Joeys Yarning Space 

We acknowledge and pay respect to the traditional custodians, 

past and present of this land of the Aniawan, Banbai, Dunghatte, 

Jukambal, Kambawal, Weraera, Kamilaroi, Ngoogabrul and Gumbaynggir as acknowledged by Armidale Lands Council, people who long before us lived, 

loved and raised their children on this land. 

We also acknowledge all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families 

in our community and acknowledge their deep physical 

and spiritual connections to the land.

The National Reconciliation Week 2022 theme, “Be Brave. Make Change.” is a challenge to all Australians— individuals, families, communities, organisations and government—to Be Brave and tackle the unfinished business of reconciliation so we can Make Change for the benefit of all Australians.

This year we are asking everyone to make change beginning with brave actions in their daily lives – where they live, work, play and socialise.

National Reconciliation Week—27 May to 3 June—is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

These dates commemorate two significant milestones in the reconciliation journey— the successful 1967 referendum, and the High Court Mabo decision respectively.

27 May 1967 On this day, Australia’s most successful referendum saw more than 90 per cent of Australians vote to give the Australian Government power to make laws for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and recognise them in the Census.

3 June 1992  On this day, the Australian High Court delivered the Mabo decision, the culmination of Eddie Koiki Mabo’s challenge to the legal fiction of ‘terra nullius’ (land belonging to no one) and leading to the legal recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the Traditional Owners and Custodians of lands. This decision paved the way for Native Title.

Reconciliation must live in the hearts, minds and actions of all Australians as we move forward, creating a nation strengthened by respectful relationships between the wider Australian community, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Kahlia Whalan

A.E.A St . Joseph's Warialda