Claire G. Coleman (2022) | Words are Weapons

Stories define who we are, our history and they can be
weaponised. Stories can erase an
entire culture. History is nothing but
a story. Noongar woman and author Claire G. Coleman
invites you to consider
that Australia has been defined by a story
that hasn’t been built on truth. That the
stories Australia tells itself about itself
are actually dangerous; they disenfranchise and
dehumanise people, both the settlers and the First Nations
people. Colonisation in Australia is not over. It is a
process, not an event, and the aftereffects will
continue while there are still people to remember
it. Hear from Coleman the full story of
the colonisation and future of
Australia and arm yourself against lies with weaponised
words of truth.


Claire G. Coleman is a Noongar woman whose family have belonged
to the south coast of Western Australia since long before history
started being recorded. She writes fiction, essays, poetry and
art writing while either living in Naarm (Melbourne) or on the
road. During an extended circuit of the continent she wrote a
novel, Terra Nullius, which won the black&write!
Indigenous Writing Fellowship and was listed for 8 awards
including a shortlisting for The Stella Prize.