The Coniston Massacre

The Coniston Massacre is the name given to the officially-sanctioned murder of hundreds of Indigenous people of the Warlpiri, Anmatyerre, and Kaytetye tribes, committed by Northern Territory police and landowners in 1928.

The massacre was motivated, ostensibly, by the murder of Fred Brooks, a white station hand who worked at Coniston Station. In retaliation, William George Murray led a series of expeditions in search of Brooks’ murderers. Murray and his party indiscriminately murdered almost every Indigenous man, woman and child they came across. The number of murders in the official record is 31, but the true number of Indigenous people killed in this series of attacks is believed to be around 200. 

EPISODE NOTES:

The Coniston Massacre is one of many atrocities committed against Indigenous peoples by white settlers – atrocities that began on January 26, 1776, and continue in various forms to the present day.

Whatever your feelings about Australia Day, it cannot be denied that Australia has a continuing history of violence towards the Indigenous people of Australia. Indigenous people have lived on this land for over 100,000 years, and in the less than 300 years of white settlement, we have destroyed the land, marginalized its first peoples, and placed hundreds of refugees in offshore detention centres. We need to fix these systemic issues, and find a day when all people can celebrate all of the many incredible things that this great Southern land has to offer.

To watch the Coniston Film, go here https://rebelfilms.com.au/films/coniston/

To read more about the massacre from the Central Land Council, go here https://www.clc.org.au/files/pdf/Making_Peace_with_the_Past.pdf

To read about the Northern Territory police apology for the massacre, go here https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-08-24/nt-police-apologise-for-state-sanctioned-coniston-massacre/10162850

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