We’ve got better things to do than worry about whitefella politics’
Contemporary Indigenous graffiti and recent government interventions in Jawoyn Country
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 11955491 |
|---|---|
| Authors | John Ralph (0000-0002-2233-0209, Flinders University, corresponding author), Jordan Ralph, Claire Smith (0000-0001-9028-6687, Flinders University) |
| Year | 2014 |
| Volume | 78 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 75-83 |
| Publication date | 2014-06-01 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Australian Archaeology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0312-2417 • E-ISSN: 2470-0363 |
| Publisher | Taylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/03122417.2014.11682002 |
| OpenAlex | W2486099103 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 13 |
This paper explores whether Aboriginal people have used graffiti to display resistance to the Northern Territory National Emergency Response Act 2007. One of the first studies of graffiti in a remote Aboriginal community, this research was undertaken on Jawoyn lands in the Northern Territory, Australia. It encompasses the Aboriginal communities of Barunga, Manyallaluk and Beswick, where graffiti was recorded at 277 road signs along the Central Arnhem Road and Manyallaluk Road, and at three roadside shelters. This study shows that graffiti in Jawoyn communities primarily serves the intragroup purpose of reinforcing relationships between community members, in contrast to the use of graffiti by non-Indigenous people to propagate political and social messages between different social groups. It also provides material insights into a fear of government. Contrary to our expectations, graffiti in Jawoyn Country is not a mode of resistance to government intervention. Instead, the near absence of graffiti on Northern Territory Emergency Response signs in areas where surrounding signs have high densities of graffiti provides unique and materially-based insights into a fear of the Australian government that is felt by Aboriginal people in remote communities. The analysis suggests that Aboriginal people nurture community relationships partly to deal with alienation from government and, to some extent, the wider Australian community
Government (linguistics · Graffiti · Indigenous · Political science · Politics · Psychological intervention · Public relations · Resistance (ecology · Sociology · Visual arts · Law · Psychology · Public Spaces through Art
Modern Material Culture, Archaeology of
Engaged Archaeology
Modern Material Culture, Archaeology of
Women in Australian Archaeology
Indigenous views on the future of public archaeology in Australia
The Indigenisation of Australian Archaeology
An engaged archaeology field school with a remote aboriginal community
Pursuing Social Justice Through Collaborative Archaeologies in Aboriginal Australia
Recording Unmarked Graves in a Remote Aboriginal Community
Reflections on the Pedagogy of Archaeological Field Schools within Indigenous Community Archaeology Programmes in Australia
Resistance and remembering through rock art
A method for space archaeology research
A Place of Substance
| Citations per year | 1.44 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2017 - 2024 (8) |
| Highly cited | No |