Abstract
There is an increasing body of work identifying and analyzing notions of resilience from indigenous perspectives. Notwithstanding the utility of this research for the Australian context (some parallels may be cautiously inferred for some Indigenous Australian groups), critical knowledge gaps exist in our understanding of how Australian Indigenous peoples, particularly Indigenous women, construct, perform and express resilience. This paper addresses this gap by presenting data from focus group discussions with 11 Indigenous Australian women, which highlights how the women confront the everyday challenges of ‘being Indigenous’. The women spoke of not only of a strong sense of identity in the face of negative stereotypes but also demonstrated their ability to adapt to change, rebound from negative historical socio-cultural and political systemic changes and ways to keep their identities and cultures strong within contemporary Australia. We contend that a focus on Indigenous resilience is more significant for social change because it not only moves away from deficit-discourses about Indigenous Australian groups, it highlights their remarkable strengths in adapting, recovering and continuing in white-centric, antagonistic conditions.
Highlights
Notwithstanding the utility of this literature in exposing the condition of Indigenous women in Australia, what is overlooked and de-emphasized is Indigenous women’s agency and resilience and the important contributions they make to their own communities and broader society (Dune et al, 2017; Lee, 2017b) Scarpino notes that “research has silenced the voices of Aboriginal women by using Western concepts and constructs that have maintained colonialism through a negative portrayal of Aboriginal women” (2007b, p. 33)
This study presents a different perspective from the literature discussed above: it overwhelmingly shows that the everyday realities of Indigenous women are defined by multiple forms of resilience
The findings reinforce the importance of Indigenous forms of resilience as an important and integral aspect of the Indigenous experience in Australia
Summary
The consequences of colonization on Indigenous Australians, and its continued impact in their contemporary, everyday realities have been widely documented (Atkinson, 2002) (Carson, Dunbar, Chenhall, & Bailie, 2007; Lee, 2017b; Lomazzi, Theisling, Tapia, Borisch, & Laaser, 2013) A dominant thread in the literature on this subject focusses on the assault on indigenous power, status and autonomy (Baum, 2008; Carson et al, 2007; Hill, 2004; Lee, 2017b; Lomazzi et al, 2013; Marmot & Health, 2007; Tonkinson, 2007). The past few decades have seen some growth in literature on Indigenous women’s realities in Australia Much of this literature has focused on exploring multiple forms of discrimination and disadvantage that Indigenous women encounter in various arenas. This study presents a different perspective from the literature discussed above: it overwhelmingly shows that the everyday realities of Indigenous women are defined by multiple forms of resilience The data we present in this paper will demons trate an extraordinary and enduring ability to subsist but even flourish despite such challenges
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