Digital Edition Print. Edition 15. 45 15.80 cm.45 × Reproduced80 cm. Reproduced courtesy co ofurtesy the artist of the and artist Andrew and BakerAndrew Art Baker Dealer, Art Brisbane. Dealer, × Brisbane. In the historiography of place, there have been a number of events beyond our control that have shapedIn the who historiography the Badtjala are of place, as a people. there have In a Europeanbeen a number linear of narrative, events beyond one of our those control key dates that have was 1836shaped (Scha whoffer the 1995 Badtjala; McNiven are as et a al.people. 1998). In The a Euro Badtjalapean namelinear fornarrative, our island, one K’gari,of those became key dates known was as1836 “Fraser (Schaffer Island” 1995; after McNiven the Stirling et al. Castle1998). shipwreckedThe Badtjala name off the for coast our of island, the island. K’gari, Captain became Fraser known was as speared“Fraser Island” and his wife,after Eliza—accordingthe Stirling Castle to shipwrecked legend—was off rescued the coast two monthsof the island. later by Captain an escaped Fraser convict was whospeared had and lived his with wife, tribal Eliza—according Aboriginals in to South legend—was East Queensland rescued two and months could speak later severalby an escaped of their languagesconvict who (Miller had lived 1998 ;with Foley tribal 1998 ).Aboriginals in South East Queensland and could speak several of their Inlanguages Larissa Behrendt’s (Miller 1998;Finding Foley Eliza1998).(Behrendt 2016) she unpacks British fears of cohabitation by highlighting,In Larissa “once Behrendt’s these anxieties Finding found Eliza expression(Behrendt and2016) form she in unpacks narratives British such asfears Eliza’s, of abduction they justified by thehighlighting, mechanisms “once for surveillancethese anxieties of Aboriginalfound expression people and through form policing in narratives practices, such legal as Eliza’s, control they and governmentjustified the policy.”mechanisms The unspoken for surveillance fear, in Eliza’sof Aboriginal case, was people that this through white womanpolicing could practices, be sexually legal violatedcontrol and by government Aboriginal men policy.” if not The rescued. unspoken Racialized fear, in Eliza’s anxieties case, have was formulated that this white many woman patterns could of structuralbe sexually behaviours violated by used Aboriginal to subjugate men Aboriginal if not rescued. men, Racialized women and anxieties children have in Australia. formulated many patternsThe intensityof structural of the behaviours unknown forused the to Badtjala subjugate people Aboriginal and the English,men, women I imagine, and wouldchildren have in createdAustralia. a heightened sense of curiosity upon seeing one another. The Frasers were not our first brush withThe the Englishintensity on of K’gari. the unknown In May for of 1770,the Badtjala many Aboriginalpeople and sovereign the English, nations I imagine, watched would a foreign have vessel,created the a heightenedEndeavour, sailsense up of the curiosity eastern upon coast forseeing days, one passing another. nation The afterFrasers nation, were who not communicatedour first brush with onethe anotherEnglish abouton K’gari. its progress. In May Theof 1770, Badtjala many people Aboriginal were unique sovereign because, nations not manywatched people a foreign in the worldvessel, wouldthe Endeavour be aware,, theysail createdup the aeastern song recounting coast for what days, happened passing when nation the shipafter passednation, by who our countrycommunicated on May with 20th one of thatanother year. abou Thetsong its progress. takes place The on Badtjala a volcanic people headland were unique of K’gari because, known not in Badtjalamany people as Takky in the Wooroo. world would What Ibe love aware, about they this created song are a song the layersrecounting of metaphors what happened contained when within the oneship verse:passed by our country on May 20th of that year. The song takes place on a volcanic headland of K’gari known in Badtjala as Takky Wooroo.
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