A day of community connecting and talking

BREAKFAST in the leafy surrounds of the Barkly Square courtyard will be the perfect way to start session one of the African Australians in Ballarat Series.

Run by the Ballarat African Association the day-long session will cover a variety of topics.

Dr Michael Akindeju, President of the association, said with a full day of lectures and presentations planned, breakfast will get the day underway.

“People relax when sharing a meal, it will give the community a chance to meet each other and become engaged,” he said.

The theme of social connectedness will be the focus of the event.

Dr Akindeju said the association wants attendees to go beyond the us versus them way of thinking.

“We want to change the paradigm and discussions around discrimination,” he said. “Not necessarily against African Australians but against anyone that the community considers is different from them.

“We call it non-othering.

“We are fortunate to have Dr Hyacinth Udah, from Griffith University in Queensland, who specialises in identity, othering and belonging as one of our key speakers.”

Democracy is another topic which will feature on the program.

Dr Akindeju said unfortunately some of the members do not see the electoral process as critical.

“We want to have them all to have a good critical say in the political landscape,” he said.

To that end there will be a presentation from the Victorian Electoral Commission to bring members up to date with the importance of their vote.

Session one of the African Australians in Ballarat Series is at Barkly Square lecture theatre, 25 Barkly Street, Ballarat, on Saturday, 30 November.

Breakfast is at 10am with the presentations running from 11am to 4pm. A donation of $5 will cover breakfast, lunch and the lectures.

For more information email [email protected].