NAIDOC Week | |
---|---|
Dates | First full week in July each year |
Location(s) | Australia |
Years active | 1975 [1]–present |
Website | naidoc.org.au |
NAIDOC Week ( /ˈneɪdɒk/ NAY-dok) is an Australian observance lasting from the first Sunday in July until the following Sunday. The acronym NAIDOC stands for National Aboriginal and Islander Day Observance Committee, originally National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee. [2] [3] [a]. NAIDOC Week has its roots in the 1938 Day of Mourning, becoming a week-long event in 1975.
NAIDOC Week celebrates the history, culture, and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Australia. The week is observed not just by Indigenous Australian communities but also by government agencies, schools, local councils, and workplaces.
In 1984, NADOC (the forerunner of NAIDOC) requested that National Aborigines Day be made a national public holiday to help celebrate and recognise the rich cultural history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Australia. [4] There is no national public holiday for NAIDOC Week, but there have been further calls in recent years to make it a public holiday. [5] [6]
The idea behind NAIDOC goes back to a letter written by William Cooper that was aimed at Aboriginal communities and at churches. It was written on behalf of the Australian Aborigines Progressive Association, an umbrella group for a number of Aboriginal justice movements. The association gathered together a wide circle of Indigenous leaders including Douglas Nicholls, William Ferguson, Jack Patten and Margaret Tucker. In 1937 they were preparing for what would become the famous Day of Mourning in 1938. It not only sparked a very effective one-off protest. It also stimulated a national observance that was at first championed by churches, and is now a national celebration:
The Day of Mourning before Australia Day 1938 in Sydney by the AAPA and around 100 further Aboriginal people [8] [9] made significant impact on the national conversation and triggered an invitation for Indigenous leaders to meet with Prime Minister Joseph Lyons. [10]
The message to the churches got through too. Certainly, some churches were observing the day by January 1940 [11] and it was nationally observed by 1946 at the latest. [12]
By 1957, the leaders of the movement decided to change the date from January to July. The National Aborigines Day Observance Committee (NADOC) formed and the first Sunday in July became a day of remembrance and celebration for Aboriginal people and heritage. [13] [14]
In 1991 NADOC became NAIDOC (National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee), to recognise Torres Strait Islanders and to describe a whole week of recognition, rather than one day. [13] [1] [15]
The committee's acronym has since become the name of the week itself.[ citation needed]
In 2020, NAIDOC Week was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia, and postponed from July [16] to 8−15 November 2020. [17] However the national NAIDOC Awards, due to take place in Mparntwe / Alice Springs, were cancelled owing to continuing uncertainties. [18] The 2021 National NAIDOC Awards ceremony was scheduled for 3 July 2021, but again cancelled. [19] An event was then planned for 3 July at the Sydney Opera House. However, by July Sydney was in COVID-19 lockdown, and the Sydney ceremony was postponed. [20] [21] Due to the continuing pandemic, NAIDOC Week 2021 was also postponed; events for it in the Northern Territory were rescheduled to start on 11 July, but some events were cancelled. [22]
NAIDOC activities are held across Australia, activities include cultural and educational activities in schools and workplaces and public displays.
NAIDOC Week activities might include listening to Indigenous Australian music, reading dream time stories, visiting Indigenous Australian websites on the Internet, organising an art competition and watching programmes on both Australian television (and their streaming services) related to the week. [23]
Television stations such as the ABC and SBS structure programming across the week to celebrate events, actors and more on their various channels (as well as their streaming services).
Major celebratory events take place in Australia's major cities as well as in larger rural Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, including Alice Springs, Hermannsburg, Shepparton and Mildura.
The National NAIDOC Awards Ceremony and Ball, celebrating the end of NAIDOC Week festivities is held in a different host city each year. The Ball features Indigenous food and live bands. [24]
The first NAIDOC poster was created in 1972 to promote "Aborigines Day". The protest nature of the poster continued until 1977 with titles like "Self Determination" and "Chains or Chance" publicising political change and a day of remembrance. [25] [26]
In Western Australia, an Australian rules football match between Claremont and South Fremantle in the West Australian Football League has been played during NAIDOC week since 2007, with the winner being awarded the Jimmy Melbourne Cup, in honour of the first Indigenous Australian player to play senior football in a major Australian football league. [33]
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cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link)
NAIDOC Week | |
---|---|
Dates | First full week in July each year |
Location(s) | Australia |
Years active | 1975 [1]–present |
Website | naidoc.org.au |
NAIDOC Week ( /ˈneɪdɒk/ NAY-dok) is an Australian observance lasting from the first Sunday in July until the following Sunday. The acronym NAIDOC stands for National Aboriginal and Islander Day Observance Committee, originally National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee. [2] [3] [a]. NAIDOC Week has its roots in the 1938 Day of Mourning, becoming a week-long event in 1975.
NAIDOC Week celebrates the history, culture, and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Australia. The week is observed not just by Indigenous Australian communities but also by government agencies, schools, local councils, and workplaces.
In 1984, NADOC (the forerunner of NAIDOC) requested that National Aborigines Day be made a national public holiday to help celebrate and recognise the rich cultural history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Australia. [4] There is no national public holiday for NAIDOC Week, but there have been further calls in recent years to make it a public holiday. [5] [6]
The idea behind NAIDOC goes back to a letter written by William Cooper that was aimed at Aboriginal communities and at churches. It was written on behalf of the Australian Aborigines Progressive Association, an umbrella group for a number of Aboriginal justice movements. The association gathered together a wide circle of Indigenous leaders including Douglas Nicholls, William Ferguson, Jack Patten and Margaret Tucker. In 1937 they were preparing for what would become the famous Day of Mourning in 1938. It not only sparked a very effective one-off protest. It also stimulated a national observance that was at first championed by churches, and is now a national celebration:
The Day of Mourning before Australia Day 1938 in Sydney by the AAPA and around 100 further Aboriginal people [8] [9] made significant impact on the national conversation and triggered an invitation for Indigenous leaders to meet with Prime Minister Joseph Lyons. [10]
The message to the churches got through too. Certainly, some churches were observing the day by January 1940 [11] and it was nationally observed by 1946 at the latest. [12]
By 1957, the leaders of the movement decided to change the date from January to July. The National Aborigines Day Observance Committee (NADOC) formed and the first Sunday in July became a day of remembrance and celebration for Aboriginal people and heritage. [13] [14]
In 1991 NADOC became NAIDOC (National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee), to recognise Torres Strait Islanders and to describe a whole week of recognition, rather than one day. [13] [1] [15]
The committee's acronym has since become the name of the week itself.[ citation needed]
In 2020, NAIDOC Week was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia, and postponed from July [16] to 8−15 November 2020. [17] However the national NAIDOC Awards, due to take place in Mparntwe / Alice Springs, were cancelled owing to continuing uncertainties. [18] The 2021 National NAIDOC Awards ceremony was scheduled for 3 July 2021, but again cancelled. [19] An event was then planned for 3 July at the Sydney Opera House. However, by July Sydney was in COVID-19 lockdown, and the Sydney ceremony was postponed. [20] [21] Due to the continuing pandemic, NAIDOC Week 2021 was also postponed; events for it in the Northern Territory were rescheduled to start on 11 July, but some events were cancelled. [22]
NAIDOC activities are held across Australia, activities include cultural and educational activities in schools and workplaces and public displays.
NAIDOC Week activities might include listening to Indigenous Australian music, reading dream time stories, visiting Indigenous Australian websites on the Internet, organising an art competition and watching programmes on both Australian television (and their streaming services) related to the week. [23]
Television stations such as the ABC and SBS structure programming across the week to celebrate events, actors and more on their various channels (as well as their streaming services).
Major celebratory events take place in Australia's major cities as well as in larger rural Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, including Alice Springs, Hermannsburg, Shepparton and Mildura.
The National NAIDOC Awards Ceremony and Ball, celebrating the end of NAIDOC Week festivities is held in a different host city each year. The Ball features Indigenous food and live bands. [24]
The first NAIDOC poster was created in 1972 to promote "Aborigines Day". The protest nature of the poster continued until 1977 with titles like "Self Determination" and "Chains or Chance" publicising political change and a day of remembrance. [25] [26]
In Western Australia, an Australian rules football match between Claremont and South Fremantle in the West Australian Football League has been played during NAIDOC week since 2007, with the winner being awarded the Jimmy Melbourne Cup, in honour of the first Indigenous Australian player to play senior football in a major Australian football league. [33]
{{
cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link)