From 2005 to 2007 we had the enriching, yet demanding, experience of teaching Indigenous Australi... more From 2005 to 2007 we had the enriching, yet demanding, experience of teaching Indigenous Australian studies together at the Koori Centre, University of Sydney. We each taught a number of different units of study including a large survey course, Introduction to Indigenous Australia, to local and international students. In the last few years of the Howard government it was no
This paper explores the lives of three individuals and their impact on the history of the
Torres... more This paper explores the lives of three individuals and their impact on the history of the
Torres Strait and on world events. While this is an international history, it is centred on
travels near Warrior Reef, a large reef system in central Torres Strait used by Kulkalgal and others. The three individuals whose histories are given here come from three different places (Mowata village, Papua New Guinea; Tudu Island, Torres Strait; and Tongatapu Island, Tonga), but they are interconnected through the maritime road they travel and through the relationships that drive their actions across the seas. In written historical narratives, these men have a marginal impact on commerce, science, religion and international politics. This paper gives a central place to these men, and their agency in past events is made explicit. In concluding, we consider their actions as purposeful gifts for future generations.
In 1995 Ann Curthoys and Clive Moore published “Working for the White People”, a key essay on Ind... more In 1995 Ann Curthoys and Clive Moore published “Working for the White People”, a key essay on Indigenous labour historiography. They called for scholars to consider the history of Indigenous people's experience of work in terms of labour and not race relations. In this special issue devoted to celebrating Ann Curthoys' career, we take up the challenge by writing a history of the Torres Strait Islanders who moved to the mainland to work on the construction of the railways to service the burgeoning mining industry in the 1960s, a period commemorated in Islander communities as “railway time”. In our study of Indigenous labour and mobility we focus on the experiences of a particular Islander man, John Culear Kennell Snr, who worked as a labourer, team leader and recruiter of other Islanders in Queensland and Western Australia.
From 2005 to 2007 we had the enriching, yet demanding, experience of teaching Indigenous Australi... more From 2005 to 2007 we had the enriching, yet demanding, experience of teaching Indigenous Australian studies together at the Koori Centre, University of Sydney. We each taught a number of different units of study including a large survey course, Introduction to Indigenous Australia, to local and international students. In the last few years of the Howard government it was no
This paper explores the lives of three individuals and their impact on the history of the
Torres... more This paper explores the lives of three individuals and their impact on the history of the
Torres Strait and on world events. While this is an international history, it is centred on
travels near Warrior Reef, a large reef system in central Torres Strait used by Kulkalgal and others. The three individuals whose histories are given here come from three different places (Mowata village, Papua New Guinea; Tudu Island, Torres Strait; and Tongatapu Island, Tonga), but they are interconnected through the maritime road they travel and through the relationships that drive their actions across the seas. In written historical narratives, these men have a marginal impact on commerce, science, religion and international politics. This paper gives a central place to these men, and their agency in past events is made explicit. In concluding, we consider their actions as purposeful gifts for future generations.
In 1995 Ann Curthoys and Clive Moore published “Working for the White People”, a key essay on Ind... more In 1995 Ann Curthoys and Clive Moore published “Working for the White People”, a key essay on Indigenous labour historiography. They called for scholars to consider the history of Indigenous people's experience of work in terms of labour and not race relations. In this special issue devoted to celebrating Ann Curthoys' career, we take up the challenge by writing a history of the Torres Strait Islanders who moved to the mainland to work on the construction of the railways to service the burgeoning mining industry in the 1960s, a period commemorated in Islander communities as “railway time”. In our study of Indigenous labour and mobility we focus on the experiences of a particular Islander man, John Culear Kennell Snr, who worked as a labourer, team leader and recruiter of other Islanders in Queensland and Western Australia.
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Torres Strait and on world events. While this is an international history, it is centred on
travels near Warrior Reef, a large reef system in central Torres Strait used by Kulkalgal and others. The three individuals whose histories are given here come from three different places (Mowata village, Papua New Guinea; Tudu Island, Torres Strait; and Tongatapu Island, Tonga), but they are interconnected through the maritime road they travel and through the relationships that drive their actions across the seas. In written historical narratives, these men have a marginal impact on commerce, science, religion and international politics. This paper gives a central place to these men, and their agency in past events is made explicit. In concluding, we consider their actions as purposeful gifts for future generations.
Torres Strait and on world events. While this is an international history, it is centred on
travels near Warrior Reef, a large reef system in central Torres Strait used by Kulkalgal and others. The three individuals whose histories are given here come from three different places (Mowata village, Papua New Guinea; Tudu Island, Torres Strait; and Tongatapu Island, Tonga), but they are interconnected through the maritime road they travel and through the relationships that drive their actions across the seas. In written historical narratives, these men have a marginal impact on commerce, science, religion and international politics. This paper gives a central place to these men, and their agency in past events is made explicit. In concluding, we consider their actions as purposeful gifts for future generations.