This Reconciliation Week (May 27-June 3), SSRV remembers the importance of privileging and amplifying First Nations’ voices and we add our voice to calls for reconciliation and justice.
Reconciliation is a journey for all Australians – as individuals, families, communities, organisations and importantly as a nation. At the heart of this journey are relationships between the broader Australian community and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
This year, SSRV came together and marked National Sorry Day with Acknowledgment to Country and a short reflection on what it is like to be a members of the Stolen Generations accessing generalist services, reading an piece from a First Nations person, from It’s not easy walkin in there in 1999, a study just after the Human Rights Commission’s Bringing Them Home Report.
The theme of Reconciliation Week 2021 is ‘More than a word. Reconciliation takes action.’ It urges the reconciliation movement towards braver and more impactful action.
At SSRV, we are working at making our organisation more culturally safe and respectful, and to better engage and respond to First Nations clients and community.
We are building our partnerships and listen to First Nations voices. In this way we hope to grow in our understanding and conduct to work alongside First Nations peoples to improve justice outcomes and impacts.
We are continuing to develop our Reconciliation Action Plan, which serves as a starting point for individual and organisational action, responsibility and reflective practice to inform continuous improvement.
SSRV believes we all have a role to play when it comes to reconciliation, and in playing our part we collectively build relationships and communities that value Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, histories, cultures, and futures
