'Urgent Histories: The Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery Apology to Tasmanian Aboriginal people - reflections on truth telling and public history beyond the academy,' Australian Historical Association conference 2022

Description

In this paper, I reflect on the historic TMAG apology made to February 2021, including the need for the apology, the reason for it, and the process of consultation and deep reflection that made this important day - with its associated commitments for the future - possible. I discuss matters of trust, risk, and fear in the building of trust towards the apology, and also talk about the alignment of the apology with the ‘Uluru Statement from the Heart’ and AMaGA’s new ‘First Peoples Road Map for Enhancing Indigenous Engagement in Museums and Galleries’. I was present at the Apology as a TMAG Board member, as a participant in a public, truth telling ceremony, and as author and a historian, who was part of the working group that delivered the apology Tasmanian Aboriginal peoples.

Period	31 Jul 2022
Held at	Australian Historical Association, Australia, Australian Capital Territory
Degree of Recognition	National