Often green activists will integrate Indigenous groups into their causes, or even champion Aboriginal causes through their own struggles against environmental destruction. However, while well intended, this activism is often disempowering and even racist towards Aboriginal people, resulting in the same kind of dispossession as that inflicted by colonial governments.
Aboriginal Roles In Conservation
Aboriginal roles in green activism are as follows:
- fossilised exotic icon
- mascot
- token consultant
- servant/guide (Jacky-Jacky or Tonto)
- bio-prospecting resource
- funding resource
The Wilderness Myth
The most damaging aspect of conservationist ideology is the wilderness myth, which is basically a green version of Terra Nullius. The concept of "untouched" or "unspoiled" Edens that need to be protected from people always seems to leave Native Title out of the picture. The romantic natural paradise ideal effectively removes Aboriginal people from the landscape. Our land management techniques are silenced at best, or at worst criticised as being primitive and unscientific. I have even heard (in green circles) Aboriginal land management cited as a reason for species extinction.
Conservation As Colonialism
When "wilderness" conservation became law, this resulted in countless Aboriginal people being jailed for hunting in "protected" areas on their traditional lands. Many of these people died (and are still dying) in prison. "No camping" rules have resulted in further dispossession, as traditional owners have found themselves driven off the land by a new form of pastoralism called wilderness preservation. And when Indigenous people have scraped together enough money to buy back their own land, the government has been able to block the purchase by declaring the areas National Parks. Thus conservationism has become yet another weapon against Aboriginal people.
Aboriginal Portrayal In Green Texts
Reductionism is also a problem in green circles. Because of the monocultural use of western scientific inquiry in conservation, many well-meaning activists fail to develop the holistic knowledge base necessary for effective land management. This also prevents them from seeing an Indigenous hand in the maintenance of ecosystems. As a result traditional owners become relics of the past. This can be seen in conservationist texts, which always seem to use the past tense when describing Indigenous knowledge or practices.
Often Indigenous "wisdom" will be used to give a bit of weight and poignancy to green texts. Other times land knowledge is stripped from Indigenous sources and appropriated by green messiahs who come to save the land and the people. If we're lucky, we get to be their assistants, or consultants.
