“I’m Aboriginal. I’m just not the Aboriginal person a lot of people want or expect me to be.” This Tuesday, 26 April, internationally recognised author and advocate for Aboriginal rights, Anita Heiss will attend a Meet the Author event at ANU’s Kambri’s Culture Centre.

Heiss will discuss her latest book Am I Black Enough for You? 10 Years On, that unfolds the story of an urban-based Wiradyuri woman breaking glass ceilings, while working to break down stereotypes. She took five with CW to share just a snippet of what’s in store.

What inspired you to write the original ‘Am I black enough for you?’ and its update ’10 years on’?

What I really want to do with all my writing, is to write us into the Australian literary landscape, to have us telling our stories through our lenses, whether that’s writing novels or kids fiction. ‘Am I Black Enough for You?’ is part of that because it’s about saying that Aboriginal people have the right to assert our identities, just like every other Australian. We are the people, the only ones, who can define who we are.

Working in schools, I experienced the stereotypes and the misinformation and the ignorance, not only from students but from teachers as well, around who we are, particularly in the 21st century.

Originally, I thought if I wrote a memoir about myself, growing up in the suburbs as a young Aboriginal girl with a Wiradjuri mum and an Austrian dad and going to a Catholic school, I could address some of the stereotypes about who we are, where we live, where we’re educated, what we aspire to be, or how we look – which is still one of the challenges that is faced by many First Nations people today.

What were the top 3 most impactful events over the last decade, that led to you writing ‘10 years on’?

1. The Black Lives Matter movement. For three decades, we had a movement in Australia after the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, but it wasn’t until the very public and appalling death of George Floyde in Minneapolis that Australians actually took notice of what was happening here.
2. What we saw unfold right here, in the final years of Adam Goodes’ playing career. The blatant racism that was allowed to continue, unchecked by the AFL. He was Australian of the Year. Watching that as a bystander, a friend of Adam’s, and an ambassador for his work, then watching the documentary The Final Quarter where it pulled all that material together – realising that [racism] was allowed to happen in 2015! When Adam was on the field, he was trying to say, ‘Racism stops with me.’ And after those events, many people were galvanised to do the same.
3. On a personal level, in this last year, starting to learn my language. I really wanted to write about that, the impact and empowerment around it, and how speaking language can be an act of sovereignty, where we don’t feel or legally have sovereignty every day.

What’s your favourite anecdote from ‘Am I black enough for you?’

In the original version, there’s a story around when I was in primary school and being harassed on the way home from school by bullies. I was sad and upset, and scared actually, because they were calling me all these racist names. I was trying to understand, at the age of five, and going home crying. Then my mother said, I was brown because I was kissed by the sun. I’ve never forgotten that. Those days really shaped who I am, and they drove me to do the work that I do today.

In the updated edition I would say, writing about my journey as a runner. I ran my first marathon at the age of 49 (Uluru!) and went on to run the New York Marathon the same year. When recording the audio version of the book I was quite emotional, particularly around running the New York Marathon, crossing the line with the Aboriginal flag. Runners especially will understand the power that crossing a line can bring to you as an individual.

What’s the importance and message behind the titular question of ‘Am I black enough for you’?

‘Am I black enough for you?’ is, of course, a rhetorical question, although when the first edition came out, I did receive emails from people telling me ‘No, you’re not.’ The title is aimed at the reader. It’s asking them to look within their own potential prejudice. They’re looking at me on the cover, and I may not look how they expect an Aboriginal person to look.

It’s asking them to look at their own pre-conceived ideas of who they think an Aboriginal person is, how they may have their own prescription for what we look like, where we live, or whether or not we’re excellent in our chosen fields.

I really hope that’s what non-Indigenous readers take away from the work. That they understand the way they imagine us to be is not necessarily the way we have to be, or we are. That they understand that we have the right to define ourselves.

I think the title may be challenging to some people, and that’s okay as well! We want to be challenged as readers.

What’s one message you hope to convey to young Indigenous readers struggling to define themselves?

It’s not a race. Life is a series of journeys. There are people around you who will always want to help you, you just need to ask. And you don’t owe anybody an answer. If somebody challenges you or asks you a question about your identity, unless it’s someone you want to sit down and have a conversation with, you don’t owe them an answer. That’s something I didn’t learn until really later in life; you don’t have to respond to those challenges.

Learn more about meeting Anita Heiss at anu.edu.au/events

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