We're kicking off now with our NAIDOC panel discussion to celebrate 50 years of Aboriginal community controlled legal services. We'll be tweeting some of the key comments here. Looking forward to an engaging yarn!

Uncle Lyall Munro Jr tells us that one of the first protests leading to establishment of the ALS was for workers' rights in Wee Waa. The workers came to Sydney to fight for their rights in court and networked with other staunch activists.

Our host Peter Stapleton notes that Aboriginal women have always been involved and played leading roles in the ALS. Aunty Lorraine Wright, one of our panelists, started her journey with us as a manager of the Western (NSW) Aboriginal Legal Service.

Aunty Lorraine filled a temporary 2-week role at the Western Aboriginal Legal Service and ended up working there for 16 years! "Once you get it into your bones, you just can't get it out of you." Now she's Deputy Chair on the Board of the ALS NSW/ACT.

Aunty Lorraine says 2020 has been a challenge at ALS, as at other organisations, due to COVID-19. We had to swing into action straight away to deliver services without risking the spread of the virus - "we still had to be on the ground".

The ALS NSW/ACT is now one united service, but was previously several regional Aboriginal legal services. We formally came together in 2006, but as Aunty Lorraine says, "we were already working together".