NAIDOC Week this year will be celebrated from Sunday 3 July – Sunday 10 July.
Celebrations are held across Australia in the first week of July each year (Sunday to Sunday), to celebrate and recognise the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. NAIDOC Week is an opportunity for all Australians to learn about First Nations cultures and histories and participate in celebrations of the oldest, continuous living cultures on earth.
NAIDOC stands for National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee. Its origins can be traced to the emergence of Aboriginal groups in the 1920′s which sought to increase awareness in the wider community of the status and treatment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians.
The annual NAIDOC March will be held on Friday 8 July in Melbourne’s CBD. Both Indigenous and non-Indigenous Victorians walk together to celebrate NAIDOC week. The walk commences at the Victorian Aboriginal Health Service at 186 Nicolson Street, and finishes at Federation Square. All are encouraged and welcome to join the March.
This year’s NAIDOC Theme is “Get up, Stand up Show up”
To celebrate NAIDOC Week, all La Trobe students, staff and community members are invited to join in on these events:
| When | What’s On | Campus |
| Monday 4 July, 1pm – 2pm | NAIDOC Lunch featuring a Welcome to Country Ceremony and traditional Smoking Ceremony. | Bendigo Library |
| Monday 4 July, 1pm – 3pm | NAIDOC Lunch featuring a Welcome to Country Ceremony and traditional Smoking Ceremony. Guest speakers and Dinawan’s Connection Traditional Dancers performance. Basket Weaving with Aunty Marg (limited spots – register now) | Albury-Wodonga Building 6, Lecture Theatre |
| Tuesday 5 July, 9:30am | Flag Raising | Bundoora Moat Drive |
| Tuesday 5 July, 11am | Indigenous Student Art Show | Bundoora Library |
| Friday 8 July, 9:30am | NAIDOC March | Melbourne CBD Victorian Aboriginal Health Service |
