June Oscar AO on her life's work and the meaning of Reconciliation

Bunuba woman and longtime justice advocate June Oscar has reflected on a lifetime of work spanning community, country and international advocacy, in a wide-ranging conversation with National Indigenous Times during Reconciliation Week. Raised in Fitzroy Crossing in the central Kimberley, Ms Oscar said her work has always been grounded in community - from women’s services and cultural programs to law, language and land. That journey eventually led her to national and global platforms, including her role as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner at the Australian Human Rights Commission, and now as head of the Wiyi Yani U Thangani Institute for First Nations Gender Justice and Equality. She speaks about carrying the voices of First Nations women, girls and gender diverse people into spaces like the United Nations, describing her role as a “conduit” for lived experience to be heard where decisions are made. Ms Oscar also reflects on her memoir, saying it was driven by a need to make visible the women whose contributions are often overlooked. With this year’s Reconciliation Week theme “All In”, Ms Oscar calls for deeper listening and genuine inclusion - particularly of remote and regional communities - and urges decision-makers to create space for First Nations people to help design the solutions that affect their lives.