Recently these newsletters have been written as our reflection of the state of the world around us. It started with us entering the matrix of Covid Lockdown, then came the emotional distance of social distance, and for some reason, Patrick Swayze got involved. Then reality broke through, Mining corporations are still being greedy, and Black lives are still being lost to police brutality.

How do we as a collective of artists, often identified by the two white, middle-aged men who run the day to day, make a meaningful statement around racism and white privilege without looking like another corporation using a # for publicity?. Fortunately for us being a collective, we have a millennial who is opinionated and mouthy, and also Indigenous (notice how we didn’t list that first because she is more than her cultural identity, look at us go)

Now we’re not saying that if we didn’t have an in house millennial we wouldn’t care about the Black lives matter movement or the racism faced by First Nations people on Australian soil. We would, however, feel as a predominantly white company it wasn’t our place to speak. Nevertheless, we have a platform, and people read these things, so we’re handing it over to the opinionated millennial who has some things to say, so buckle in.

This is my home.
Not technically, my postal address is in Perth and my Country is elsewhere. That's not important though (at least not in this context). I, like everyone else at The Farm, am a bogan and proud of it. I grew up in a small town in the Pilbara called Tom Price. You may of heard about it recently in the news? It's the reference point they used to explain the location of a cultural site so significant it predates the last ice age. The one that was blown up by Rio Tinto. But don't worry, they apologised. Luckily for Rio, there was already a national day dedicated to saying sorry.
I'll forgive Scomo for not remembering it either, as he already had to apologise once this year.

Even though the earlier part of this newsletter began in a sort vague third-person way, I wrote it. I didn't pay much attention to high school English but I think this began in the third person?. I refer to myself as an opinionated, mouthy, millennial because it's more flattering than the usual description of Angry, Black, Woman. But to quote the incredible Nakkiah Lui and Miranda Tapsell

"I'm done not being angry. I am angry. And if you don’t like me being angry, then, by all means, Australia, take my furious baton and run this race for me! Because we are dying in infancy, we are dying in custody, and we are dying decades earlier than you. And you should be as angry about that as I am"

And for now, most of you are angry.
Angry that George Floyd was murdered by a police officer while three others watched, Angry that he wasn't charged straight away, Angry because more black lives are being lost to police brutality while protesting police brutality.

I'm angry too.
Angry that I have to remind people this isn't solely an American problem, angry that I have to watch my white friends join a movement I can't leave, I'm angry that I can only quote statistics from the last 30 years because we didn't keep count before then, I'm angry that every time a white policeman kills a First Nations person in Australia, their identity gets suppressed, for their safety.

The anger comes and goes.
and so will the hashtags

But if you can, stay angry, demand justice, take it to the streets if you please,

And if you cant, educate yourself, educate your workplace, call out your racist uncle, unfriend that racist friend of a friend you have on Facebook, call out racism when you see it in the street.

Donate to a cause, read books by black authors, watch black theatre, program black theatre, buy black art and listen to black musicians, but mostly, listen to us when we speak.

Share this burden with us.

It's weeks like this when I feel like we're stuck in a never-ending cycle and all hope is lost, I find it helpful to remember that a small band of rebels was all it took to eventually destroy the empire.

And a Jedi... and like 9 movies over 40 ish years...

While I can't train in the Jedi way,

I can remind myself that I am a part of the longest surviving culture on earth, even if the evidence gets blown up.

- Chloe Ogilvie (Yamatji Nhanda)

While I heavily suggest you do your own research as well, I've already made you do a fair amount of reading.

Justice for Joyce

You can't ask that (ABC)

Deadly Beats Playlist

In My Blood It Runs (Documentary)

IndigenousX

Spinifex Gum

Welcome To Country (Travel Guide)

#millennials | June 5 2020