Indigenous Literacy Day 2023: Date, History, Facts about Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders

The date of Indigenous Literacy Day is September 7. This is an annual initiative of the Indigenous Literacy Foundation of Australia. Through literacy programmes, the organisation aims to improve the lives and possibilities of Indigenous Australians. Not just any literacy programme, but one that prioritises the indigenous people’s knowledge and wisdom.

Indigenous Australians have extensive knowledge of community, culture, and land. These are “literacy” concepts that the Western world may not comprehend. We must redefine what literacy means based on the requirements of various communities. To create spaces that are forward-thinking without losing their origins. Indigenous Literacy Day promotes the right of individuals to receive an education in their native language. It celebrates indigenous participation in public life and freedom of expression as they are.

The background of Indigenous Literacy Day

We are aware that literacy is the cornerstone of prosperous futures. It is the initial phase for children to construct contexts and comprehend the world. Imagine a life without the pleasure of reading, a world without the knowledge and inspiration that books provide. Imagine that the stories in the books you do read do not reflect the culture, people, and land around you. For students in remote communities across Australia, this is a typical literacy journey. The options are restricted. One either reads books through the lens of a foreign culture or has no access to books. Inadequate resources and low levels of literacy can have an enduring effect on the well-being of First Australian communities.

Children, parents, and grandparents can all discover a passion for literature given the proper conditions and resources. Indigenous Literacy Day seeks to increase access to literature and resources for indigenous people in remote regions of Australia. It is an opportunity for Australia’s first people to influence and culturally contextualise literacy.

The objective is to facilitate the success of indigenous children via high-quality resources. What types of resources are available? Libraries, publications written in native tongues, and community publishing are a few examples. Today is a call to assist indigenous communities in leading and possessing their own literacy journeys.

In the novels that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children read, their culture and languages should be reflected. They must identify with the narratives they hear. Indigenous Literacy Day is vital for preserving indigenous cultures and languages and fostering indigenous pride.

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5 AWE-INSPIRING FACTS ABOUT ABORIGINALS AND TORRES STRAIT ISLANDERS

Archaeological evidence affirms that Australia’s Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders are the oldest continuous civilizations on the planet.

There are hundreds of cultural groups, lineages, 600 dialects, and 250 languages among their origins.

Today, approximately 3.3% of Australia’s population consists of indigenous people.

In Australia’s indigenous communities, stories are handed down through the generations using art forms.

Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders in remote areas have higher infant mortality rates and lesser levels of literacy than the general population.

INDIGENOUS LITERACY DAY DATES