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I have been thinking about this requirement for us to always show gratitude to the colony. Recently my son won an award from the state govt. He was one of 15 Aboriginal kids in the state to receive it and the govt wanted to present it at the school assembly
I was, of course, really excited for him to be recognised in this way and cleared the diary so I could be there. Two days before the event, when he was advised it was being presented at school he immediately pulled the plug on it.
His reasoning was that he felt the school had not only not supported him this year, but they had actively put obstacles in his path. What he was referring to was their lack of support for him participating in Aboriginal specific programs outside of school.
His view was that it was entirely hypocritical for them to want to celebrate him, a Blak kid, receiving this Blak award. All year they have told him he’s not been good enough and then when an outside agency saw his worth,they wanted to revel in that, during NAIDOC week, of course
He figured since it was a Blak award, and his mob’s views of him mean more than the schools, that the award should be given to him in his community with his Blak peers and family.
At first I was stressed out, I mean how do you reign in a horse that’s bolted? and of course, a part of me wanted to see him celebrated in public...but then when I thought it through, I realised he was entirely correct. So I had to call the school and tell them.
But the thing that struck me through the process, was that a Blak (scholarship) kid exercising his agency in that space and place was interpreted as some kind of lack of gratitude for “all the school does for Blak kids”. I mean it’s f*cked right?
1. The school gets paid a scholarship from an outside agency and gets ALL of my son’s ABSTUDY money: they are hardly out of pocket (seriously, they con us into thinking they are being philanthropic when they’re well subsidised)
2. These schools occupy stolen ground and offering a few Blak kids a scholarship, funded by an external agency is hardly paying the rent
AND
Generally space in these schools has been fought for by mob. Nothing we get “given” is a gift, but always a hard fought for right
AND
Generally space in these schools has been fought for by mob. Nothing we get “given” is a gift, but always a hard fought for right
3. Our kids should not have to be “grateful” to access white man’s education given attending colonial school is a legal requirement of all kids in the colony
4. We can be appreciative AND critical at the same time. I am entirely appreciative of the opportunity afforded to my kids...BUT I expect the school to be better and to do better
5. Just because SOME Blak parents are ok with things the school does, doesn’t mean I HAVE to be ok with it too. To expect unity or identical opinions among us mob is actually grossly reductive and fails to account for our diversity as mob. We are not one homogenous group
So yep, I’m so freaking proud of my kid. Proud of his achievement with this award, but MORE proud that he could cast a reflective and critical eye to an institution that expects him to be grateful for existing in their space and for having the strength to assert himself
I want to raise Blak kids who are strong, bold, brave, independent, free thinkers...because our liberation will never be found in the hands of the colonisers, rather it will be achieved through the youthful hands of strong Blak kids, our future ancestors 
