Ten Canoes

Yesterday the German gappies and myself sat down to watch an Australian movie called "Ten Canoes." To summarise it, it's a story that is set in Australia during pre-invasion times, and follows a particular tribe as they try to work out who has kidnapped one of their warrior's wives. It is a very beautiful film, both in story line and visually.

For me it was a real eye opener into the way that life was for Indigenous people before white man stepped onto this land. It actually really surprised me, because after watching the movie I realised that I'd had a misconception of the Aboriginal culture stuck in my head all my life. And I thought that I was doing ok! However, after watching the film, my touristy and stereotypical idea of Indigenous people was exposed. I had no idea of what it was really like.

I think the issue is that in Australia, there aren't enough opportunities for us to learn about how things were. So much of what is Aboriginal has been used for tourism and commercial use that we have somehow diminished their great culture. Put this together with the lack of Indigenous studies in high schools and in some unis, and you can understand why white people are ignorant. If all we have is a pretty, tame, attractive, watered down version of Aboriginal culture, then how are we to ever know or understand the tragic loss and sadness that is still going on within this land?

Maybe people have some comments on this? Is there anyone else who, like me, feels like they've missed out on learning about and understanding the past? Ignorance shouldn't be an excuse anymore!

I definitely recommend Ten Canoes to all Australians! It does make you quite sad and maybe even a little disepowered when you start to consider just how much of their way of life was stolen from them, but I would prefer to face these sorts of things rather then pretend not to care.