What is the true story of our country? Who wrote it? Can all Australians rejoice? Is this land young? Are we all free? When the killing of George Floyd in America turbo-charged the global Black Lives Matter movement, sparking marches across the world in spite of lockdowns, it shone a much-needed spotlight on racism at home: on the gaping inequities faced by First Nations people; and on the sharp minds and proud campaigners right here who have been speaking up for decades.
Professor Marcia Langton AM, a descendant of the Iman and Bidjara Nations, is one such woman. The Foundation Chair of Australian Indigenous Studies at the University of Melbourne, she has long been a loud and proud campaigner for a truly fair, advanced Australia. Anyone who has caught her regular appearances on panel shows like The Drum on the ABC will know that she has never been afraid to call it like it is. When she talks, you should listen.
So get set to stream Marcia Langton – Dangerous Fictions, the latest empowering online conversation from the Festival of Dangerous Ideas (FODI) Digital, going where many fear to tread. Langton will ask if we can stomach the truth about racism in this country.
Why is it so hard for our political leaders to do more than pay lip service to recognising the truth of Australia’s ‘founding’? Why was the Uluru Statement from the Heart dismissed? Why deny Indigenous people's special status in the Constitution? Do we need to have a difficult conversation about problems within Indigenous communities?
Nothing is off the table, and Langton has a lot to say about all of these vitally important issues and more, challenging us to be better together and to make peace with our past to build a brighter future. Just because some of us are stuck at home doesn’t mean we can’t speak truth to power. So tune in, stream and dive deep into dangerous ideas that need to be explored.
Langton is part of FODI Digital alongside Edward Snowden – Surveillance States and David Wallace-Wells – The Uninhabitable Earth. See all three for $30. You can find out more at festivalofdangerousideas.com or follow the festival on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
Ready to dive into more dangerous ideas? Here's the full FODI Digital line-up.