Listen JOINT MEDIA RELEASE Monday 11 March 2024 Multiple government sources have indicated off the record that a proposal to introduce punitive law and order measures – including changes to bail laws that will result in more children going to jail – may be considered as early as this week. “Changes to bail laws that lock more children up is a short-term political stunt that won’t fix a thing on the ground in communities,” Karly
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Listen  The Productivity Commission has publicly released its review on Government progress under the National Closing the Gap Agreement (the Review). FPDN welcomes the thoroughness of the Productivity Commission’s research and investigations. FPDN would like to thank the Presiding Commissioners, Natalie Siegel-Brown and Romlie Mokak, for their commitment to truth-telling and elevating First Nations perspectives. The Review has observed that state and federal governments are not fully honouring the many commitments that were made to
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Listen  Today, Minister Bill Shorten handed down a 329-page report into the National Disability Insurance Scheme Review (NDIS) which made 26 recommendations and 139 “supporting actions” which are to be implemented over a five-year period.  At the heart of The Report is a strong emphasis on establishing “foundational supports” for people with disability who are not yet on the scheme and a commitment to ensuring the NDIS is much more inclusive.  FPDN CEO, Damian Griffis
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Listen  With the release of the final report following the independent review of the National Disability Insurance Scheme, people with disability, families, supporters, and disability representative organisations, disabled peoples’ organisations and disability advocacy organisations have united in calling on all levels of government to take action to deliver equitable, fair, just and sufficient support for all people with disability. The NDIS delivers lifesaving and life changing supports for over 600,000 people with disability across Australia.
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Listen What is the review? The review will look at how the National Disability Insurance Scheme can do better The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) Review looked at the design, operations and sustainability of the NDIS. It will also look at ways to make the market and workforce more responsive, supportive and sustainable. FPDN believes the NDIS can do better and welcomes the review FPDN has always advocated for a more inclusive NDIS. FPDN has
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Listen A delicious salad that is sweet and sour and spicy, the best thing about this recipe is that its totally healthy and packed with heaps of super foods that will keep you feeling good through the day. EQUIPMENT 1 Mixing Bowls 1 Pan 1 Tongs 1 Table Spoon 1 sharp knife INGREDIENTS 1 tbsp olive oil 100 grams diced sweet potato 100 grams diced pumkin 2 fillets kangaroo rump 50 grams sliced onion 250
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Listen   We have compiled a list of First Nations organisations that you can donate to which support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children across a range of issues.  Bubup Wilam  Bubup Wilam, meaning “Children’s Place” in Woi Wurrung language, is an Aboriginal Community Controlled Education, Health and Wellbeing organisation. Bubup Wilam is a safe place for our children and families and is a community gathering place where everyone can come and be together. The
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Listen  Spicy Kangaroo with a Super Food Salad A delicious salad that is sweet and sour and spicy, the best thing about this recipe is that its totally healthy and packed with heaps of super foods that will keep you feeling good through the day. Print Recipe Pin Recipe Prep Time 10 minutes minsCook Time 12 minutes mins Cuisine Bushfood, First Nations Servings 2 peopleCalories 80 kcal Equipment1 Mixing Bowls1 Pan1 Tongs1 Table Spoon1 sharp
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Listen By Kiara Davies Warning: Aboriginal and Torres Islander People are warned that the following article contains text, images and video of First Peoples who have died.  It’s been less than three weeks since the Australian public rejected our voice. It has been less than three weeks since this country rejected to acknowledge the 60,000 years of history. And in the time since this country rejected us, we are reminded of how the racism in
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Listen  Thank you for the opportunity to appear before the committee. My name is Damian Griffis, I am a descendant of the Worimi people of the Wallamba Valley in NSW and the CEO of the First Peoples Disability Network, a position I have held for the past 20 years.  I am joined by Dr Talia Avrahamzon, Strategic Partnerships, Policy and Impact Manager. The First Peoples Disability Network (FPDN) is the national peak organisation of and
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ALT TEXT: Large white text saying Many First Nations people with disability face the double disadvantage of racism and ableism. Small white text attributing quote to Damian Griffis First Peoples Disability Network CEO.
Listen By Kiara Davies Today marks the anniversary of The Racial Discrimination Act 1975. It is important to understand your rights under this act and how discrimination causes harm on an intersectional framework. Breaking down the meaning of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 Discrimination: Discrimination is when someone or a group of people are treated unfairly due to a factor that makes them different. Racial: In the act the term racial refers to somebody’s race,
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Listen     22 October 2023 To the Prime Minister and every Member of the House of Representatives and the Senate of the Commonwealth Parliament This is an open letter which will be circulated to the Australian public and media. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have observed a week of silence across Australia since the outcome of the Referendum last Saturday 14 October 2023. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags have flown half-mast and
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ListenWe write this letter to people across Australia. We are your neighbours, friends, family and colleagues. We represent more than 20% of the population and together as a disability community, we unite in support of a First Nations Voice to Parliament. We believe Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples know their communities best and can guide the answers that will enable us to celebrate and assure the continuation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
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Listen UNSW Sydney will launch a new centre to improve health outcomes for people with intellectual disability ensuring better access to quality, timely, and comprehensive care. The Centre is a response to the significant health disadvantage experienced by people with intellectual disability.   Led by UNSW Professor Julian Trollor from the School of Clinical Medicine, the Centre will support delivery of the Australian Government’s National Roadmap for Improving the Health of People with Intellectual Disability. “It’s time to turn our
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ListenThe release of the final report of the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability is a huge landmark for the disability community in Australia. It’s the start of our journey to an inclusive future. Today, however, we choose to hold space for our community’s trauma and grief, in the spirit of healing and restorative justice. Since 2019, the Disability Royal Commission (DRC) has held 32 public hearings with evidence
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ListenThe watch house amendments, rushed through last Thursday with no oversight from an independent parliamentary committee, show blatant disregard for several international laws and will have swift and severe detrimental impacts for children, particularly First Nations children. Queensland’s new watch house laws categorically violate children’s rights and further exacerbate the human rights emergency in Queensland’s already broken youth justice system that disproportionately affects Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. Although around 8% of 10-17 year
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ListenBy Darcy Hytt Happy NAIDOC Week, you mob! At FPDN, we celebrate the diversity of First Nations cultures and histories every day. We are working towards a just and equal future for First Peoples with disability. Our work centres principles of respect, empowerment, inclusion, and access. This NAIDOC Week, we would like to pay our respects to our d/Deaf and disabled community members. We acknowledge community members past and present, including our Elders and Ancestors.
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ListenToday,  Ms Kay Sadler, the Chairperson of First Peoples Disability Network Australia submitted an Intervention to Conference on the Conference of Governments on the Conventions of the Rights of Disabled People (CRD). The focus of the intervention is a request to establish a formal mechanism for Indigenous people with disabilities through CRD. “A formal mechanism for Indigenous peoples with disabilities will shine a spotlight on the intersectional issues our communities face, who are often the
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ListenFood security is a critical issue for many First Peoples with disabilities in Australia. These individuals face significant barriers to accessing healthy and nutritious food, which can have serious consequences for their health and well-being. According to a report by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, First Peoples with disabilities are more likely to experience food insecurity than the general population. This is due to a range of factors, including poverty, limited access to transportation, and
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ListenAccessibility is also fundamental to the principles of equal rights and social inclusion. It ensures that people with a wide range of disabilities, including visual, auditory, cognitive, and motor disabilities, can access and navigate websites, web applications, and other online content. Web accessibility is not just important for people with disabilities. It can also benefit older people with age-related impairments, people with temporary injuries, or people using older devices. Moreover, making a website accessible can
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Listen By Luke Briscoe, FPDN Staff member Today the nation stops to pay tribute to the ANZACs but for some Indigenous Australians we also pay tribute to the Forgotten ANZACs who returned to a nation that rejected them and their efforts.  Recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through the Voice to Parliament would give our Indigenous ANZACs real recognition and respect they deserve.  FPDN acknowledges all our people who fought for their Country
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Listen A former North Queensland Cowboys and Gold Coast Titans player has been named the winner of the First Peoples Disability Network (FPDN) National Footprint art project competition. Dharrpa Warra and Thitharr Warra Man Brenton Bowen from the Guugu Yimithirr speaking people of Hope Vale won the prize for his artwork titled ‘safe journey’. Brenton’s artist name ‘Thamal-Dilmbu’ means ‘footprints’ in his Guugu Yimithirr language. FPDN’s National Footprint project was designed to strengthen the representation
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ListenThe First Peoples Disability Network (FPDN) says it is imperative that the reforms of the NDIS announced by Minister Bill Shorten today at the National Press Club address the causes of the drastic under-representation of First Nations people with disabilities who participate in the scheme. FPDN CEO Damian Griffis, a descendent of the Worimi people, said the NDIS was a critical element in ensuring First Nations people with disabilities thrive, not just survive. “We estimate
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ListenThere is so much happening at FPDN right now as we work towards that goal that we wanted to update you on some of it. SUPPORT OUR WORK First Nations Advisory Council to the NDIA formed FPDN has entered into a partnership with the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) to co-design a new NDIS First Nations Strategy and action plan. FPDN CEO Damian Griffis said this partnership will integrate our long-standing grassroots knowledge and advocacy
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ListenThe first ever podcast dedicated to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living with disabilities will be released this Thursday 16 March, on Closing the Gap Day. Created by the First Peoples Disability Network (FPDN), “Yarning Disability” is hosted by FPDN Advocate and experienced radio host, Bernard Namok, a proud St Paul, Badu, and Erub Torres Strait Islander man with his own lived experiences with disability. Each episode of Yarning Disability will showcase the story
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ListenWith the public hearing commencing in Perth (Boorloo) today, First Peoples Disability Network (FPDN) CEO Mr Damian Griffis has again called on the Royal Commission to establish a dedicated hearing into the overrepresentation and indefinite detention of First Nations people with disability in the criminal justice system. “Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are 14 times more likely to be imprisoned, with one third reporting a disability, 50% reporting a history of psychosocial disability, and
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ListenMEDIA RELEASE 16 June 2022 Source: Disabled Peoples Organisations Australia The Australian Civil Society Delegation is currently in New York attending the 15th Conference of States Parties (COSP) to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). Overnight, the delegation has learned that the opening statement from Public Hearing 24 on inclusive education has been released by the DRC. In this comment, Chair Sackville referred to advocacy for accepted international human rights principles (including supported
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ListenBy Indigenous communities reporter Nakari Thorpe Mon 21 Feb 2022 Read the full article on the ABC website June Riemer said incarceration rates are particularly high because many Indigenous people in prison across the state live with a disability, mostly undiagnosed. The Gumbaynggirr and Dunghutti woman is the deputy chief executive of the First Peoples Disability Network (FPDN) created in 2010 to advocate on behalf of Indigenous people living with disability. “It’s not just a wheelchair,
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ListenFirst people with disability today told the Disability Royal Commission that it is time for action to make disability rights real. “It’s been more than a decade since Australia signed the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, yet for First People with disability, we are still not included in the community,” said Damian Griffs, CEO, First Peoples Disability Network (FPDN). “Today we told the Disability Royal Commission about how many First People with
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ListenFPDN congratulates Gumbaynggirr Dunghutti woman and Deputy CEO June Riemer on her nomination for 2022 Australian of the Year, NSW. “We are very proud to hear of June’s nomination in recognition of her long advocacy for the rights of First Nations people with disability. She joins a long line of powerful advocates for our people with disability who continue to speak up on behalf of First Nations people with disability,” says FPDN CEO Damian Griffis.
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ListenFPDN CEO Damian Griffis made a statement last night to The 26th UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow. Damian spoke to the impact of climate change on First Peoples of Australia’s ongoing connection to country and culture and the catastrophic consequences climate change presents for First Peoples with disabilities. You can read Damian’s statement in full below. My name is Damian Griffis I am a proud descendant of the Worimi and Biripi people of the Wallamba
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ListenFirst Peoples Disability Network (FPDN) gave evidence to the Senate Community Affairs inquiry into the purpose, intent and adequacy of the Disability Support Pension (DSP). FPDN CEO Damian Griffis and Deputy CEO June Riemer presented a range of key recommendations for the initiative which would improve its applicability to those within the Indigenous community who live with disabilities. The recommendations included a review of income levels and costs for those with disabilities and the removal of barriers such as
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ListenThe Disability Royal Commission has released a draft report calling the vaccine rollout for peoples living with disability as “seriously deficient”. The Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability released the draft report which details 17 findings and 7 recommendations. It described the rollout as “seriously deficient”, particularly for people within residential disability settings and disability support workers. Whilst the report recognises the issues that faced the Department of Health in
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ListenClick play to listen to the interview on Focus ABC with Larissa Behrendt and Damian Griffis. Source: Focus – ABC Radio Duration: 1hr. The interview with Damian starts at 38mins. Broadcast: Tue 17 Aug 2021, 10:00am
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ListenThe next hearing of the Disability Royal Commission will look at criminal justice and the NDIS. This is a follow up from the hearing in February 2021, and will be asking questions of different state and territory governments, as well as the NDIS. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with disability are overrepresented in the criminal justice system. This is often the direct result of the criminalisation of disability and distress. A variety of systems,
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Listen As the deputy CEO of the First Peoples Disability Network, Gumbaynggirr Dunghutti woman June Riemer is fighting for a fairer world for Indigenous Australians with disability. She’s this week’s Changemaker.   First Peoples with disability and their families are among the most disadvantaged and disempowered members of the Australian community, with research showing that Aboriginal people with disability are twice as likely to be discriminated against than their non-Aboriginal counterparts. It’s an issue that June Riemer
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Listen FPDN Deputy CEO June Riemer and Associate Professor Karen Soldatic, Western Sydney University, publish Australian Case Study in International Minority Rights report. Minority Rights Group International has launched their annual report on the impact of COVID-19 on the world’s most marginalised communities  The report ‘Minority and Indigenous Trends 2021, Lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic’ focuses on minority and Indigenous communities and their experiences during COVID-19 and includes case studies from across the world. ‘The
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Listen Independent Assessments Inquiry Submission Joint Standing Committee on the National Disability Insurance Scheme First Peoples Disability Network opposes the introduction of independent assessments as outlined by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA). These proposals are causing a great deal of distress in our communities. We believe the current reforms need to stop immediately, and that the NDIA needs to urgently work to repair trust with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with disability. We
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Listen We welcome reports that NDIS Minister Linda Reynolds will pause a plan to force peoplw with disability to submit to compulsory assessments to access support, but want to see much more detail about what that means for the future of the NDIS. There has been widespread opposition to the proposed model from people with disability, our families and community, and it is heartening the new Minister has listened to those concerns. A privatised assessment
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ListenA range of new accessible, culturally appropriate resources for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with disability have been released today by the peak body First Peoples Disability Network. “Our community urgently needs information about the vaccine, so we have created a poster with culturally relevant information and artwork to let people know about what is happening and why,” said Damian Griffis, CEO of First Peoples Disability Network (FPDN). “During the pandemic, Aboriginal and Torres
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ListenThe crisis of violence and abuse of First Peoples with disability must be urgently addressed by an extension of the Disability Royal Commission. “I am very concerned that the full extension to the Disability Royal Commission has not yet been granted, and I urge Prime Minister Scott Morrison to intervene now,” said Damian Griffis, CEO, First Peoples Disability Network. “We wrote to the acting Attorney-General Senator Cash two weeks ago, outlining why our communities have
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ListenFPDN Deputy CEO and Gumbaynggirr Dunghutti woman June Riemer was recently honoured for her life’s work, dedicated to creating systemic change to improve the lives of First Peoples with disability, as this year’s winner of the NSW Aboriginal Woman of the Year Award. And she won! We are so proud of @JuneRiemer, our Deputy CEO, for being awarded the NSW Aboriginal Woman of the Year. pic.twitter.com/nlHjseKwme — FPDN Australia (@FPDNAus) March 10, 2021 A true
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Listen Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are 14 times more likely to be imprisoned than the non-Indigenous population  The disability royal commission needs a dedicated First Nations hearing to investigate the overrepresentation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the criminal justice system, Indigenous leaders say. A public hearing is currently underway examining the experiences of people with cognitive disability in the criminal justice system, and the plight of First Nations people with
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Listen16 February 2021 Media Release The overrepresentation of First Nations People with cognitive disability in the criminal justice system warrants own Disability Royal Commission Hearing   People with cognitive disability will share their experiences with the criminal justice system at the Disability Royal Commission hearing in Brisbane starting today. First Peoples Disability Network Australia (FPDN) are calling for the Disability Royal Commission to establish a dedicated First Nations hearing to investigate the overrepresentation and indefinite
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ListenFPDN Deputy CEO June Riemer joined 3CR Community Radio this morning to discuss the Disability Royal Commission from a First Nations perspective, focusing on the intersection between disability and child removal. Click play on the audio stream below to listen to the discussion. https://fpdn.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/FPDN-June-Riemer-on-3CR.mp3   Listen to the program on the 3CR website here  
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