Artist Statement: ‘Unwritten are the Stories They Dream’ is a poem about the forgotten, lost or unheard voices and stories of First Nations peoples, especially those impacted by the Stolen Generations. Throughout the composition, I aimed to address historical and current issues relating to the Stolen Generations. Such events include dispossession from Country, removal from families and culture, Intergenerational Trauma, Closing the Gap, bias within the media, cultural education and fundamentally, reconciliation. This poem was written in Villanelle form, to emphasise through the means of repetition the core of the poem; “For the stolen children scream, unwritten are the stories they dream”. Through the repetition of these lines, I intended to communicate the importance of truth-telling, especially about past and ongoing injustices experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, in order to progress towards and achieve true reconciliation.

Reconciliation means…

To me, reconciliation means addressing injustices of the past faced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, creating equality within Australia, and strengthening relationships between First Nations peoples and non-Indigenous people for a better shared future. I believe that Constitutional action to recognise First Nations peoples as the traditional owners of this land and enshrinement of an Indigenous Voice is important to enable a shift in attitudes and perspectives that Australian people have towards First Nations peoples and culture. Education and cultural understanding across the wider Australian society is also key to achieving this. Ultimately, I think this will deliver true reconciliation in Australian society.

Artist: Morgan Fugle