Submissions Library

Anonymous 954 describes conditions in a nursing home where residents were neglected, including Elders.

Lionel Lauch is a Gunditjmara Kirrae Wurrung-Bundjalung man. He is the co-founder of Living Culture, which teaches people to see through an Indigenous perspective in the Mornington Peninsula area, including bush tucker, medicine, dancing, art and cooking. Lionel’s family experienced intergenerational trauma through the Stolen Generations. Growing up in out-of-home care he experienced racism, violence and abuse. He has also faced racism in the health system throughout his life, which has affected his health. He has learned to let go of the anger and despair he felt growing up and feels immense pride in culture as an Aboriginal man.

First Nations men in the Metropolitan Remand Centre say one of the biggest issues across the prisons is the high cost of phone calls. It stops people being able to speak with their families, which is something that helps people feel sane and connected. They also talk about the shortage of mental health, methadone, banking, employment, housing and health services, which all have serious flow-on effects.

First Nations men in the Metropolitan Remand Centre describe how they are laughed at, targeted and taunted by prison staff, are sent to isolation for long periods, denied health services and have only restricted access to support, art and culture programs that are ‘taught’ and delivered by whitefellas. They say the across-the-board racism is why there are so many deaths in custody. The things that help are real community cultural programs, secure housing and employment opportunities. They are calling for the cost of phone calls and toiletries to be lowered, to be able to attend funerals and to have cultural packs.

Jesse Milne is a Waka Waka man who was in and out of foster homes as a child and ended up in residential care. Feeling lonely and abandoned he coped with his pain through drugs and alcohol, which led to a life of crime, violence and prison, starting with juvenile detention from the age of 12 or 13. As an adult, the cultural rehabilitation program Wulgunggo Ngalu helped turn his life around by connecting him back with community and culture. He is now a proud dad himself. Jesse says the child protection system should look to place kids with their families instead of foster homes and residential care.

This submission reflects the voices of Your Community Health staff and their commitment to equity and truth-telling. It describes the impacts of colonisation as profound and ongoing, along with the resilience of First Nations peoples. Your Community Health believes it is essential that Victoria addresses gaps in education, promotes cultural understanding, strengthens anti-racism efforts and takes meaningful action toward truth-telling and Treaty. It remains committed to amplifying First Nations voices, supporting self-determination and standing alongside communities in their pursuit of equity and justice.

This submission describes the author’s family’s challenging past, including their Nan’s experience of intersectional racism, intergenerational and transgenerational trauma, and the difficulty of connecting to their culture due to mental health struggles and family dynamics. They feel the disconnection is intense and isolating.

This submission discusses the unfair treatment by police, hospitals and courts of a mother whose children are no longer under her care.

Loddon Mallee Health Network’s ‘Blak Butterfly’ – First Nations Emergency Care Best Practice Framework research project sought to reveal solutions for First Peoples access to emergency care at all triage categories, their experience of cultural safety during treatment and discharge planning. It researches and recommends actions for areas including First Nations care governance, culturally safe building design, triage, transport home, mental health, cultural care and anti-racism education.