NAIDOC Week celebrations began on Monday 6 July with a flag raising ceremony on Town Green in Port Macquarie.
As the rain fell, Jikyha Dungay-Vitnell, from Wauchope High School, played didgeridoo.
Elder Uncle Bill O’Brien welcomed local mob and community members to Birpai country.
For five decades NAIDOC Week (National Aboriginal and Islander Day Observance Committee) has celebrated indigenous voices.
“NAIDOC is a time to recognise and celebrate the rich history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people,” said Tamika Edwards.
“It is an opportunity for all Australians to come together, to learn, to listen and to connect with First Nations’ cultures.
“2026 marks a powerful milestone – 50 years of deadly.
“This theme is both a reflection and a declaration, recognising the strength it has taken to reach this milestone.”
Ms Edwards paid tribute to those who built the movement, elders who stood firm, organisers who made space, artists who turned resistance into expression, and members of the community who keep showing up year after year.
She also spoke about the future.
“It is also about the next 50 years – the young ones growing up proud, the return of language, the return to country; the fight for justice continuing with new tools, new voices, and the same fire.
“This is our story, this is our celebration, this is our future.”
Samantha McKinnon introduced the Yapun Yapun girls from Wauchope, who performed a dance of cleansing.
”These girls are here today, dancing for their ancestors and also for their great grandbabies who will come after them.
“They are dancing to pay respect to our beautiful dungang (Birpai word for river), which keeps us alive.”
“That’s what the legacy is all about – these beautiful girls stepping up, showing up, and continuing our culture,” said Aunty Rhonda Radley.
By Pauline CAIN
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