Aboriginal Rights

» woorama - Censorship is patronising

thanks for this text. it is too scary. maybe i should stick my head in the sand and ignore it - if i'm worrying about the govt bashing the door down and having me shot for the crime of anti-colonialism... well, that level of paranoia wouldn't be conducive to good critical writing, would it?

anyway, this particular issue is a case of indigenous genres failing to find a place in non-indigenous domains. there is a certain idea and standard of what sort of language and genre needs to be used in domains such as this one, and this cultural exclusivity is something that seems to be inherent in these anglo-dominated domains. this is implicit in the medium we are using here - there is no particular malice in the exclusion of indigenous voices, but more of a cultural mismatch.

i intend to continue pushing the boundaries between these worldviews with my "articles" and blogs. in time people may come to accept different forms of literacy, and come to regard different oralculture style texts as being equally literate and powerful. i encourage indigneous guestwriters to join me in this, and continue to send me articles which push the boundaries of what is considered "marginal" in this exclusive domain.

the suite editor is keen to explore this new ground with me in a synergistic way that reconciles the needs of the predominantly western audience with our own need to express ourselves and maintain customary genres and a strong native voice.

i have no way of knowing how this will turn out. but in the meantime, i think discussions such as these are very powerful ones, and this space is a good one to use for promoting an anti-colonial viewpoint without concerns about form or western structures of logic and genre.

well, i don't know what will happen to the kahentinetha horn's article. i think it will probably be deleted. but i am glad it spent a few days where it was, and was read by so many people.

her message and her cause are righteous.

-- posted by woorama