‘Sing loud, break through the silence’: musical responses to the national apology to the Stolen Generations
Issue: Vol 13 No. 1 (2012)
Journal: Perfect Beat
Subject Areas: Popular Music
Abstract:
On 13 February 2008 the Australian Parliament formally apologized to the members of the Stolen Generations. This was a historic moment for reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. Jackie Huggins believes that the Apology ‘generated a sense of hope, healing, forgiveness and unity’ and was the ‘first important steps towards a new national approach to reconciliation’. Music has the potential to capture this hope for reconciliation and a number of Indigenous and non-Indigenous musicians have responded to the Apology through song. This article explores how contemporary music-making intersects with discourses of reconciliation surrounding the Apology and considers the ways music underscores the hope for healing and justice for Indigenous Australians, recognition of colonial history, and relationships and collaboration between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. Drawing on Indigenous and non-Indigenous responses and using examples of songs written since the Apology and interviews with the performers, I explore the ways in which Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian songwriters have musically expressed their responses to this powerful moment and their attempts to generate awareness and break the silence about the history of the Stolen Generations through the medium of contemporary song.
Author: Katelyn Barney
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