As the Queensland Government moves to shut down the state’s historic Truth-Telling and Healing Inquiry, a new report stresses the importance of truth-telling for addressing racism.
Jason Staines and Melissa Sweet write:
Truth-telling is an essential element of efforts to tackle systemic racism across health, education, justice and other sectors that affect the lives of First Nations people daily, according to health leader Marni Tuala.
In delivering the Kep Enderby Memorial Lecture recently, Tuala reported on the findings of a national consultation about the experiences of First Nations people of racism, and called for anti-racism strategies backed by legislation ensuring greater rights to self-determination of First Nations people.
“Racism, in all its forms, has real and lasting effects on the lives of people who experience it, and this is compounded by a society that fails to acknowledge the existence of such an impact or provide robust mechanisms to protect those affected,” she said.
“We cannot achieve racial justice in Australia without racial justice for First Nations people.”
Tuala, a Moorung Moobar Gudjinburra woman of the Bundjalung nation, mother of five, and a registered midwife, is CEO of First Nations Co, which undertook consultations involving nearly 500 contributors for a new Australian Human Rights Commission report, An Anti-Racism Framework: Voices of First Nations Peoples.
The report is a foundational document for the Commission’s development of a National Anti-Racism Framework and contains key recommendations for improving culturally safe health care in Australia for First Nations people and communities
Tuala said truth-telling is a crucial component in the journey toward achieving racial justice in Australia, as it involves acknowledging the historical and ongoing injustices faced by First Nations people, enabling society to dismantle the myths that perpetuate racial inequality.
“Truth-telling is essential for accountability,” she said.
“It creates a platform for First Nations voices to be heard, allowing communities to share their experiences, perspectives and solutions. By bringing these narratives into public discourse, truth-telling challenges the status quo and demands systemic reform.”
Her comments come amid widespread concern about the new Queensland Government’s resolve to shut down the state’s Truth-Telling and Healing Inquiry.
The Healing Foundation this week said the decision – criticised by many Indigenous and human rights groups – would add to the pain and suffering of Stolen Generations survivors, and urged the Queensland Premier David Crisafulli to reconsider his decision.
Tuala said the decision “speaks volumes as to how progress towards racial justice and healing is not the priority for all”.
“It demonstrates the pervasive and deeply embedded nature of racism, the lack of commitment to acknowledging the history of our country and the continued impacts this has on First Nations people,” she said.
The Queensland Government’s move was also much-discussed at a Reconciliation Australia conference in Meanjin/Brisbane this week, which put a focus on the importance of truth-telling and anti-racism, with a theme of ‘Now More Than Ever there is an urgency to the work of advancing reconciliation’.
Voice impacts
Tuala also described the impact of the Voice campaign and aftermath, said to be “the most public and politicised act of racial violence this generation has ever seen”.
“The Voice opened the floodgates of bigotry, racism, intolerance, privilege, entitlement, white fragility and hate,” she said.
“There was no reprieve for us, no safe space no matter what your ‘choice’. It was mass scale, it was media-fuelled, and it was violent. There was no protection, no accountability for the hate-mongers and the blatant acts of racism in the lead up…or the fall out.”
Tuala said the ongoing failure of successive, state, territory and federal governments to share decision making with First Nations communities and Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations was a major contributing factor to ongoing systemic racism, inequities and failure to improve outcomes nationally.
The development of robust anti-racism legislation and a National Anti-Racism Framework would help to streamline and accelerate progress under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, she said.
Tuala described systemic racism as “a form of racism that is pervasively and deeply embedded in systems, laws, written or unwritten policies, and entrenched practices and beliefs that produce, condone, and perpetuate widespread unfair treatment and oppression”.
The consultations were told that it is widely evident in legislative frameworks and government practices that repeatedly harm and disadvantage First Nations peoples.
“From inadequate healthcare, over-policing and incarceration, child removal and deaths in custody – the toll systemic racism is taking on our communities is palpable,” she said.
Tuala noted that there is a unique distinction between the racism faced by First Nations people and that of other marginalised groups.
“Racism against First Nations people attempts to deny sovereignty, identity, belonging and connection,” she said.
“It is present in the reluctance for national truth-telling, it is present in the resounding ‘No’ vote of the referendum, it is present in our poorer health outcomes, higher incarceration rates and ever-rising rates of suicide – these statistics are not the outcomes of choice, they are the outcomes of a system designed by and for the dominant culture which continues to marginalise and oppress First Nations people.”
However, Tuala said “these statistics are not the sum of our people, they are not the truth of our story, of our connection to country, community and each other, they are not a reflection of our people”.
Rather, “they are an indictment on a country that fails to recognise our rights as First Nations people, that fails to commit to dismantling the systems that continue to oppress and cause harm”.
Key recommendations
The new report, An Anti-Racism Framework: Voices of First Nations Peoples, outlines a set of recommendations, each aimed at tackling racism at different levels within society.
These include legislative reform to dismantle structures that enable racial discrimination, the establishment of accountability mechanisms to monitor anti-racism efforts, and the creation of First Nations advisory bodies to guide policy and program development.
Among the key recommendations is a call for standardised cultural safety education, particularly in healthcare. The measure could possibly transform the quality of care for First Nations communities and reduce health disparities rooted in discrimination and cultural insensitivity, according to the report’s authors.
The report emphasises that addressing racism in healthcare is essential for improving health outcomes and creating a more equitable system. It highlights the need for healthcare providers to adopt culturally safe practices that honour First Nations perspectives and avoid the perpetuation of harmful biases.
The report suggests that cultural safety education be tied to continuous professional development (CPD) requirements. This would mean that healthcare workers would be required to regularly update their training in cultural safety, making it a dynamic part of their professional growth — not just a one-time lesson but an ongoing commitment.
According to the AHRC, a standardised approach to cultural safety would involve the development of national guidelines, consistent training frameworks, and accreditation programs for healthcare institutions.
By implementing such a framework, healthcare organisations could ensure that cultural safety becomes an integral part of their service delivery. These measures would be especially important in regions with large First Nations populations, where the need for culturally sensitive care is critical.
The report also underscores the importance of accountability measures.
Healthcare providers would not only undergo cultural safety training but also be subject to regular reviews, patient feedback, and assessments to ensure that the principles of cultural safety are actively applied in their daily work.
The establishment of independent review bodies, as recommended in the report, could play a crucial role in monitoring healthcare institutions and holding them accountable for maintaining culturally safe environments.
Standardised cultural safety education could significantly improve the experiences of First Nations people within the healthcare system, where receiving care in a culturally safe environment would foster trust and reduce barriers.
Such training would also help providers understand the historical and intergenerational trauma that many First Nations people carry and the systemic factors that contribute to current health inequities. Equipped with this knowledge, healthcare providers would deliver care that is not only medically competent but also culturally sensitive and inclusive.
However, for the recommendations in the report to be effective, they must be supported by government action and institutional commitment. Healthcare leaders would need to prioritise cultural safety training in funding and policy discussions, recognising it as a foundational component of equitable healthcare.
See also
Read Marni Tuala’s powerful speech, Dismantling Systemic Racism: First Nations Perspectives – the Kep Enderby Memorial Lecture.
Read this summary on X/Twitter by Marie Mcinerney from the lecture as well as a panel discussion, moderated by journalist Dan Bourchier, and including Ambassador to Australia Gabriele Visentin, anti-racism expert Luke Pearson and Race Discrimination Commssioner Giridharan Sivaraman.
Also watch
See Croakey’s archive of articles on racism and health
