Roebourne community demands apology for Forrest’s slur of Roebourne girls
Download FULL Press Release 20 July 2011
EXTRACT: On Four Corners (Iron & Dust 18 July 2011) Andrew Forrest told a story about “little” Aboriginal girls approaching him late at night in Roebourne to offer sex for cigarettes. [...]
This is definitely not the Roebourne of today.
Mr Forrest’s statement about the “little girls” in Roebourne is deeply hurtful, especially to the women and girls of the community. What makes this even more offensive is the link Andrew Forrest made between the alleged ‘depravity’ of the Roebourne girls and his rejection of a fair and equitable agreement with Yindjibarndi Aboriginal Corporation, because, as he stated, “I am not going to encourage with our cash that kind of behaviour. [...] It seems Mr Forrest needs to tell stories of ‘depravity’ in Aboriginal communities, so he can put himself forward as the ‘humanitarian’ philanthropist who will rescue Aboriginal people from themselves – all the while dispossessing traditional owners of the rights they are due from their ancestral lands.
The community of Roebourne deserves a fair go, and demands an apology.
I lived and worked in roebourne with the local mob for more than 4 years and I find this claim of Twiggys to be utter and complete BS.
I am a white bloke who has worked a long time in the bush in WA and PNG, starting in 1966 in Warburton Ranges, and my life has never been boring.
Twiggy Forrest didnt have to say what he did on TV, though obviously he had his reasons. I dont know if his story is right or wrong, only that there could be some truth to it. Over the years I have had similar experiences in Meekatharra, Wiluna, Leonora, Laverton and Kalgoorlie – not always aboriginal, not always female and not always young, but mostly so. I am a generous kind of person, they always got the smokes or clothes or money or ride in my Toyota, but I never took anything in return, only some very interesting memories.
More recently this same problem came to my own family, not is it true or is it false but the real story. I live in suburban Perth now, and my daughter went to the local Primary School where she did rather well. Year 8 at the local High School wasnt so good, and year 9 she was flunking everything. Toward the end of the year I started getting phone calls, sometimes 2 a day, asking why she wasnt at school, and 2 or 3 letters per week regarding disciplinary matters. She was dropped off at the school gate each morning and walked inside, and walked outside and was picked up at the gate each afternoon, so she was at school as far as we knew. One day near the end of the year she and some other year 9 girls were caught in the local shopping centre stealing cosmetics. When we talking with her about this she told us that she knew shoplifting was wrong, but she didnt think it was as wrong as selling her body to boys and men, like some of her classmates had started doing in year 7. That was a real shock I tell you, because we never suspected that would happen.
She is finishing year 12 now, at a small private religious school and doing quite well again. But even private schools are no guarantee – its not all that long since some girls from one of the very flash Perth colleges were selling home-made porno movies on the internet, starring themselves. Being a parent is not easy, you cannot treat your kids with total suspicion all the time, they would really hate you but if you trust them all the time bad things might happen. Where is the sweet spot of just right, not too hot not too cold, not too heavy not too light?
No-one wants to confess to being a bad parent and even though our daughter went astray (forced by peer pressure) I dont think we were bad parents. You might ask why we didnt take the matter further. Simply, our responsibility is to our own children and there is nothing to be gained by putting them offside with half the teen-agers in the district. If we dobbed the other kids to parents police or other powers-that-be, we would just be setting up ours for retribution.
My daughter is not a white Australian, she is half white half brown. It is often easy to see something as being a deliberate racial slur when there is actually none intended. Now your situation has been escalated into an official government enquiry, and I cannot help feeling that at best no good will come of it, and at worst a real disaster for any number of adults and their children.
It has been said that you should never have a public enquiry if you dont know what the answer will be. Just three years ago we would have sworn under oath that our daughter did not go to shops to steal and did not have friends in the sex-trade. She is doing well at school now so is probably doing the right thing, and she is our daughter and part of our family. If the government departments had become involved, right now we might have lost our daughter.
I have upset myself now I have to stop.
Hang on a minute… if it’s true how can it be a slur? Where’s parental responsibility regarding these girls? Why are they out late at night instead of at home? There are many questions that require answering before any of you paint Forrest as the offender.
If this allegation is true why did Mr Forrest not report this to the propper authorities at the time?
Why has he also repeated this same story but it happened to him in other communities?
What a disgraceful and irresponsible thing to say! Is he issuing an invitation for pedophiles to head to Roeburne? Twiggy Forrest is trying to foster a loathesome paternalism in order to disguise his greed and his land-grabs.It’s people like him that make people like me not want to identify as “white”.
Good luck with your fight against him. In unity is strength.
my heart and support goes out to your people i watcghed in horror the way twiiggy is dividing and conqearing a proud people who over 40,0000 years have had a spiritual connection and have nutured mother earth,the use of one generation as instrument to hide the real intentions ,my company wants all you got for as little as possiable ,to see a senior law maker having to shout for attention is shame on forrest,and to use sexual abuse as instrument is from gutter,i have been involved in indigenous education,health,sports ,the arts,etc,i was principal of co-ed indigenous boarding school year 11 and 12 students from 59 communities in north queensland,the terms offered has many people in the south talking,you need to bring your case to the melbourne,sydney ,canberra,brisbane,-current affairs,newspapers,if i had the money i give you as much as i could but cfs syndrome has drianed my resources,but i have contacts and will spread the word,my 1st teaching job was at wadeye-4 years,then 18 years at indigenous boarding school,indepently run by indigenous people -students went on to study law,teaching,medicine,police force,music,bands,art,dance companies,nursing etc-why is it mining always offers indigenous basic jobs when they are capable of anything given the chance ,he has engaged one generation and engaged indigenous people to say what they want the public to hear,they wine,dine,and look after them,again the divide and conqear in all my time -35 years i have never had an indigenous child or woman ask for what forrset stated,i have been priveleged to have taught,learnt from indigenous people,you need to engage united nations ,and human rights laweys to help,shane howard from goanna has four corners story on his site,he is fighting for kimbely mob against biggest gas plant,it never ends,but stay strong and keep fighting for justice,i would invite the tajar major who is the face of one nation and follows twiggy as if he is gospel,invite them and get them to front elders and community as they are being used ,noel pearson another in bed with pair of tiapans-forrset and packer-look at what packers gambling empire has done to melbourne community-family break up,drugs,prostution,ie tiger woods at crown,drug gangs laundering money,i was told 10 people a week jump of the west gate bridge due to gambling,home invasions for money for gambling and on it goes,i am on facebook and you have my email ,stay strong and as old boxer -never ever stop punching and always keep your hands up with respect adrian hearn
Definitely self-seeking insult that plays on the inherent racism of his target audience.
Keep fighting for justice!