Lieutenant Reg Saunders (left) and Lieutenant Tom Derrick VC DCM, congratulate each other face-to-face following their graduation from the Office Cadet Training Unit at Seymour, 25 November 1944.

Indigenous Australians at war from the Boer War to the present opens at the Western Australian Museum – Albany this week.

This touring exhibition from the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne presents Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders’ stories from all over Australia, including from the Great Southern region of Western Australia.

WA Museum – Albany Regional Manager Rachael Wilsher-Saa said it is really important to acknowledge Aboriginal men and women who served their country during wars.

“We are honoured to display the stories of these proud men and women here in Albany, and we have been busy working with families in the community to add the stories of local men who served Australia in different conflicts,” Ms Wilsher-Saa said.

Indigenous Australians at war from the Boer War to the present covers indigenous people’s wartime contributions in the Boer War (1899-1902), First World War (1914-18), Second World War (1939-45), Korean War (1950-53), Vietnam War (1963-75), and in subsequent conflicts and peacekeeping.

“The local stories that have been contributed by the Eades, Farmer and Coleman families have significant meaning to our community,” Ms Wilsher-Saa said.

“The addition of photographs and personal stories about Woodanilling brothers Angus, Sidney and Frederick Eades; Augustus, Larry, Lewis, Kenneth, Ronald, Donald, Richard and Phillip Farmer from Katanning; as well as Charles Robert ‘Bob’ Coleman from Ravensthorpe and later Mount Barker make this exhibition even more relevant to this community.”

The opportunity to serve in Australia’s armed forces gave many people the experience of liberation from racial stereotypes for the first time. Oral histories reveal that while racism might have emerged behind the lines, when serving at the front line, all were equal in their concerns to survive and consider one another.

Indigenous Australians at war from the Boer War to the present begins on 11 March and ends 29 May 2016. The exhibition will then go on display at the WA Museum – Kalgoorlie-Boulder.

The Shrine of Remembrance’s Shrine Trustees are proud to present Indigenous Australians at war from the Boer War to the present and gratefully acknowledge the generous contributions of the Australian Government and Linfox that have enabled the exhibition to tour nationally.

Ends

Media contact
Sharna Craig
Media and Publicity Officer
Western Australian Museum
sharna.craig@museum.wa.gov.au