Myall Creek 25th Anniversary Symposium: Truth-telling, Lore, Law & Governance
June 6 @ 8:30 am - 5:00 pm
Date: Friday, 6 June 2025
Venue: Oorala Aboriginal Centre
Time: 8:30 am (for a 9:00 am start) to 5:00 pm.
Lunch is provided at no cost, but please register for catering purposes.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the annual memorial ceremony at Myall Creek in its current form. Once again, the Armidale branch of the Friends of the Myall Creek Memorial, UNE’s Oorala Aboriginal Centre, the UNE Law School, and the UNE Faculty of Humanities, Arts, Social Science & Education are hosting a symposium in support of the annual memorial ceremony.
This year’s symposium builds on a generation of memorial-making and will include recollections of the healing of Myall Creek over 25 years. The discussion will turn to the unfinished business of truth-telling in the present, as well as setting our sights on the future, with presentations on the role of Lore and law. The symposium will conclude with a yarning session on how better to include Aboriginal perspectives in the governance of organisations that serve communities in everyday life, including health, environment, and disability services.
The Oorala Symposium is a precursor to the annual Memorial Day gathering at Myall Creek on Sunday, 8 June 2025. The Memorial commemorates the 28 Wirrayaraay people who were killed in an infamous massacre of 1838, at Myall Creek Station, near Bingara in northwest NSW. The event and its aftermath were pivotal in colonial NSW history and remain a touchstone for truth-telling in history.
| Time / Session | Topic / Presenters |
|---|---|
| 8:30am | Doors Open |
| 9:00am | Welcome/ Acknowledgement of Country |
| Session 1 9:30am |
Remembering 25 years of Myall Creek Memorials: Transforming, Reclaiming and Decolonising the Memorial site.
Presenters: Auntie Sue Blacklock, Paulette Hayes, Dr Marcelle Burns & Janelle Speed |
| 10:30am | Morning Tea |
| Session 2 11:00am |
What role next for law and legal processes in advancing truth-telling and reconciliation?
Presenters: Judge Peter Johnstone, Rebecca Moore & Thomas Mayo |
| 1:00pm | Lunch |
| Session 3 2:00pm |
Yarning about Truth-telling – What role for First Nations Scholars?
Presenters: Prof. Stuart Barlo, Dr Cynthia Briggs & Dr Callum Clayton-Dixon |
| 3:00pm | Afternoon Tea |
| Session 4 3:30pm |
Raising First Peoples’ voices in the decisions which affect them in their everyday lives.
Presenters: Thomas Mayo, Uncle Steve Dugan Widders & Warlpa Kutjika Thompson & Janelle Speed |
| 4:45pm | Wrap-up, thanks and close |
Background information
This Symposium is part of the weekend of memorial activities commemorating the Wirrayaraaypeople who were murdered in the Myall Creek Massacre of 1838.
The weekend culminates in a memorial ceremony at the Myall Creek Memorial site near Bingara, NSW on Sunday 9 June 2024. For more information on the Commemorative Memorial event.
The Myall Creek Massacre is a pivotal event in NSW criminal legal history, as it was the first time massacre perpetrators were tried, convicted and ultimately executed by hanging in the colonial court system. The detailed record of the incident in the court proceedings provides an uncontested account of the brutality of the frontier conflict in our region of NSW. Given its importance to NSW legal history and being the nearest university law school to the site, UNE’s School of Law has taken a special interest in supporting the Memorial.
