Subject area: Indigenous self-determination and sovereignty: Decolonising practices in libraries and archives in Australia

Format: open-access webinar 

Length: 1 hour

Audience: GLAMR professionals

Organisers: CILIP The Library and Information Association, 22 March 2022

Presenter: Dr Kirsten Thorpe (Senior Researcher, Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous Education & Research, UTS)

 

Reflection:

The overall objectives of this webinar were to discuss ways GLAMR organizations can better support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s, to give respect, dignity, and pride to persons using these services.

This is a yawning gap in my knowledge as a non-indigenous person, that I believe I need to continually work towards bridging in order to provide relevant and meaningful services and support to First Nations communities. In my previous library roles, although I completed cultural awareness and sensitivity training lead by an Aboriginal elder, it was the tip of the iceberg.

This webinar made me deeply question colonial structures within GLAMR bodies and the role libraries play as part of a system that assimilates Aboriginal peoples into the State. I learned specific ways in which the current colonial archival models are harmful such as the vicarious trauma of archives and how many public libraries have no Indigenous collecting strategy in place and greatly lack Indigenous consultation and community involvement in making their spaces culturally safe; such as using a risk matrix to stop causing harm to Aboriginal people that are engaging. I also learned that Indigenous lead protocol documents have been a tool for guidance and dialogue in the GLAMR industry, such as caring for Indigenous materials sacred to particular communities and based on Indigenous cultural and intellectual property rights.

It seems there is an overwhelming need to redistribute power to enable indigenous governance, stewardship and decision making.