So That We Remember charts a journey in history.
Bringing awareness of Australia’s violent past, documented over a 365-day historical calendar.
Dare to remember…
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.
February 28.
Reflections on 28 February - “Men, women and children are butchered...” - “...clear the country of them entirely.”
February 23.
Reflections on 23 February - ‘...the cruellest abuse...’ - A note in regard to terra nullius.
February 20.
Reflections on 20 February - Aborigines had “prior ownership”: William Cooper’s powerful critique.
February 19.
Reflections on 19 February - ‘...their numbers diminished...’ - Aboriginal peoples had a ‘plain and sacred right’ to their soil.
February 18.
Reflections on 18 February - ‘...shot and slaughtered wholesale...’ - “another reminder of the quiet extermination of Aboriginal people.”
February 17.
Reflections on 17 February - ‘They all used to hide their children.’ - “...The invaders wanted it all.”
February 16.
Reflections on 16 February - ‘The land was taken...by force.’ - “The land was taken...rhetorically, as well as by force.”
February 15.
Reflections on 15 February - Pastoralist companies and their killings: “Aboriginal resistance to the intrusion of settlers into their country was widespread and persistent.”
February 13.
Reflections on 13 February - A national apology: A Prime Minister says “sorry”.
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
Subscribe to our monthly updates.
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.