Indigenous Australia For Dummies by Larissa Behrendt

Indigenous Australia For Dummies by Larissa Behrendt

A comprehensive, relevant, and accessible look at all aspects of Indigenous Australian history and culture

What is The Dreaming? How many different Indigenous tribes and languages once existed in Australia? What is the purpose of a corroboree? What effect do the events of the past have on Indigenous peoples today? Indigenous Australia For Dummies, 2nd Edition answers these questions and countless others about the oldest race on Earth. It explores Indigenous life in Australia before 1770, the impact of white settlement, the ongoing struggle by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to secure their human rights and equal treatment under the law, and much more.

Celebrating the contributions of Indigenous people to contemporary Australian culture, the book explores Indigenous art, music, dance, literature, film, sport, and spirituality. It discusses the concept of modern Indigenous identity and examines the ongoing challenges facing Indigenous communities today, from health and housing to employment and education, land rights, and self-determination.

• Explores significant political moments--such as Paul Keating's Redfern Speech, Kevin Rudd's apology, and more
• Profiles celebrated people and organisations in a variety of fields, from Cathy Freeman to Albert Namatjira to the Bangarra Dance Theatre and the National Aboriginal Radio Service
• Challenges common stereotypes about Indigenous people and discusses current debates, such as land rights and inequalities in health and education

Now in its second edition, Indigenous Australia For Dummies will enlighten readers of all backgrounds about the history, struggles and triumphs of the diverse, proud, and fascinating peoples that make up Australia's Indigenous communities. With a foreword by Stan Grant, it's a must-read account of Australia's first people.

Professor of Indigenous Research and Director of Research at the University of Technology, Sydney's Jumbunna Indigenous House of Learning is Larissa Behrendt. She is a regular contributor to The Guardian and the author of several textbooks on Indigenous legal concerns. Home, which received the 2002 David Unaipon Award and the 2005 Commonwealth Writers Prize for Best First Novel (South-East Asia and the South Pacific), and Legacy, which won the 2010 Victorian Premier's Literary Award for Indigenous Writing, are her two novels. She is the Ambassador for the Guwara Native Campus at St. Francis Xavier University. Andrew's Cathedral School in Sydney, as well as a member of the Sydney Story Factory, a Redfern-based literacy initiative. She was named NAIDOC Person of the Year in 2009 and NSW Australian of the Year in 2011.