Core Epistemology Of Indigenous Culture

The core epistemology of Indigenous culture is based in the notion of country. Contrasting this, is the axiology of the colonial framework in representing itself the land. In its purest form, non-Indigenous conceptions of land were imposed through invasion. “Invasion requires the invader to justify his actions not to the invaded, but to himself” (Pascoe 178). Justification of invasion within the colonial framework has been represented in the landscape through numerous declarations, namely through the assertion of terra nullius over the land and its inhabitants. This motion perpetuates and underlies the fact that “land has always been at the centre of conflict between black and white Australians” (Reynolds 133-167). Furthermore, the doctrine

of terra nullius affirmed the colonial representation of the land and establishes the basis of violence and harm that is suffered by Indigenous people. Consequently, the very nature of colonial actions deprived Indigenous Australians of their landscapes, existing social structures and their belonging to country (Watson 99). This is also achieved through the use of language to disseminate the dominant discourse – the method of naming significant landmarks in the landscape, such as buildings preserves this. To illustrate this, the University of Melbourne was petitioned to change the name of one of their buildings; the Peter Hall building was formerly known as Richard Berry. Berry was an academic who actively supported eugenics and often utilised Indigenous bodies for his experiments (Dobbin Thomas 2017). This displays that through the naming of the landscape, the colonial discourse is perpetuated and contributes to the continuing and oppressive nature of the colonial legacy in the land.