iDIDJ Australia Didgeridoo Cultural Hub

A friend and colleague of my wife went to visit his son in Oz last year. He was puzzled by the fact that Aboriginal people would step off the pavement and walk into the road rather than pass him by. He asked his son about this and the reply was "that's what they do". Being the sort of man he is, he decided to step off the pavement first each and every time. His son got embarrassed and asked him not to do that - "it's not what is done around here" - he said. Further inflamed, he started opening doors etc etc for Aboriginals whenever he could. The whole experience has distressed him somewhat and he's just started talking about it. I've asked my wife for more information and will post what I can, as plainly as I can - I'm not even going to begin to comment because my blood just boils.

Hi Dave,

Would that be in Perth, or whereabouts did your friend go in Australia?

Guan

I didn't get the picture of that "pavement and road walking" thing...
Read it a couple of times but didn't get it...
Surely because English isn't my maternal language.

Hi Guan - I've asked my wife for more info including where. She hopes to see him today at school and catch him at break

Hi Ahaw - sorry! Try this... our friend is walking along a sidestreet pavement with his son which is not busy (certainly not as busy as Paris!). As Aboriginal people walk toward them on the same pavement they don't just pass close by as is normal for Paris, London, Athens etc, instead the Aboriginals step off the pavement into the road so that my white friend and his son have the pavement to themselves to walk along. Once the white folk have passed, the Aboriginals get back on the pavement. Because there was absolutely no need for this (wide pavement with few people) my white friend was puzzled and asked his son why they were doing that and he said "that's what they do", meaning this is the socially accepted 'norm' for behaviour of whites meeting blacks in a major city (trying to find out which this lunchtime). This is not politeness e.g. I'll step off a pavement to let someone in a wheelchair pass by with ease, but complete and utter racism built into the social fabric of that city. Hope that is a bit clearer my friend!

If I'm in the city, I do the same sometimes, walking off the footpath and onto the side of the road. Not as deference to anyone in particular, but it is just easier to walk like that instead of constantly bumping into people and being slowed down by foot traffic. Walking on the side of the road feels liberating like that. I haven't noticed Aboriginal people stepping off the footpath just to make way for non-Indigenous folk, maybe I'm just not very observant or maybe it doesn't happen in this city.

Guan

Likewise my friend. Clearly something bothered this man to the point where he started talking about it in the staff room. I've asked my wife to have a quiet word with him today - she's pretty astute - so will pickup on whether this was just a reaction to seeing some sorry stuff

Thanks for your own translation Dave
And excuse me for asking it, you were clear in the first place, I'm just a bit dumb

Ahaw, if I could speak and write French as good as you do English, I'd be a very happy man - I love France!

Time I made u a friend in my profile settings Ahaw - I like what u say on matters!

hehe
I didn't even know iDidj forumers could be friends or foes
So you're my 1st iDidj friend too and for the same reasons

Uniting passionate people makes for a good start toward that tank! (see my latest rant on nuke dump!). Welcome friend! )

My wife has got to the bottom of this! Her colleague was talking about this sad experience in the staff room last week, but it wasn't last year, it was in Adelaide in 1994. He was actually told by his son not to giveway to Aboriginals because whites didn't do that - so he did the opposite! He opened a door for a young mother and baby, she thanked him and his son got well angry. So he spent all week going out of his way to be polite and help. When he managed to talk to some, they said they were only welcome in one shop - he couldn't believe his ears. The shop owner, and many whom he passed daily thanked him for his kindness. The whole experience distressed him greatly, and still does. A mutual colleague, on hearing this conversation related a similar tale of her travels (I think in Dubai - but I can check if needs be!), where indigenous people were employed as cleaners in her hotel. She was reprimanded by allowing them to travel up in the lift with her. Sometimes I wonder if we should start reporting good news in the hope like begets like!

Hi
I have been to Australia a number of times and can't say that this has come to my attention. What I have noticed though is that Aborigines will not acknowledge you, say G'day or anything to you (unlike other Aussies, who I have found are very forward in this respect) unless you make the effort to create that contact first, then they will speak with you. One exception, in Townsville about 5 years ago myself, my partner and the kids were having a maccy d icecream and this Aboriginal guy , who had obviously had a bit too much to drink decided to dance for us hoping to get some kind of payment for his efforts, nice guy, no harm done but no money, didn't want him buying more drink!!!

Paul

Hi Paul (great forum handle btw!)
FYI this guy is the only one of our friends who has mentioned anything like this when visiting Oz, but you can see many different 'pockets' of attitude in an island even as small as the UK! In big, cosmopolitan 'university' cities like London & Bristol there isn't any obvious racial fuss, but in 'conservative' cities like Wolverhampton... boy you can cut the atmosphere between Asians and whites with a knife!!!! Some white youths go on what they call 'Pakie-bashing', which means spending a night on the town beating the shit out of Pakistanis for entertainment. Living close to Wolverhampton as a kid I came to dis-own all of my friends who started down this path of racial hatred. Just couldn't understand why they would do that to others. I guess the same patchwork of enlightenment and racism is true the world over - both on the grand and minute scales, in all human endeavours, institutions, edifices, organisations, families, countries and creations. For those mathematicians among you, I'll say this pattern is fractal