The voice of Country: our obligation and responsibility to listen

Our languages were gifted to us by our ancestors. Across the continent colonially referred to as Australia, there are more than 250 different Indigenous languages and 800 dialects. Colonialism has inflicted unimaginable harms on Indigenous peoples, Country and cultural practices, and including our languages. Through violent regulation and forced Christianisation, our ancestors struggled to speak and maintain our languages. Many were forced to only speak English, and to survive the brutality, some languages were no longer spoken regularly or at all. Today, it is safer for us to speak our languages, and as a result there are global movements of Indigenous communities revitalising language. Our ancestors rejoice as our languages are again spoken on Country. For many communities, revitalising language through historical written documents and audio recordings of Elders is the first step in developing a community language programme. Indigenous people have a long and difficult history with the settler education system across this continent. Moving from community language programmes to the settler education setting can seem daunting. Teaching our languages in the formal setting comes with many considerations. This chapter examines community obligation and responsibility to bring language and voice back to Country while still negotiating the ongoing settler colonial regime.