'Death is forgotten in victory': colonial landscapes and narratives of emptiness (2005)
In late 1998 I toured several sites of colonial ruination in the western district of Victoria. After writing about persistent attacks on Indigenous people and history in this region I was curious to...
'Death is forgotten in victory': colonial landscapes and narratives of emptiness (2005)
In late 1998 I toured several sites of colonial ruination in the western district of Victoria. After writing about persistent attacks on Indigenous people and history in this region I was curious to...
I have been writing short fiction and poetry for more than a decade, as well as teaching writing at university. Some of my students feel that I dwell too much on death and loss, while a close friend...
In my Father’s childhood house, daily life was centred around a small kitchen, a lean-to affair tacked onto the back of a single-fronted terrace dominated by a heave, cast-iron Planet no. 2 wood...
I have been writing short fiction and poetry for more than a decade, as well as teaching writing at university. Some of my students feel that I dwell too much on death and loss, while a close friend...
In my Father’s childhood house, daily life was centred around a small kitchen, a lean-to affair tacked onto the back of a single-fronted terrace dominated by a heave, cast-iron Planet no. 2 wood...
'Nothing has changed': the making and unmaking of Koori culture (2003)
In March 1989 the Victorian Minister for Tourism, Steve Crabb, announced that the Grampians mountain ranges in western Victoria would ‘revert to their Aboriginal name, Guriward’ (which after...
'Nothing has changed': the making and unmaking of Koori culture (2003)
In March 1989 the Victorian Minister for Tourism, Steve Crabb, announced that the Grampians mountain ranges in western Victoria would ‘revert to their Aboriginal name, Guriward’ (which after...
This is a true story: Rabbit-proof fence, 'Mr. Devil' and the Desire to forget (2002)
In February this year I attended a premiere of Rabbit-Proof Fence, a film directed by Phillip Noyce. The story deals with a journey, made in 1931, by three Aboriginal girls, sisters Molly (Everlyn...
A paperback education: Atticus Finch, Camus and Kenneth Cook's Wake in fright (2002)
When I was a kid there wasn’t much that my older brother did not do better than me. He was good at almost everything, particularly sport. He won the school handball championships every year,...
This is a true story: Rabbit-proof fence, 'Mr. Devil' and the Desire to forget (2002)
In February this year I attended a premiere of Rabbit-Proof Fence, a film directed by Phillip Noyce. The story deals with a journey, made in 1931, by three Aboriginal girls, sisters Molly (Everlyn...
A paperback education: Atticus Finch, Camus and Kenneth Cook's Wake in fright (2002)
When I was a kid there wasn’t much that my older brother did not do better than me. He was good at almost everything, particularly sport. He won the school handball championships every year,...
As this history began - with journeys - so it will end. In February 2001 Tony Birch, writer, historian and former senior curator with Museum Victoria, rode into Melbourne from the north west. His...
The last refuge of the 'un-Australian' (2001)
In 1860, with the establishment of the Board for the Protection of the Aborigines (BPA), the Victorian colonial government formalised, through the legislative process, the alienation of Aboriginal...
The last refuge of the 'un-Australian' (2001)
In 1860, with the establishment of the Board for the Protection of the Aborigines (BPA), the Victorian colonial government formalised, through the legislative process, the alienation of Aboriginal...
As this history began - with journeys - so it will end. In February 2001 Tony Birch, writer, historian and former senior curator with Museum Victoria, rode into Melbourne from the north west. His...