Kelly Austin

Kelly Austin studied aboriginal culture in Perth, Western Australia for five weeks. She attended classes at Murdoch University as well as going on culturally significant trips with her class. In the course of this study she had the opportunity to speak to many aboriginal community members of varied age, profession, and education, several of whom are active in the art, film, and politics as representatives of their people. Classes involved not just lecture on legal rights and their beliefs, but were interactive much of the time, allowing us to do things such as paint, share information about ourselves around the fire, try native foods, create our own message sticks, and meditate to the didgeridoo. Additionally, some of the trips were not only cultural but also physical including climbing mountains and exploring caves, pushing Kelly to experience not only the people but also the land. She also experienced the mainstream culture within Australia through talking to and visiting the domestic students in the course as well as seeing the typical sights of interest. Experiencing both cultures in Australia- the modern Western culture and the indigenous culture, provided a contrast between the two as well as showing how a minority culture who truly lacks affiliation with the majority navigates the world on a day to day basis.