In this monologue, Dr. John A. King, a 62‑year‑old elder who identifies as Wurundjeri/Imbrani, shares a cascade of personal family tragedies—one brother murdered, another incarcerated, and a third who died of stroke and heart attack—to illustrate the broader grief felt by his people. He cites stark statistics: 100 % of youth detention facilities and about 97 % of adult prisons in Australia are occupied by Imbrani men, underscoring systemic over‑incarceration. King explains how the recessive melanin gene and intermarriage have led to rapid loss of physical and cultural traits, describing the community as “the most visibly dying culture.” He questions the purpose of celebrating National Indigenous Peoples Day, suggesting that for many non‑Indigenous Australians it may feel irrelevant, but proposes that the day be used to hold space, reflect, and engage in conversations about the vital Indigenous knowledge that can inform environmental, social, and sustainability challenges. The piece ends with a gentle invitation to consider, converse, and honor the remaining stories and peoples before they disappear.
Chapters
My brother died this morning. Massive strokes and heart attacks over the last week. In the last 12 months, I had one brother who was murdered, another brother locked up, and now my last brother has just died. It might seem bad luck. It might seem a bit of a tough run. But see, I'm Wurundjeri, I'm an Imbrani man. Europeans call us Indigenous Australian. The challenge is it's actually not— it's actually our normal experience. I'm 62, I'm probably one of the oldest members of my tribe. I'm an elder. 100% of youth detention facilities are filled with Imbrani. About 97% of those incarcerated in adult prisons are Imbrani men. Oldest living culture, they call us, 45,000 years older than the pyramids, predates everything. And when our old people die, our stories die, our songs die, our lore die. We are dying. We're not the oldest living culture anymore. We are the most visibly dying culture. And there's a great sense of grief and loss that comes with that. Melanin in Imbrani is a recessive gene. In African, it's dominant. So by the time you get to the 3rd generation, the babies are born blonde-haired and blue-eyed. Mine was blonde-haired, brown-eyed in my case. It's a tragedy. And unfortunately, in Australian culture, it's become a competition between Europeans or Asians or Africans are competition with the indigenous people, and people want to know why it's important to celebrate being indigenous. This Monday is Indigenous Day. So why is it important to celebrate National Indigenous Day? Maybe it's not. Maybe for you it's not important. You've probably never met an Indigenous person. It's okay. There's not many of us, probably 3% of the Australian population, less now. I know in my tribe there's less than 300 of us now. Maybe it's not a matter of celebration. Maybe it's just a matter of holding space for, maybe just taking a time to consider. Or take into consideration once thriving cultures like Amazonian rainforests that once gone will never return. But these rainforests, these men, these people, these stories hold answers to environmental issues, social issues, cultural issues, issues of race, issues of getting on, issues of sustainability. Maybe This Indigenous Peoples' Day might be an opportunity for you not only to have a day off and enjoy it, but maybe take time to have a conversation. Because that'd be nice. That'd be important. Enjoy. Enjoy the day. Thank you.
