NAIDOC Week 2025: Reviving Our Connections Through Family, Country and Culture

As we approach NAIDOC Week 2025, guided by the powerful theme, "The Next Generation: Strength, Vision & Legacy," I pause to reflect on the journeys of my ancestors—especially the strong women who deeply shaped my Indigenous heritage and family identity.

Granny Duval: The Beginning of a Legacy

My journey begins with Granny Duval, an Anaiwan woman whose resilience and courage laid the foundation for generations to follow. Her story of strength, pride, and survival against adversity set a legacy that echoes profoundly through my own life and advocacy.

My Nanna Rita: Resilience Amidst Cultural Loss

Granny Duval’s legacy endured through her granddaughter, my father’s mother—my cherished Nanna Rita. Nanna Rita was a strong, intelligent, and resourceful woman, but tragically, like many Indigenous Australians of her time, she faced oppressive policies and cultural shame imposed by White Australia's prejudiced attitudes and practices.

These policies cruelly separated her from cultural knowledge and practice, yet despite these barriers, she maintained a steadfast belief in the value and strength of family. Even in the face of cultural alienation, she understood deeply that family bonds, no matter how strained or fragmented, form the backbone of survival and identity.

NAIDOC Week 2025: Reviving Our Connections Through Family, Country and Culture

Revival through the Next Generation

Today, inspired by Granny Duval’s courage and Nanna Rita’s resilience, my own children now lead the way in reconnecting our family with culture, community, and Country. Through them, we actively revive and strengthen bonds that oppressive histories once sought to erase.

My children’s growing knowledge and respect for their heritage represents more than just revival—it symbolises our survival, our pride, and our continued commitment to ensuring our culture thrives for generations yet to come.

Brian AJ Newman, LLB - Employment & Human Rights Advocate

Our Ongoing Legacy

As NAIDOC Week reminds us to honour the past and shape our future, I recognise how vital it is for our children—and indeed all future generations—to maintain these ancestral connections. This continuity is the ultimate triumph against historical adversity and cultural oppression.

My advocacy, deeply inspired by the strength of Granny Duval and the resilience of my Nanna Rita, stands firm in its commitment to fostering and protecting the rights, dignity, and cultural identity of Indigenous Australians everywhere.

As we celebrate NAIDOC Week 2025, let us not only reflect on the past but actively nurture the legacy of resilience, pride, and cultural renewal that is our gift and responsibility to the next generation.

Brian AJ Newman, LLB

Employment and Human Rights Advocate

Proud descendent of Anaiwan (Nganyaywana), Ngarigo (Bemeringal 'mountain men' of the East Coastal Region) and Wiradjuri people.