Unlearning possessive belonging: reading in relation with Indigenous science fiction

Abstract

ABSTRACT The work of Indigenous thinkers as writers of, and commentators on, Indigenous science fiction, calls for the unmaking of settler futurities in ways that assert Indigenous belonging in all times. In this paper, we, as science fiction nerds with settler and white privilege in so-called Australia, try to respond to calls from Indigenous science fiction to sit with, and contribute to, a decentring of presumed settler futures. Together, we read speculative fiction through the work of Aboriginal author, Ambelin Kwaymullina’s, the Tribe Series. As we do so, we are learning to read-in-relation to the invitations of Indigenous science fiction as it asserts Indigenous agency, refuses dominant forms of citizenship and calls on readers to respond to our diverse positions and places. As we engage with Kwaymullina’s work, we seek to engage with Aboriginal-led futurities and dwell with times not invested in the continuance of settler institutions and possessive forms of belonging.