Charting this colonial history in daily entries.
A verbal and visual guide on a journey that began 233 years ago… Each calendar entry is designed to enable Australians to learn more about the human cost in Indigenous lives that was integral to the colonial occupation of their land.
Since our launch in 2021, we are releasing a month at a time. We invite you to explore and discover what happened “On This Day” in Australian history.
WARNING
This website contains graphic descriptions of historical events from primary sources that may be disturbing to some readers.
Please be aware: Some primary historical sources cited on this website contain words and terms written by non-Indigenous people in the past that today would be regarded as offensive and/or abusive. We have endeavoured to append the adverb ’sic’ to note when these derogatory terms occur.
December 30.
Reflections on 30 December - Targeting of groups. An armed instrument of colonial government.
December 29.
Reflections on 29 December - British government’s involvement and responsibility.
December 28.
Reflections on 28 December - A system of assassination ...at least 47 Aboriginal people were killed.
December 27.
Reflections on 27 December - Two anecdotes of Law: “The trial miscarried because Dore could not allow the Aboriginal witness to give evidence.”
December 26.
Reflections on 26 December - Instances of brutality, “The settler retribution was indiscriminate and brutal.”
December 25.
Reflections on 25 December - “The pits themselves were full of dead blackfellows, of all ages and both sexes.”
December 24.
Reflections on 24 December - ‘treated...like other prisoners of war, 'Expulsion of the Aborigines from the settled Districts'.
December 23.
Reflections on 23 December - White progress..traced by blood: “White progress in the Colonies is well traced by the blood they have shed.”
December 22.
Reflections on 22 December - Wiradjuri land under threat: The ever-increasing number of settlers and stock animals put traditional Wiradjuri land use under threat.
December 21.
Reflections on 21 December - Women and children: the exploitation of Indigenous women and children.
December 20.
Reflections on 20 December - Sharing or Shooting: Possible ways of sharing the land and the waters.
December 19.
Reflections on 19 December - Extermination, “The extermination goes on day after day...”
December 18.
Reflections on 18 December - Twentieth century killings, “...women, piccaninnies, dogs, old people, young people, middle-sized people — finished them.”
December 17.
Reflections on 17 December - Australian frontier warfare. Silence and the continuing failure of acknowledgment.
In the spirit of reconciliation, So That We Remember acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community.
We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.
What people are saying…
“The act of going through each day and seeing another example from all over the country is really moving and shocking.
…The site looks great and Glenn Loughrey’s artwork is powerful for each month.”
— Mark Dunn, author of The Convict Valley:The Bloody Struggle on Australia’s Early Frontier
“To forget our ancient custodians recent past, to relegate their story to oblivion, is to deny a truth which must be embraced if Australia is to find its own true destiny. I am grateful that some of the words I wrote have been deemed a fit contribution to this journey through time, this calendar of a past that must forever be remembered.”
— John Harris, author of One Blood & We Wish We’d Done More
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Joining the So That We Remember mailing list will ensure you never miss a monthly update to the website from our creator, Ray Barraclough, over a 365-day calendar.