Floods spark Indigenous survival spirit.
Farid Farid. The Leader. Mar 14 2022.
https://www.theleader.com.au/story/7658173/floods-spark-indigenous-survival-spirit/
After a restless night watching rain drench the NSW city of Lismore, Bundjalung man Brendan Coolwell jumped in his motorboat at first light to rescue people caught in the floods. "It was sad seeing people screaming 'rescue me' and we had animals too," the 43-year-old from Goonellabah, a suburb in Lismore, told AAP. After the initial rescues, Mr Coolwell shifted his attention to delivering food to stranded residents in the small town of Coraki, south of Lismore. He was heartened by the way people helped one another. As an Indigenous person, Mr Coolwell says his own resilience seemed innate. "We're warriors, it's our country ... we just went into survival mode," he said.
The Lismore-based Koori Mail paid tribute to Mr Coolwell's efforts on its social media feed, reassuring its readers he was on his way to provide help. Established in 1991, the fortnightly national paper dedicated to Indigenous affairs is wholly owned by five Aboriginal organisations. In the fortnight following the floods, Koori Mail raised more than $625,000 and acted as an operational hub for flood relief serving Indigenous and non-Indigenous residents. "We've set up a food supply bank, generators, petrol, cleaning supplies ... and it's for everybody," Koori Mail general manager Naomi Moran told AAP. She said private owners of helicopters were delivering critical supplies to households beyond the epicentre of devastation in Lismore, stretching to Ballina, Casino, Coraki, Evans Head and Woodburn.Koori Mail's headquarters was destroyed as well as the homes of many of its staff. But that did not dissuade Ms Moran from rallying her team to help others.
For the first time in its three decade history, the newspaper missed its publishing deadline. But Ms Moran sees the paper's humanitarian role as part of its editorial and ethical values. "We're the voice of Indigenous Australia, we're supporting our people, we're carrying their voices but now in a different capacity," she said. "We have a responsibility looking after our own people."
She said it was a priority to find long-term accommodation for the nearly 170 displaced Indigenous members of Cabbage Tree Island - south of Ballina - which is accessible only by bridge. Ms Moran said residents were stranded for days without food, electricity and water. "It's the first time in history that our community may not be able to return," she said, noting her mother grew up in the now uninhabitable island. "They (government agencies) need to be on the ground. They need to have conversations with us."
For local artist and Quandamooka woman Megan Cope, the floods affected her deeply. She had been preparing for a solo exhibition in Brisbane named Low Pressure, in reference to changing weather systems, days before the floods ravaged Lismore. "My practice for the last 15 years has been about climate change and rising sea levels," she told AAP. "The reality of Lismore is it has been flattened." Ms Cope said she felt personal dread when flood waters surpassed all previous records. "When it peaked under 15 metres and the flood gauge was broken, that's when I knew it was the end, because it was too much water," she said. She managed to salvage some of her artworks and donors have contributed funds to rebuild her studio, which she shares with three other artists. She hit out at governments for excluding Indigenous voices in the wake of several natural disasters in recent years. "If Aboriginal people are included in the policies for environmental management, then we'd be in a better position," Ms Cope said.
"It's not the first time I've lost everything. Blackfellas have it pretty tough in this country to begin with and in lots of ways, I'm used to a crisis."
Australian Associated Press