The Blame Game.
It is the easiest thing to lay blame. It is also very easy to assume that you are being blamed by someone else. Unfortunately, this seems to be a very natural thing for humans to do. Recently, I have become more aware of the way groups all working for the same cause - to help Indigenous people - fight against each other laying blame or putting up walls because they feel unable to trust each other. The clash of cultures that occurs within and among organisations working with Indigenous people can result in what I call the ‘blame game’. But this ‘game’ is no fun at all, it brings added stress and disfunction to the whole system. The blame game is notable both between dominant culture workers and Indigneous people as well as between different Indigneous groups.
The blame game has two parts the first arises because the dominant culture recongises that they alone cannot know how to solve the problems experienced by Indigenous peoples. But instead of working along side the people, the dominant culture tends to distance itself by pushing Indigenous individuals or organisation to be the saviours of their own people. This sets up unreasonable expectations for Indigenous organisations and particular individuals, such as well spoken leaders, liaison officers, health workers or council members. Although these people are often very intelligent and remarkable individuals, people in such roles tend to have an expectation forced on them by others, that they can and must fix the Indigenous problems. This becomes internalized and can result in an impression that they must have some special ability to fix things, and a fear of failure. As the son of the ‘guru’ Richard Trudgen it is possible that I fall into this category myself; I expect myself to do miracles sometimes, and get sensitive when I am challenged. This is the danger, that when things go wrong, or if someone disagrees with these special people, blame is the unconscious reaction. A sense of self inspection can be lost if one is put under these kind of expectations. This is a danger for all of us, but if is particularly so when a culture is created around an individual or even whole organisations, which says, “You are the solution, so your position must be respected.” Consequently, by holding on to the false idea that we are the solution, when something goes wrong or is disagreeable, immediate response is that it must be someone else’s fault. Any criticism or challenge is taken as an accusation or attack against the special role of appointed saviours. And in response some other person or organisation becomes the subject of rumour or even public accusation, producing a counter response leading to bickering and bad politics between and within Indigenous organisations. This part of the blame game encourages defensiveness who have been “puffed up” with unreasonable expectations, and produces a reluctance to criticise for fear of reprisal in others. This process is damaging to the whole system as fair and positive criticism is needed for accountability. This defensiveness and blaming fractures trust and limits good dialouge.
The situation is compounded between Indigenous and non-Indigenous groups. Some Indigenous people are very defensive because they have experienced so much unfair treatment personally and generationally that they are easily offended and become defensive to protect themselves. On the other hand those in the dominant culture, having become aware of the harm their heritage has caused Indigneous people over the years, seem to carry a sense of guilt. I’m sure many Balanda (’white fellas’, dominant culture people) have sensed this. If you have been confronted by an Indigenous person, it is like a sense that, “Oh, I must be careful talking to this person and not say anything that might offend.” The result is that when we unknowingly enter ‘the game’, Balanda walk around thinking, ‘I must not blame the Indigenous person’, while the Indigenous person walks around feeling, ‘I must not be blamed’. This creates a rift of dishonesty as Balanda personnel fail to challenge the Indigneous person and the Indigenous person becomes quickly defensive in times of conflict and cannot accept being challenged. The game becomes most imporant when we realise that this can be come a mechanism of control over ourselves or others. There are those who work the blame game to their advanatage, in fact we all do this some times. Indigenous people can control Balanda, and thus whole organisations at times, to do what ever they want by pulling the right guilt strings. Balanda can control some Indigenous people, and thus whole organisations at times, by using false praise and rumors.
We need to escape this ‘blame game’. Organisations should not be so offended when someone or another organisation points out a problem. We need to work together to identify real problems and help fix them. The first key to escaping this negative cultural dynamic is humility, recognising that you are a unique person, but no one special. Humility also means assuming the best of every other person, which helps us to recognise when hurt is unintended. The second key is to realise that we are part of the ‘Blame Game’. We need to recognise our guilt over issues or our fear of being criticised and dela with it. he best way to do this is to reflect on why you feel that when you encounter situations that bring up this emontions. Then think about what should be the appropriate response that you would use next time (eg. how would you treat a person in this situation there where no power or racial issue involved). If we do not work to release fear and guilt associated with the other cultural group we will be controlled by it in our selves or be controlled by others pulling our strings.
No commentsAnother Indigenous voice from Arnhem Land
Here is another statement from a Yolŋu person from North East Arnhem Land. He speaks against the intervention,l but he is also referring to many other recent sudden changes in NT government policy such as the ceasing of funding to Home Land centres (or out-stations) and the closing of Home Land schools. Again the underlining concern is about the approach that came with the intervention that has lead to such broad brush decisions being made without prior consultation. If you are working with Indigenous people do not let ideologies control your decision making, find a way to understand the local people’s real experience, knowledge, and situation.
Yingiya is a excellent teacher and I think there is plenty to be learnt from his words about the experience and perspectives of the Yolŋu people.
Statement
My name is Yingiya Guyula from Liya-dhalinymirr clan of the Djambarrpuyŋu People.
I am a Yolngu Studies lecturer at University in Darwin
The intervention has only created problems in East Arnhemland communities as well remote homeland centres. The Intervention has made our people more frustrated and confused, the white man’s way of thinking is forced on us, and forcing us to abandon our culture.
Government Ministers have flown into Arnhemland communities just for few hours on the ground to gather a little bit of information, then they fly back into cities thinking they know how to fix the problems in the communities, thinking they know what’s best for us.
Governments only looked at the fringe camps and towns and wet areas where people drink alcohol in places such as Nhulunbuy, Katharine, Tenant creek, Jabiru Alice Spring and Darwin.
White people see Aboriginal people in these places and think that these people that don’t care about life, who don’t care about living. But who are they to judge them. They class all Aborigines the same, but they are wrong.
These white people and those bureaucrats do not go out to the East Arnhemland communities, where my people live, where there has never been alcohol, and these is no child abuse. There are Aboriginal people living on remote communities of Arnhemland, in homeland centres, away from towns, away from the binge drinking areas, poker machine and gambling venues.
These are people that are able to manage their funds and work, or want work, educate, discipline, and practice ceremonies.
Quarantining of centrelink payments should be optional and not compulsory. Quarantining might be ok for people living in town camps and cities, where alcohol and gambling is a problem, but it doesn’t work for my people living on remote Arnhemland homelands where there is no gambling, no alcohol and no child abuse.
We are asking simply for understanding that in life, their needs to be an understanding between two cultures. There needs to be respect between cultures.
Mapuru homeland has a Coop store which won a National award for selling healthy food. Centrelink won’t approve it to accept quarantined money.
This means an aircraft charter fight from the mainland homeland at Mapuru to the closest shop on Elcho Island costs 560 dollars return. This means it’s costing $560 return flight just to buy 150 dollars worth of food, where’s the sense in that?
Arnhemland is like the European Union, made up of many different nations, each clan-nation with their own language, each with it own national estate. Bringing everybody in from the homeland centres into the major settlements is not the right thing to do because people do not feel secure or happy living in another mans land. Children are forced to go to school, but really they do not feel safe and unsecure on other peoples’ land.
There are about 40 children who willingly run to school every day at Mapuru homeland because it’s their home and they feel secure. Yet the N.T. Government wants to close down the homeland schools and bring everyone in to the major communities.
They think it’s not worth spending money on homeland schools who have 40 or more children freely, and with their own will attending school, but is providing internet services, facilities and technology to white schools with attendances as low as 5. The Education department provides computers and internet and distance learning for hundreds of cattle station and small schools, across the Northern Territory, but homeland schools are neglected.
Further more I would like say that these homelands are our homes. There is no violence in the remote homeland communities, no child abuse happens, no alcohol, no pornography, because out there in the bush is where the cultural ceremonial grounds are, and from it is where strong discipline comes through spirits of our fathers talking through the land.
Both the Commonwealth and the Northern Territory Governments hasn’t given equal opportunity to us the First Australians to be able to exercise our rights.
Through the intervention white man police stations have been put in the major communities for dealing mostly with cultural conflict issues (problems that can only be solved through traditional cultural justice), but instead the white policeman force white man law onto us, disrespecting our black fella law. They think they’ve done the right think. But often they’re only making it much worst by locking up senior leaders, the very ones who are wise and keeping our Indigenous Law strong.
This time we are taking the case further where it can be heard loud and clear by people whose ears, brains, feelings have a heart for Indigenous Australians. It is now being taken further where there is an ear that will listen.
We are taking it further, to the United Nations and will talk about the intervention, about how income management in the Northern Territory has had a devastating and debilitating impact on remote communities in Arnhemland.
Finally, we need you to support us. We need you to tell governments that we want the same opportunities as white people, to live and enjoy our own cultural life, but they must stop trying to make us like whiteman, we have our own cultural identity. Let us be who we are, and together we will have hope for the future.
Thank you
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All emphasis and wording is that of the original statement. My source encourages this statement to be passed on to anyone and everyone.
3 commentsA project in responsive development
After much dreaming and planning we are about to embark on an exciting new project in developing human enterprise in NE Arnhem Land. While it is hard to say what this project will look like on the ground, it is the nature of what we are trying to achieve that we do not control the outcome, the people do. And so we plan our departure to Arnhem Land with wide open minds and the knowledge that the possibilities of this project really are endless.
This is a unique project in the context of work done on Indigenous communities in that the approach is very holistic, the method allows for the facilitation of, well, everything - everything the people have a passion to achieve. We recognise the many problems faced by remote Indigenous people in trying to make a place for themselves within the structures of top down development and systemic welfare. We believe a key response is enabling the people to realise their own dreams and to shape their own realities. This is the only way to truly break down the barriers they face in taking control of the direction of their lives.
The fundamental principles behind what we are doing come from a combination of methodologies which focus on respectful cross cultural communication, and finding ways to make the ideas of people into reality rather than initiating projects based on our ideas of what might work.
So how do we plan to do this? By being available to any person, outside of the confines of service provision and policy, and contractual obligations, we can be present to hear and respond to the requests of local individuals. And by having clear methods that avoid entering into paternalism or welfare approaches to helping people. With the right methodology the people can become and remain the driving force and key personnel in their own projects. We hope to provide the resources to remove the obstacles to enabling real, effective and people driven change and support the people in developing their own ideas and fulfilling their desires.
We imagine that projects could be anything from helping a person become literate in their own language so that they can write songs, assisting someone who wants to manage their health and the health of their family so as to avoid the health problems so present on community, or helping establish a business enterprise. All of these things will create a true empowerment of the people if they maintain ownership and control of the ideas and whatever results from them, while we use our support networks to facilitate the turning of dream into reality.
So what we are asking now is for support in this project. You can find more information on our website about how you can help, but also please pass this information onto others who might be interested and feel welcome to contact us if you would like to support us in anyway.
