Greg Livermore is still haunted by the day when he raced home from school to find his cousins had disappeared.
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“We couldn’t understand why everyone was crying,” he said.
“The police (had) turned up with the welfare and bundled them all in the car and they were gone.”
Greg’s story is not unique. He is one of many traumatised by the loss of the Stolen Generations – Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children who were forcibly removed from their homes by the government between 1905-1967, some as late as the 1970s.
As National Sorry Day approaches on Saturday, May 26, locals are called to remember and commemorate the mistreatment of Aboriginal people.
Ten years ago former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd apologised for the pain and suffering caused by past government policies, “especially” those which led to the Stolen Generations; but Greg says the repercussions continue.
“That extended family network to Aboriginal people, it’s so important. It’s part of our culture. It’s part of the reason why we survived in this country for so long. When that’s broken down, that fractures that family network,” he said.
Although they were embraced by their families, Greg said it was difficult for those that returned to reconnect.
“They’d been away. We knew who they were there, but they were different when they came back.”
One cousin Greg didn’t see again until 1990, in Sydney.
“We couldn’t talk about it. We had to write each other letters to tell that story. That was the only way she could tell me where she’d been and what had happened to her all those years that she was missing from my life and the life of my family,” he said.
Greg said National Sorry Day is “not just another day on the calendar”, but an important time to reflect on the Stolen Generations and realise that many people are still suffering.
“Put yourself in that picture, put yourself in that place and say ‘How would I feel? How would I be today if I was taken away from mum and dad?” he said.
“We need to acknowledge all that stuff and find a way that we could all move forward together. It’s unfinished business, and we need to move on.”
Naomi Shumack
Born and bred in Inverell, I'm passionate about community journalism. I'm the youngest of five kids, am a book worm and have a ridiculous movie collection. I have a double degree in Communications and International Studies from the University of Wollongong. I write stories for the Inverell Times, Moree Champion and Goondiwindi Argus. You can contact me at naomi.shumack@fairfaxmedia.com.au or on 0438 606 351.
Born and bred in Inverell, I'm passionate about community journalism. I'm the youngest of five kids, am a book worm and have a ridiculous movie collection. I have a double degree in Communications and International Studies from the University of Wollongong. I write stories for the Inverell Times, Moree Champion and Goondiwindi Argus. You can contact me at naomi.shumack@fairfaxmedia.com.au or on 0438 606 351.
