One group of people have decided to try and make something positive out of all this: With GOODESY is a group of Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous friends who got together with the aim of making something tangible that shows the bond between all Aussies.
The group, which includes Sam Lockwood of The Jezebels, approached designers Zac Bennet-Brook, who is of Torres Strait Islander heritage, and Matt Roden, and together, they created a shirt that everyone can wear proudly to show their support of Goodes.
Bennett-Brook said of the design:
“This painting has the little circular designs which are meeting place symbols. Through out life we meet people at different places such as work, sport games and events, through hobbies etc. and from there we form connections and relationships with people that is represented through the meeting place symbol. From those groups we make other connections in life which is represented through the large dots that connect each of the different groups/meeting places.”
Roden added:
“There’s a common theme that runs through design and education, the two fields that I work in. It’s empathy. When we’re sharing our art with the world, or helping someone understand a new concept, we have to try and understand how they might feel about the idea or situation. I don’t know how it feels to play professional sport, or to be an indigenous person in Australia, or to be jeered for your beliefs and your heritage. There is a furious, painful, and necessary conversation happening in Australia, with one side severely lacking in empathy. Adam Goodes is standing in the center of it, proud and strong, a role model to everyone, and that’s the guy I tried to capture.”
The shirts are available now from the With GOODESY website, and proceeds from the sales go towards Adam Goodes and Michael O’Loughlin‘s Go Foundation, which empowers young Indigenous Australians through education and mentioning.
At the same time as the shirt launches, YARN Australia, which attempts to build relationships between non-Indigenous Australians and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people through sharing stories, has announced a new series of public workshops.
Photo: Michael Dodge via Getty Images / With GOODESY
