I live in Roebourne, a small town in the North West of Western Australia. Our town is about 90% Aboriginal so it’s easy to imagine the reputation we have, in fact our reputation is known all over this state.
Roebourne is rough, I can vouch for that, but thankfully is also rich in culture. In a region dominated by mining, sport and Jim Beam, Roebourne’s culture is vibrant and strong. The only catch is, it’s only insiders who get to experience it.
When CuriousWorks arrived in our offices over a month ago, I wondered which glimpse of Roebourne they would get. Roebourne is deceptive and guarded, and it is up to the visitors’ personality to break down the barriers of history and ill feeling….
But happily we looked on as Curious Works prevailed, we watched as they engaged our young people, in their own space; the youth centre. CW came home with videos shot by young boys and girls, who had never touched a camera before. We watched as kids created skits, selected soundtracks, cut and paste film – all with big smiles on their face. It was this type of success that would break through the guarded community, and release the tensions built up over the years.
But CW went further, capturing different people’s stories, finding that Roebourne people are ready to share quite freely their cultural knowledge. They got told stories of mythical snakes that would swallow you up with its anus if you don’t follow the right cultural protocols, and were shown how to wash a kangaroo stomach in its own blood so that you protect the cleanliness of a waterhole. They learnt of family relationships that are complex and need explanation, and met people who haven’t bought meat at a supermarket for years because the bush is their market.
Not many people get to hear all this, and not too many people in Roebourne will share it without watching, observing and deciding on you first.
Roebourne is a special town, right now it’s being pulled in all kinds of directions. We have many visitors come here, all with projects, investments, and ideas for our future… all the grand plans. But once in a while we get visitors who contribute some happiness and joy, and add to the social fabric that is already here. When that happens the community responds with precious gifts, of knowledge, of history – and most importantly we make a connection with our visitors.
We are more than happy to have Curious Works here and we welcome as many other people who are looking to share and connect their community with ours.
See you guys again soon, for some more adventures in the Pilbara.
Nagaru
Andrew Dowding
——————–
Currently appointed as a cultural researcher, Andrew Dowding has been trained in Anthropology at Sydney University and University of Los Angeles (UCLA). Andrew has now returned to Roebourne after living in Los Angeles and Sydney, to work for the Ngarluma community. Andrew is committed to producing a solid language program, documenting Ngarluma cultural knowledge and creating cultural awareness materials.