Indigenous Artist Caroline Oakley Strives For Language Recognition

A Towradgi artist is leading a push for traditional Indigenous language to be incorporated on signage around the Illawarra.

Caroline Oakley, the winner of last week’s Lord Mayor’s Illawarra and South Coast Aboriginal Art Award, said while she felt winning the award was a step forward in reconciliation and acknowledgment, she wanted to see further recognition of her people.

“I would like to be able to push that further because sadly there’s been too much discourse and a divide in the community … but we should all be working together as one mob,” she said.

Ms Oakley suggested signage incorporating both English and Indigenous names of places.

Wollongong Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery said the council was striving to recognise the land’s heritage.

“Anything we can do to facilitate people’s awareness of the continuous Aboriginal occupation of our part of the world, I think it is really something we can look at,” he said.

He noted several locations around the city, such as Sandon Point, which were officially recognised, but said anything else put to the council would be followed up.