Charlotte Varcoe
MOANDIK and Meintangk elder and avid musician and artist Aunty Penny Bonney will shine a light on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander deaths in custody this weekend through her debut album in an official launch hosted at the Old Mount Gambier Gaol.
This year marks the 31st anniversary of both the Royal Commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody and the passing of Aunty Penny’s brother.
The Royal Commission was announced in August of 1987 following a growing public concern that deaths in custody of Aboriginal people were too common and poorly explained.
According to the Australian Human Rights Commission, Indigenous people in custody were 16.5 times more likely than non-indigenous people to die in custody between 1990 and 1995.
Aunty Penny said it was the anniversary alongside the death of George Floyd and the initiation of the Black Lives Matter movement which enticed her to begin the project.
The single, titled Only Brother Knows, depicts the events leading up to her brother’s passing while he was in custody under Mobilong Prison in Murray Bridge.
“My brother got very sick in custody and the night of his passing he was deteriorating and none of the doctors knew what was wrong with him,” Aunty Penny said.
“Instead of taking him straight from the prison to the Royal Adelaide Hospital, he was taken to a Murray Bridge Clinic where he was diagnosed with pneumonia.
“Eventually he was taken to the Royal Adelaide Hospital but died on the way and it turned out it was heart failure.”
Aunty Penny said it was these chain of events which led her to host the event.
“The song and the event is about bringing awareness to the issue and providing a place of healing for others who have experienced the same thing,” she said.
“There is something wrong with the system and with the government and in this country because our people, young Aboriginal people, are dying in custody and it is absolutely wrong.
“What I believe needs to happen is the government needs to step up and tell the world the true history of Australia and what happened.
“We need to educate what went wrong because otherwise we will have another generation of people not knowing the real truth and oppress those who suffered.”
Aunty Penny said she was excited to launch the CD and bring family and friends together in a moment of healing.
“We are all hoping it will also spark a conversation and then hopefully down the track we can do something on a regular basis to help bring people together,” she said.
“The younger generation of First Nations people need to try their hardest to stay out of lock up because if they get locked up we don’t know what may happen to them.”
Aunty Penny will host her event alongside Bonnie May Saunders, Tyrell Bonney, Rebecca Willis, Bianca Hendy, Christy and Jason Wallace, and Louise Adams throughout the evening.
CDs will also be available for purchase on the night alongside t-shirts depicting the number of Aboriginal deaths in custody.
Tickets are available for purchase through the Old Mount Gambier Gaol with the event kicking off at 5pm.
