Alice Eather
Alice Pearl Daiguma Eather (1988 or 1989, Brisbane[1] - 4 June 2017) was a slam poet, environmental campaigner and teacher. She was an Indigenous Australian and a teacher in the Maningrida community.[2]
Eather's mother is an Aboriginal Traditional Owner Helen Djimbarrwala Willams and her father is artist and gallery-owner Michael Eather, who has European ancestors who arrived on the second fleet.[3] She was brought up and educated in Brisbane but moved to Maningrida to be the first Ndjebbana-speaking Aboriginal teacher.
In 2013 Eather had learnt that Paltar Petroleum had made an application to begin fracking.[4] Her campaign group, Protect Arnhem Land, was successful in convincing the Northern Territory government to suspend the application pending agreement with the local population; further campaigning eventually led to Paltar withdrawing the application in 2016.[4] In 2014 she was awarded the Northern Territory Young Achiever's Environment Award for her work in preventing oil exploration of Arnhem land.[2]
Her poetry was featured in an autobiographical chapter in the book Growing up Aboriginal.[3] She appeared in the ABC television programme 'The Word: Rise of the Slam Poets'.[5]
She died 4 June 2017 aged 28[1] as a result of suicide.[6]
References
- ^ a b "Vale Alice Eather: Aboriginal poet, teacher and warrior". 24 June 2017. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
- ^ a b Bardon, the National Reporting Team's Jane (10 June 2017). "The slam poet who forced big oil out of Arnhem Land". ABC News. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
- ^ a b "Growing Up Aboriginal in Australia by Anita Heiss | Black Inc". 13 January 2020. Archived from the original on 13 January 2020. Retrieved 13 January 2020.
- ^ a b Jane Bardon (9 June 2017). "Alice Eather: The slam poet who forced oil company Paltar Petroleum out of Arnhem Land". ABC News.
- ^ "The Word Rise of the Slam Poets". ABC iview. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
- ^ Petersen, Freya (18 September 2017). "Alice Eather: Anti-fracking activist's 'black dog' never left her, family says". ABC. Retrieved 13 January 2020.