"Always was, always will be Aboriginal land", sometimes abbreviated to "Always was, always will be" or just "Always will be" is an iconic phrase and rallying cry of the Aboriginal land rights movement in Australia.

Origin

The phrase is said to have originated in the 1980s, with the Barkandji people in far-western New South Wales, who were fighting for legal recognition and rights as sovereign owners of their homelands.[1] The campaign was led by William Bates, which saw the first national park in NSW returned to its traditional owners. On one of his trips to Country during the campaign, William Bates' father, Jim Bates, was telling his son stories of the land. William said, "Dad, it’s not your land any more, whitefellas own it"; his father replied, "No, they only borrowed it; it always was, and always will be Aboriginal land."[2][3]

Meaning

It asserts that Aboriginal peoples were the first on the continent now known as Australia, occupying and caring for the land for more than 65,000 years,[4] and that sovereignty of Country has never been ceded.[1] It is sometimes shortened to "Always was, always will be."[5]

The phrase is commonly chanted at protests, rallies and celebrations by Indigenous and non-Indigenous people in Australia, and synonymous with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land rights, self-determination and sovereignty.[6][7] It also responds to the lack of recognition Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples receive in relation to sovereignty, and as a fundamental understanding about the truth of Australia, but sometimes presents a challenge when dealing with Australian immigrant communities.[8]

Uses

"Always was, always will be" is sometimes incorporated into the Acknowledgment of Country.[9][10]

Always was, always will be was the name of a temporary installation (2012-2017) by Reko Rennie in Taylor Square, Sydney.[11]

A 2017 exhibition of photographs in Sydney by well-known Aboriginal Australian photojournalist Barbara McGrady was called Always Will Be.[12]

In 2020, "Always Was, Always Will Be" was selected as the theme for NAIDOC Week.[13][14]

References

  1. 1 2 "Always Was, Always Will Be, Aboriginal Land". Australian Museum. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  2. ↑ "Obituary: William Charles Bates, land rights champion". ABC News (Australia). 6 October 2017. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  3. ↑ Wesley Enoch (6 August 2021). "We are proppa now". QAGOMA Asia Pacific Art Papers. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
  4. ↑ "2020 NAIDOC Week theme announced: Always Was, Always Will Be". www.indigenous.gov.au. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  5. ↑ Thoburn, Max (20 November 2020). "Always Was, Always Will Be". Medact.org. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  6. ↑ "How to make a sign for Survival Day". Deadly Story. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  7. ↑ "Ballad Films – Always Was Always Will Be". Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  8. ↑ Drew, Peter (6 August 2019). Poster Boy: A Memoir of Art and Politics. Black Inc. ISBN 978-1-74382-084-1.
  9. ↑ "Acknowledgement of Country". Australian Centre for International Justice. 24 January 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  10. ↑ "Acknowledgement of Country". Common Ground. 22 December 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  11. ↑ "Always was always will be". City Art Sydney. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
  12. ↑ "News". arthere. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  13. ↑ "2020 theme". NAIDOC. 29 October 2019. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  14. ↑ "NAIDOC Week: Always was, always will be". Reconciliation Australia. 9 November 2020. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
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