National NAIDOC Committee postpones NAIDOC Week 2020 

The National NAIDOC Committee has decided to postpone NAIDOC Week 2020 until 8th to 15th November due to the impacts of Coronavirus and associated restrictions. Originally scheduled to take place in Alice Springs from 5th to 12th July the event has been postponed in the interest of safety for communities.

This year’s national theme is: “Always Was, Always Will Be”.

Having taken on-board the advice from the Federal Government, health experts, key partners and from leading national Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health organisations, the Committee advise “we all believe that an escalating COVID-19 crisis as we head into winter would have disastrous impacts on our mob - especially for our elders and those in our communities with chronic health issues.”

The nomination process for the National NAIDOC Awards 2020 has been suspended along with the announcement of the winner of the poster competition until further notice. The 2020 NAIDOC Local Grants Round has also been closed until further notice.

The Victorian NAIDOC Committee have also decided to postpone their events to be held in line with the National NAIDOC Week in November and advise “we do feel it is important to check-in and create a space to come together as best we can during these times and make sure that we don’t miss this opportunity to celebrate Aboriginal Communities, Histories and Cultures.

“Therefore, we are excited to announce that we will be partnering with Aboriginal Victoria, 3KND, Arts Centre Melbourne, VACCHO and Victoria Together for an online concert. This online concert will be streamed on Saturday 11th July and will feature some well-known Aboriginal musicians and entertainers, stay tuned for further information.

For more information and updates go to https://www.naidoc.org.au/ and vicnaidoc.com