Marlee Silva, a Gamilaroi and Dunghutti woman and co-founder of the Tiddas4Tiddas podcast, has long championed Indigenous female excellence. In the wake of George Floyd’s murder in America, she has since spoken out about what’s happening here in Australia – opening up about why she feels things are different with this movement, her message to anyone wanting to be a part of this change and her inspiration for founding her organisation.
“Tiddas4Tiddas started as an Instagram page that my sister and I launched because we wanted to tell stories of the amazing Aboriginal women we knew,” Silva tells Matty J and producer Ruby on Nova’s The Babble podcast. “As an adult, I could see these amazing academics, and lawyers, and doctors and media people who are Aboriginal women and they inspired me. And, in 2018 we had a NAIDOC theme that was “Because of Her, We Can”, so our women are at the forefront and as we were getting towards the end of that year, we just didn’t want to lose it.”
The Aboriginal activist also spoke on non-Indigenous Australians wanting to be part of the change.
“The biggest thing I can say is – don’t forget this moment, and don’t stop working on yourself, and always learn more, and provide space for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and other voices of colour in this country to just exist on their own,” she said. “I think that it can be really easy to just step aside and read things, and look at things, and start conversations in your own day to day life without putting the burden on of people of colour.”
As for the momentum the movement is gaining, Silva admits she’s “never seen anything like it”.
“People that I’ve never, ever seen speak about anything political – let alone about race or aboriginal deaths in custody – are speaking up and not only sharing things, but I’ve been impressed with people who are hands in the air going ‘I haven’t done better in the past and I’m going to learn and this is my turning point’. And that to me, as much as it’s such an exhausting time and there’s a lot being asked of people to have a platform like myself, that’s what gives you the energy and that’s what gives you the hope.”
