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https://theconversation.com/friday-essay-like-a-detective-examining-a-crime-scene-natalie-harkin-charts-the-intimate-history-of-aboriginal-domestic-service-261657>
"I dip in and out, lured to new depths of surveillance data stirring on
unthinkable currents. There are no limits to these domestic service files. No
solid foundation to ultimately reach or push back and spring up from: just
murky beginnings and slick surfaces. I navigate slowly through thousands of
carefully crafted handwritten and typed letters and file notes and do my best
to make sense of the chaos.
This is private, intimate reading, and these young women and girls will not let
me rest. Their voices penetrate every membrane of every cell in my body until I
recognise them as my own, and like proper good nannas and aunties, they are not
letting me off the hook. Their apron linen is pressed against my skin, and I
see their dust rise and float on shards of light. My hands are red-raw and my
back aches.
This is my uncanny triggering. A persistent prickling of fine hair at the nape
of my neck, all fight-flight and fury, and haunted into action.
There are generations of containment in these files. Our women and girls, our
parents, grandparents and great-grandparents. The names are familiar, and my
family are represented in these files too. They are all calling me back and
pushing me forward and I have no choice but to respond."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
