Change Makers in Their Generation
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from the editors WELCOME to the first edition of newly-arrived refugee communities Change Makers magazine. in Logan City. The Change Makers magazine The Change Makers’ Project is a collaborative media project includes youth camps, student-led CONTENTS led by the students at Woodridge community events and publishing Editors State High School and supported a magazine. Scott Downman by students from the School of This magazine seeks to tell the Amy Sullivan Journalism and Communication at story of Woodridge’s youth through Kate Davis the University of Queensland. the use of stories, photography, The magazine is one part of the artwork and illustrations. Journalists Change Makers’ Project funded The aim is to break stereotypes Jade Horrobin by the Federal Government’s and showcase stories that promote Kemii Maguire Department of Immigration as pride, hope and inspiration. 6 12 20 Jordan McMullen part of their Diversity and Social In this first edition, the magazine Alicja Rudz Cohesion Program. highlights and celebrates the Rachel Westbury The project’s aim is to build diversity of the Logan community. Alynna Wong greater connections and cross- We are proud of the stories that cultural understanding between are being told and we hope you Pride Inspiration Hope Change Makers committee the Aboriginal and Torres Strait enjoy reading ‘the real story of Islander, Pacifika, Australian and Woodridge’. Margaret Setefano Bark petitions Harmony Day Change Makers Manu Manoa Woodridge students lobby Celebrating multiculturalism Camps promote hope, pride Alexandra Green 04 the United Nations 12 at Woodridge High 20 and inspiration for students Tha Thaw from the change makers Say Ler Jae Lee Lor AS the Change Maker youth at as Change Makers, from many Seeking asylum Child marriage Catch me if you can Mai Lor Woodridge State High School we cultural backgrounds, to posi- Why do people seek asylum Families promote education Using sport to promote respect Mee Vang decided to make a magazine to tively impact our community and 06 in Australia? 14 not early marriage 22 with local police Nive Ionae change the bad stereotypes of to speak out for our youth. We Jayden Okesene our youth in Logan. We are proud want Woodridge students to be Asad Ahmadi to be from Woodridge and want proud of who they are and where Cultural diversity Learning options Family ties to celebrate our multicultural they have come from. We want to School lunches aren’t what Innovative programs promote Family commitment to school school. We love our community. make our whole community feel 08 they used to be 16 student opportunities. 24 community recognised It makes us feel safe and it is our the same way and to know that home. We have come together change is possible! Bulkairi space Community hub Education ops Indigenous space promotes Australia-first program builds Innovative learning pathways 10 cultural understanding 18 community links 28 for students Funded by the Department of Social Services under the Diversity and Social Cohesion Programme 2 3 Petitions of hope pride inspiration Woodridge students are taking& on the world. As Alicja RUDZ reports their petitions for a better world have found their way to the United Nations in New York. FIFTY-ONE years ago, Aboriginal elders used bark to send an enduring mes- 2014. She will also present them to the Chair of sage to the highest authority in the land, seeking to end injustice. the PFII at the UN World Conference on Indig- Today, children tracing their footsteps are going even further. enous Peoples in New York from 22 to 23 Sep- Woodridge State High School students have crafted traditional bark petitions tember. to call for an end to racism, a message that will be heard on a global stage at Dr Davis, an expert member of the PFII, said the 2014 United Nations World Conference on Indigenous Peoples. the petitions show how a school in a low socio- The bark tradition dates to 1963, when the Yolngu people of Yirrkala, in the economic community addresses racial tensions Northern Territory, sought recognition of traditional land rights by sending two and conveys a vision for racial harmony. petitions, which combined bark painting with text on paper, to the Australian “We speak about what a tolerant society Aus- Parliament. They were the first traditional documents to bridge Common- tralia is with few racial flashpoints, but we fail to wealth and Indigenous laws. recognise that most of this heavy lifting is done The Woodridge students drew on the tradition as a response to racial riots in those areas that have significant multicultural in the Logan community during 2013, which saw violence flare between Ab- populations. This tends to be in low socio-eco- original, Pacific Islander and African families. nomic areas,” Dr Davis said. Their petitions ask for fairness, tolerance, an upgrade of educational and “It’s easy to feel powerless because no one listens to the poor in Australia, but hospital resources, and to “bring some poor people from another country they can empower themselves with education. because they don’t have anything in their country.” “These students by necessity have to develop skills of diplomacy and peace- Alexandra Green, a Woodridge student in Year 9, said she was overwhelmed making that should be acknowledged and, in the case of the bark petitions, by the positive response with the bark petitions from her classmates. applauded.” “It made me proud to be an Aboriginal person sharing my culture,” Alexandra Among the individual messages on the Woodridge bark petitions were: said. “More help to find and prepare for jobs”; “Unity of all races”; “End racism”; Fellow Woodridge student Chantal Sadi said that acknowledging other cul- “Fairness”; “Violence is not peace”; “Equal rights for everyone”; and “As a tures and apologising for wrongdoing (to the Stolen Generation) allows peo- group we can accomplish anything.” ple to heal and release pain. Dr Davis said the petitions outline a vision for racial harmony and better social “That is what you will see these past years – when you go to school you will infrastructure for youth to prevent boredom, as well as raise concerns about see Indigenous, Aboriginal, Australian and other people from different coun- health care costs. tries having fun at school, laughing and playing together because there is love “I was extremely moved by the park petitions,” Dr Davis said. for one another,” Chantal said. “I’m not sure social mobility is as achievable today as it was for me, but it just As part of last year’s NAIDOC Week celebrations, which increases awareness means students from Logan have to work twice as hard as everyone else.” of the status and treatment of Indigenous Australians, and to honour the Head of ESL at Woodridge High School Kate Davis said that the bark pe- 50th anniversary of the Yirrkala bark petitions, Woodridge representatives tition themes highlighted the passions and sentiments of the youth in the presented their petitions to Dr Megan Davis (pictured right). Woodridge community. Dr Davis, Professor of Law and Director of the Indigenous Law Centre at the “Over 50 years later, the bark petition legacy lives on and continues to inspire University of New South Wales, in turn relayed the petitions to the peak UN our young people to stand up for change and positive reform in our nation,” 4 Indigenous body the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Peoples (PFII) in May Ms Davis said. 5 an asylum seeker Why do asylum seekers come to Australia? As Jade HORROBIN reports their reasons for coming to Australia are often complex and confronting. SITTING beside me, he fiddles with his fingers in his lap boat got heavier as the water built up, and people pan- as he shares his life with me in broken English. icked and moved to one side of the boat, and tipped the Each word separated by silence as he translates his boat. thoughts to English words. It was in the afternoon that 42 of us were saved but my Showing maturity and wisdom of a man much older than friend was not one of us,” he said. his 18 years, he recalls his father’s death, traveling to Iran The loss of his friend left him completely alone on his jour- to flee the ‘War on terror’, his journey to Australia by boat ney, praying for the safety of his family and mourning his and losing his best friend to the waves on the way. friend who was swallowed by the sea. Growing up in Afghanistan through the 1990s during the “I died a hundred times aboard that boat,” he said. height of the Taliban regime , life was never going to be “When I closed my eyes, I remembered my family, my easy, but as a religious and ethnic minority, the challenges village and clung to them, but if I died, I would have been of living in central Afghanistan were enormous. happy because I didn’t do any bad things in my life; I didn’t Being of Hazāra ethnicity and practicing Shia Islam, he kill anyone,” he said. had always been in the minority, sharing his ethnic and He said leaving behind his home and his family had devas- religious group with only 9-percent of Afghanis. tated him, but was regrettably the only option. “The Taliban wanted to kill me for my religion and my face Although his family were poor in Afghanistan, he explained [ethnicity],” he tells me. to me his love for his village; the place he grew up, and “I wish there was a school for my religion and I wish that the adoration he has for his family, who he never stops someday, Afghanistan will be free of the Taliban,” he said.