Cirrus@Austlit

'Dr Charles Duguid OBE campaigned for Aboriginal rights from the late 1920s to the 1980s. Mrs Phyllis Duguid OAM joined him in that campaign from 1930. The lectures which carry their name, delivered by distinguished Indigenous academics and community leaders, extend their work and kink it to ever-broadening fields of local, national and international Indigenous affairs - especially in matters of health, education, governance, cultural affirmation and human rights. Taken together, the lectures mark intergenerational shifts in thinking, language and positioning to form a crossover record of lives dedicated to struggle and the power of intelligent advocacy.' (Introduction)

'The conversation between Dr John Moriarty and me took place on Kaurna land and we pay our respects to Elders past and present. In this Duguid Lecture collection, the conversation replaces Dr Moriarty’s 1998 lecture ‘Aborigines in Australia -  personal challenges’. Sadly, there is no archived transcript of that lecture. Discussion began on 17 March 2016 and continued on the 18 March at the conclusion of the formalities surrounding the Flinders University 50^th Anniversary opening of the new Student Hub Project. While it was not our intention to recreate the Duguid Lecture that Dr Moriarty delivered in 1998 we did address some of the challenges faced by Aboriginal people from the 1930s to the present, guided by the overall theme of this collection – the long campaign – located in John Moriarty’s story of and reflection on hard-won success.' (Introduction)

'Let me begin by paying my respects to the Kaurna people of his land, the traditional owners, and acknowledge their living culture and unique role that they play in the life of the Adelaide region.' (Introduction)

‘Good Evening. And thank you for inviting me to give the Duguid Memorial Lecture this year. I am delighted to have his opportunity to honour the work of Dr Charles and Phyllis Duguid. And I hope that in speaking about reconciliation thought, I will help to keep not only their memory, but also their work and commitment alive…’ (Introduction)

‘The legacy to Dr Duguid is as important today as it was during its creation and the time of Dr Duguid’s campaign for the reform of Australia’s relationship with the First Nations Peoples of this land. Duguid’s campaigns were long; one waged in 1947 was against the establishment of a British-Australian rocket and nuclear weapon testing program at Woomera in South Australia. Though it was ultimately put down, subsequent history makes plain that he was right – Duguid foresaw and urged against the immense and needless destruction and waste caused by the nuclear weapons program. That same level of urgency surrounds Aboriginal Australia today.’ (Introduction)

‘In ‘Considering sameness’, author and activist Adjunct Professor Anita Heiss confronts the challenges of writing and talking complex Indigenous characters into mainstream Australian literature and public discourse. Her ‘sameness’ does not ignore or oppose expression of ‘difference’. She looks for common ground from which to take a broader view of human interaction than is permitted in oppositional same-different debates underpinned by competing hierarchies of value. In doing so she surrenders neither space nor place. She discusses the approaches taken in 13 books of poetry, adult and young readers’ prose, and autobiography and essays to be found in the AustLit/Black Words database, to challenge and reverse dominant literary stereotypes in mainstream literature by arguing that – in all genres of writing and reportage – stereotypes have influence on identity construction, perception and reception: good and bad.’ (16-17)