With all the work and hype aound the Reconciliation Float in the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, I have not had much time to post some info about the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Gay, Lesbian and Transgender/sistergirl community parade entry, Our Country Our Queen. Given the current less-than-royal visit, the timing is now appropriate! Francine, David, Kooncha, Chris and all the Our Country Our Queen participants deserve congratulations for the success of this very public statement of diversity within the Aboriginal and Torres Stait Islander community. (Did you see Francine and Chris on ch10?) This is a article which appeared in the press two days before the parade, the accompanying photo and some other pics from the OCOQ float are online at: http://www.bwp.org.au/ocoq.htm Garry C Black+White+Pink http://www.bwp.org.au/ ----------------------------------------------------------- >From Sydney Star Observer, 2 March 2000 We're on parade Jill Jones ...One of the first floats up Oxford street, just behind the lead float, will be Our Country Our Queen, an initiative of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander gay, lesbian, transgender and sistergirl community sponsored by ACON, the Department of Aboriginal Affairs, the Aboriginal Medical Service, Deadly Vibe, Sydney Institute of Technology's Eora Centre, and the National Aboriginal and Islander Skills Development Association. And fronting the float is a true queen, J'onelle Francine, who will be wearing a jewelled crown and carrying a waratah sceptre. "I am the elder of that community," she told Sydney Star Observer. Francine, as she is usually known, came out in the early 1950s. "I think I was the first Indigenous person to come out in that era." Francine, who left Queensland for Sydney, recalls her first visit to a gay bar, in The Rex at Kings Cross. "I remember walking in. There was a buzz with everyone talking, then it went quiet. All heads turned and I turned around too wondering who they were looking at. But it was me. It was the first time they'd seen an Aboriginal walk in. " Now 65 and identifying as transgender, Francine said she remembers how in earlier firmes there was a lot more togetherness and support in the gay community. "We were all going through the same thing. And we still have an uphill battle. That's why the gay community has to stick together as one group - there should be no in-fighting." One of the float's organisers, Chris from ACON, said the message of this float is "visibility". "We want to say, 'Yes, there are Aboriginal gays and lesbians, and transgenders.' We are reclaiming sexual ownership of ourselves. In the past there's been a lot of sexual exploitation. But we can say 'no' to that sort of stuff." The float will include dancers who have adapted some traditional moves from both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dances. According to another participant Sani, "we have mellowed it down to some more contemporary moves". They will be using music by Yothu Yindi, Christine Anu and Rita Mills and will also be carrying banners and signs in different Aboriginal languages. The group expects over 100 marchers but wants even more, both from indigenous and white communities.Tanya Plibersek, Federal ALP Member for Sydney, has announced she has accepted an invitation to match along with the group. ------------------------------------------------------ RecOzNet2 has a page @ http://www.green.net.au/recoznet2 and is archived at http://www.mail-archive.com/ To unsubscribe from this list, mail [EMAIL PROTECTED], and in the body of the message, include the words: unsubscribe announce or click here mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20announce This posting is provided to the individual members of this group without permission from the copyright owner for purposes of criticism, comment, scholarship and research under the "fair use" provisions of the Federal copyright laws and it may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner, except for "fair use." RecOzNet2 is archived for members @ http://www.mail-archive.com/recoznet2%40paradigm4.com.au/
