Lore is Life: Identity, Belonging and Being Through the Lens of Men’s Lore Nyiirun Yanyi Djukal Wanyimbu Wanyimbu (We Walk Strong Always)

Abstract

<p>It is an unequivocal truth in the story of Australia that colonisation and has had catastrophic impacts on the story of Aboriginal people. Invasion, colonisation and assimilation has impacted every Aboriginal person in some way, causes harm across generations and continues to have negative impacts on the physical, spiritual, social and emotional wellbeing of Aboriginal people.</p> <p>This thesis consists of two projects to support the current and future healing journey for Aboriginal people – a series of filmed interviews and this exegesis. The interviews take place with Aboriginal men who have been instrumental in the revitalisation of traditional Aboriginal Lore in NSW and surrounding areas. The films document our ways of knowing, being and doing over the past 25 years through the eyes of the men that have lived it. The exegesis intends to provide deeper layers of context to guide and support the content of the interviews.</p> <p>This work is a tool to show that Aboriginal people exist as cultural practitioners in the current world. It shows that Aboriginal people can sit within a paradigm of Aboriginal people as researchers and subjects of research, with both groups being subject matter experts without any imbalance of power. It reveals that Aboriginal men are far more than that which dominant cultural narratives and the statistics suggest, and that our Lore is the framework that can set the direction for transgenerational healing.</p> <p>As a Loreman, I have obligations to use the knowledge that my elders have shared, and the skills I have developed over my lifetime, to share these stories and these messages for the benefit of our children, their children, and their children’s children. Our stories and the lessons and morals contained within them transcend time and allow us to move forward as a nation, underpinned by unity. The Lore allows us to walk together with strength and unity, always.</p>