by Adele Chynoweth on 14 May, 2019
The blog is now closed. Thank you for trusting the National Museum to tell your history. Continue reading “Fare thee well …”
Category: events
Photos from Remembrance Day 2011, Brisbane
by Tikka Wilson on 14 December, 2011
On 7 September 2011, Forgotten Australians, along with their family, friends and supporters, gathered at the Gallery of Modern Art in Brisbane for Remembrance Day 2011. Continue reading “Photos from Remembrance Day 2011, Brisbane”
Photos from “Inside” opening
by Adele Chynoweth on 16 November, 2011
Inside: Life in Children’s Homes and Institutions opened 15 November, 2011 at the National Museum of Australia, Canberra. Here are some photographs from the event, taken by George Serras. Continue reading “Photos from “Inside” opening”
Reunited
by Gabbi Rose (guest author) on 10 November, 2011
Gabrielle Rose shares photographs from the reunion of former inmates of the Winlaton Youth Training Centre, held at Open Place, Melbourne, on 29 October, 2011. Continue reading “Reunited”
Last days
by Adele Chynoweth on 7 November, 2011
The blog will be closed on November 16, 2011 the day that the exhibition Inside: Life in Children’s Homes and Institutions is open at the National Museum of Australia in Canberra. Last day for sending posts for the Inside website is 9 November.
Comments and responses can be made up close of business November 16, 2011.
Join the Forgotten Australians
by Wilma Robb (guest author) on 2 November, 2011
Join the Forgotten Australians’ rally in Canberra on the second anniversary of the National Apology to Forgotten Australians and Former Child Migrants.
When: Wednesday 16th of November 2011 at 8.30am
Where: Meet in Civic Square outside the ACT Legislative Assembly, off London Circuit, Civic
Who are Forgotten Australians? They are approximately 500,000 Indigenous, non-Indigenous and former Child Migrant adults who were incarcerated as children in church, charity and state run orphanages, reformatories, training schools, psychiatric hospitals, children’s homes and in foster care during the 20th century from the 1930s – 1990s.
- Commemorate the apology: On the 16th of November 2009, the Australian Parliament formally acknowledged and apologised for the ongoing trauma the Forgotten Australians still suffer today as a result of the abuse – sometimes criminal – and neglect of duty of care they experienced as children.
- Meet with Federal and ACT politicians to discuss the issues affecting Forgotten Australians and children in care today (past and present). These include better access to social and health services and better protection of children who are currently in state care today.
- Speakers: Forgotten Australian John Murray and Senator Gary Humphries.
- Visit and celebrate the opening day of the Forgotten Australians exhibition ‘INSIDE: Life in Children’s Homes’ at the National Museum of Australia after the gathering at the Legislative Assembly, for Music to Remember by Forgotten Australians.
Please RSVP by Friday 11 November to admin@wchm.org.au or 6290 2166.
This event is supported by the Women’s Centre for Health Matters Inc. (WCHM), Woden Community Services Inc., and Women and Prisons (WAP). For more information please contact WCHM on (02) 6290 2166.
Three Generations of Suffering
by Diane Mancuso (guest author) on 28 October, 2011
Forgotten Australian Diane Mancuso, who recently re-connected with her UK-based sister, shares a poem about her family’s history, written by her nephew, Simon Houlders. Continue reading “Three Generations of Suffering”
Life inside Westbrook Boys Home
by Adele Chynoweth on 27 October, 2011
Listen to author Al ‘Crow’ Fletcher talk about his experiences at Westbrook Farm Home for Boys.
Al joined Adele Chynoweth at the National Museum of Australia in Canberra on 1 September 2011. He is the author of Brutal: Surviving Westbrook Boys Home by Al Fletcher as told to Cheryl Jorgensen.
Hear Al Fletcher’s perspective as a survivor or read the transcript on the National Museum website.
A brother and sister reunited
by Rosie Klohs (guest author) on 30 September, 2011
The ABC interviewed Forgotten Australian Rosie Klohs and her brother Bill, reunited after 53 years.
[2019 note] This interview was previously available on the 666 ABC Canberra website.
A Forgotten Australian’s scrapbook
Josephine Littlehawk generously donated her scrapbook to the National Museum of Australia. It contains photographs and memorabilia relating to her childhood at St Joseph’s Orphanage Goulburn and recent inquiries, apologies and memorials.
Exhibition a reminder of forgotten past
Sally Pryor, from The Canberra Times, reported on last week’s talk by Alfred Fletcher, author of Brutal: Surviving Westbrook Boys Home by Al Fletcher as told to Cheryl Jorgensen, at the National Museum of Australia.
[2020 note] You could previously access this article on The Canberra Times website.
R U OK?
Should every day be an R U OK? Day? R U OK? is a non-profit Australian organisation which aims to provide a national focus and leadership on suicide prevention.
R U OK? Day is Thursday 15 September 2011. You can read more at the R U OK? website
Apology for forced adoptions?
by Wilma Robb (guest author) on 26 July, 2011
Catholic Health Australia chief executive officer Martin Laverty says that he is prepared to apologise to the victims of forced adoptions, according to a recent report.
You can read the 25 July 2011 article on The Daily Telegraph website.
Another report on the ABC News website discusses responses to Archbishop Barry Hickey’s comments regarding adoption.
No more silent tears #2
by Leigh Westin (guest author) on 14 July, 2011
Leigh Westin, who grew up in Scarba House and Parramatta Girls Home, is creating a memorial entitled No More Silent Tears for Forgotten Australians. The memorial is comprised of a large panel of handkerchiefs sewn together, each decorated by those who spent time in a Children’s Home or institution.
If you experienced institutional or out-of-home ‘care’ and would like to contribute to this memorial, then on a lady’s-sized handkerchief embroider and/or write in ink, your name, the name of the institutions(s) and the year(s) that you lived there. Please feel free to decorate it however you wish, so that it will be suitable for people of all ages to view. The important thing is that you only use a lady’s handkerchief so that Leigh can easily sew them together. You may, of course, make a handkerchief in order to remember a Forgotten Australian or former Child Migrant who has passed away.
You can then post it to:
Adele Chynoweth
National Museum of Australia
GPO Box 1901
Canberra ACT 2601
Adele will then pass the handkerchiefs onto Leigh. Please make sure that your contribution reaches Adele by close of business Friday 12 August, 2011.
Below are some of the handkerchiefs that have already been made.
‘Journey of Hope’
by Adele Chynoweth on 14 July, 2011
Listen to an interview with Dr Michael Davey, former ward of the state and author of ‘Journey of Hope’, on ABC Radio National.
Dr Davey recalled his experiences in foster care and at Royleston Boys Home in Sydney during an interview on the ‘Life Matters’ program on 14 July 2011.
Download the ‘Journey of Hope’ interview on the ABC website.
Journey of Hope is published by Arkhouse Books.
Child passenger ship torpedoed by U-boat
by Oliver Cosgrove (guest author) on 7 July, 2011
The passenger ship the City of Benares, carrying 90 children evacuated to Canada from Liverpool, was torpedoed by U-boat, U-48 on 13 September 1940. Only 13 children survived.
The children were temporary evacuees and not Child Migrants. Nevetheless, the incident demonstrates the danger of sea voyages during World War Two. The Wartime Memories Project would like to hear from anyone who has any connections with the City of Benares.
Read more on the Wartime Memories Project – City of Benares website.
Justice for Child Migrants
by Adele Chynoweth on 20 June, 2011
ABC-TV’s 7.30 program reports on the court action of former students of Fairbridge Farm School, Molong, against the Fairbridge Foundation, state and Federal governments, for turning a blind eye on years of abuse.
You can access the recording of the report on the 7.30 website.
You can read more of the experiences of living at Fairbridge in David Hill’s book The Forgotten Children: Fairbridge Farm School and its Betrayal of Britain’s Child Migrants to Australia.
This is the sign of Fairbridge Farm School at its original site in Molong, NSW. This sign will be displayed at the National Museum’s exhibition Inside: Life in Children’s Homes, which opens in Canberra on 16 November 2011.
Heiner affair #2
by Adele Chynoweth on 9 June, 2011
Senator Nick Xenophon is aiming to gain support for an inquiry into the Heiner Affair, according to a report on ABC Radio Brisbane on 6 June 2011.
[2020 note] This report was previously available on the 612 ABC Brisbane website.
New deadline for forced adoption inquiry submissions
by Adele Chynoweth on 6 June, 2011
The Senate Community Affairs committee has announced an extension of the deadline for receipt of submissions to its inquiry into former forced adoption practices.
The commitee’s media relase of 12 May 2011 reads:
Inquiry into former forced adoption practices
The Senate today extended the Senate Community Affairs committee inquiry into the Commonwealth contribution to former forced adoption policies because of the extent and nature of the evidence received and complexity of the issues involved.
‘The committee has already received over 300 submissions, but we know there are others who still want to contribute to the inquiry’, said committee chair Senator Rachel Siewert.
‘This inquiry is very complex, involving many legal, historical and policy issues, and the committee wants to get it right. The committee simply didn’t have enough time with the June deadline to collect and horoughly review the evidence’.
The committee has received over 300 submissions. Many of these are very detailed, including a large number of accounts that suggest babies were taken for adoption against their mothers’ will.
The accounts include reports that women were pressured, deceived or threatened in order to secure signatures on adoption consent forms, actions that may have been in breach of the policies and laws of the time. The accounts received by the committee date from the 1950s to as recently as 1987.
The committee wants to ensure that everyone who believes they have been affected by past adoption policies and who wants to make a submission to the inquiry will have time to do so.
If you have not previously submitted, but would like to, the committee continues to welcome evidence from new submitters. Due to the extremely sensitive nature of the submissions and potential privacy issues there may be delays in processing and uploading those submissions to the website.
The committee also wants to obtain evidence from institutions and agencies involved in adoption, particularly during the 1960s and 1970s.
The committee will also be seeking detailed evidence from Commonwealth agencies.
The committee is now due to report on 21 November 2011.
Contact details and inquiry terms of reference follow:
For comment: Senator Rachel Siewert, Chair
Ph 02 6277 3587For inquiry information: Senate Community Affairs Committee secretariat
Ph 02 6277 3515Terms of Reference of the inquiry
That the following matters be referred to the Community Affairs References Committee for inquiry and report by 21 November 201 1:
(a) the role, if any, of the Commonwealth Government, its policies and practices in contributing to forced adoptions; and
b) the potential role of the Commonwealth in developing a national framework to assist states and territories to address the consequences for the mothers, their families and children who were subject to forced adoption policies.
Download the media release (PDF 70KB) from the Senate website
Memorial song
by Adele Chynoweth on 3 June, 2011
Alan Bowles, who grew up in a Salvation Army Home, shares ‘Forgotten’, the song he wrote and performed at the unveiling of the Victorian memorial to Forgotten Australians, in Melbourne on 25 October 2010.
[2020 note: audio file no longer available]
Hear more of Alan’s music on the Australian Johnny Cash & June Carter Show MySpace website
Winlaton reunion
by Gabrielle Short (guest author) on 27 May, 2011
Gabrielle Short has organised a reunion of former inmates from the Winlaton Youth Training Centre. The reunion will take place at Open Place in Melbourne on 29 October 2011.
Gabbi has announced:
We are holding a reunion for all those who spent time in Winlaton Youth Training Centre October 29th 2011. I think this will be a great opportunity to catch up with old friends and take a trip down memory lane. I’m sure there will be plenty of interesting stories to tell good & bad. Most of us were put there for no fault of our own, most of us were only running away from the system itself that failed to care for us in other homes, some because of being exposed to moral danger, some as a result of rape, pregnancy, poverty, the list goes on. We were not the bad girls that we were lead to believe and portrayed to the public. I know a lot of girls who still to this day will talk of other homes they were in but not Winlaton because of the shame and stigma that was once attached with being in Winlaton well it’s time to hold our heads up high and be proud of who we are and the fact that we have survived and are still here to tell our stories.
Oranges and Sunshine #3
by Adele Chynoweth on 25 May, 2011
ABC-TV’s 7.30 program reports on the soon-to-be released film Oranges and Sunshine.
The video report was previously on the ABC website but is is no longer available.
Kimberly’s ride
by Diane Tronc (guest author) on 11 May, 2011
Diane Tronc is inviting others to join her in supporting Kimberly Kiser with her ride to raise funds for child protection. Kimberly will depart the Gold Coast and arrive in Canberra on White Balloon Day in Child Protection Week, September 2011.
Further information is available at Kimberly Kiser’s Fundraising Page.
Itinerary for Kimberly Kiser’s Trip from Gold Coast Qld. to Parliament House Canberra ACT (Wednesday 31st August – 7th September 2011)
Wednesday 31st Aug. 2011
Depart Gold Coast office at 10.30am
Day 1
Wednesday 31st Aug. 2011
(Napper Road) Gold Coast to Byron Bay (Tweed Coast Rd.)
Byron Bay to Casino (Bangalow Rd.) 108mi./
Overnight in Casino
Day 2
Thursday 1st Sept. 2011
Casino to Coffs Harbour (Summerland Way & Orara Way) 114mi./183.47km
Overnight in Casino
Day 3
Friday 2nd Sept. 2011
Coffs Harbour to Lakewood (Pacific Hwy) 112mi./180.25km
Overnight in Lakewood
Day 4
Saturday 3rd Sept. 2011
Lakewood to North Arm Cove (Pacific Hwy) 97.8mi./157.39km
Overnight in North Arm Cove
Day 5
Sunday 4th Sept. 2011
North Arm Cove to Gosford (Wangi Rd.& Pacific Hwy) 90.6mi./145.81km
Overnight Gosford
Day 6
Monday 5th Sept. 2011
Gosford to Wollongong (crossing Sydney Harbour Bridge) Total: 94.5mi./
* thru North Sydney (Pittwater Rd.) w/ Ferry crossing (40.5mi./65.178km)
* thru Sydney (George St.) (2.5mi./4.0234km)
* to Wollongong (Princes Hwy) 51.5mi./ 82.881km)
Overnight in Wollongong
Day 7
Tuesday 6th Sept. 2011
Wollongong to Braidwood (Nerriga Rd.) 122mi./ 196.34 km
Overnight in Braidwood
Day 8
Wednesday 7th Sept. 2011
Braidwood to Parliament House Canberra (Mulloon Fire Rd.) 49.0mi./78.858km
White Balloon Day!
Fairbridge kids
by Oliver Cosgrove (guest author) on 10 May, 2011
A history of Fairbridge Farm, Pinjarra, WA, is presented on Fairbridge Kids, the website of the The Old Fairbridgians’ Association of Western Australia.
[2020 note] See the Fairbridge Farm website
‘This is to Mother You’
by Adele Chynoweth on 27 April, 2011
Sinead O’Connor’s This is to Mother You was played at the Healing Service and Memorial Dedication to the Forgotten Australians of NSW, 19 September 2009. Sinead at the age of 15 was placed in Grianán Training Centre run by the Sisters of Our Lady of Charity.
You can access a live clip of the song at YouTube.