‘These words are not the words of George Floyd or Eric Garner. They weren’t uttered on the streets of Minneapolis or New York. These are the final words of a 26-year-old Dunghutti man who died in a prison in south-eastern Sydney.
‘David Dungay Jr was killed when prison officers restrained him, including with handcuffs, and pushed him face down on his bed and on the floor. One officer pushed a knee into his back. All along, Dungay was screaming that he could not breathe and could be heard gasping for air.
‘Dungay’s death in custody occurred in Long Bay prison during the 2015 Christmas season. It happened a short drive from an elite university, next to affluent, waterside suburbs.
‘But his horrific death did little to pierce this white bubble of privilege. The media barely blinked. The politicians did not emerge from their holiday retreats. None of the officers involved were disciplined or called to account.
‘It is comfortable for us in Australia to throw stones at racist police violence in the United States. It is comfortable because we do not see our own glass house.’
- ‘I can’t breathe!’ Australia must look in the mirror to see our own deaths in custody »
- Australia had its own George Floyd moment, only it passed without international outrage »
- We must bear witness to black deaths in our own country »
- Australia still turns a blind eye to Aboriginal people dying in police custody »
- Explainer: what is systemic racism and institutional racism? »
- Meaningful reconciliation still seems a bridge too far for many Indigenous people, 20 years on »
- Despite 432 Indigenous deaths in custody since 1991, no one has ever been convicted. Racist silence and complicity are to blame »
- Scott Morrison says violence is not the answer: Indigenous Australians have told us what is »
- It took a death overseas to take the blinkers off here. Australia, the time has come »
- Defunding the police could bring positive change in Australia. These communities are showing the way »
- Indigenous inequality in spotlight as Australia faces reckoning on race »
- Zachary Rolfe found not guilty of murder over Kumanjayi Walker fatal shooting »
- Advocates call for urgent action after two ‘incredibly tragic’ Aboriginal deaths in custody »
- ‘Last straw’: First Nations adviser to Queensland police quits over Mareeba shooting
- Selesa Tafaifa had spent significant time in solitary confinement before altercation that led to her death, inquest hears
- Mr King yelled ‘I can’t breathe’ before he died. There was no global outcry
Instead of demonising Black Lives Matter protesters, leaders must act on their calls for racial justice
Thalia Anthony and colleagues write in The Conversation (28.7.20) that, while there has been some progress on judicial reform in Australia since Black Lives Matter protests began, structural change requires a truth-telling process and a real commitment from government for action.
‘The intensification of the Black Lives Matter movement in the US in recent months has led to radical reform and action.
‘The police officers responsible for the killing of George Floyd were all charged with serious offences, including one with second-degree murder. The city of Minneapolis voted to replace its police force with a “new system of public safety”, while other cities have slashed their police budgets.
‘The BLM and Stop First Nations Deaths in Custody protests across Australia since early June have similarly called for charges against police officers and prison guards responsible for deaths in custody, as well as an end to racialised police violence.
‘… Urgent and systemic change is required to claw back decades of extended police powers in NSW under the Law Enforcement Powers and Responsibilities Act and redress the lack of accountability for the 438 First Nations deaths in custody since 1991 and the 99 deaths investigated by the royal commission.
‘However, there are internal and external factors preventing this type of structural change.’
- Instead of demonising Black Lives Matter protesters, leaders must act on their calls for racial justice »
- What will it take for governments to recognise Australia’s justice gap is a national tragedy? »
- A friend on the outside »
- Black Lives Matter has brought a global reckoning with history. This is why the Uluru Statement is so crucial »
- Why the Black Lives Matter protests must continue: an urgent appeal by Marcia Langton »
- The 474 deaths inside: tragic toll of Indigenous deaths in custody revealed »
- Four Aboriginal deaths in custody in three weeks: is defunding police the answer? »
- We need to go beyond empty gestures if we’re going to end Aboriginal deaths in custody »
- Why is it so offensive to say ‘all lives matter’? »
- The elephants in the courtroom »
- Explainer: what is the ‘good faith’ defence thwarted by the High Court in Zachary Rolfe’s murder trial? »
- ‘The system failed us’: Aboriginal families describe what it’s like to lose loved ones in custody »
- AMA calls for governments to implement royal commission recommendations on Aboriginal deaths in custody
- Death in custody: questions raised over checks on Queensland detainee deemed a suicide risk
- Indigenous deaths in custody at record high and public perception of police worst in 10 years, report finds
- Real-time deaths in custody reporting to address ‘national shame’ of Indigenous incarceration