SIENNA BROWN
A Symposium on Caribbean Culture in Australia
Western Sydney University, Parramatta City Campus, May 3, 2024
Building on pioneering efforts to recover the long history of Caribbean people in Australia and to understand movements of people between the regions, Callaloo & Wattleseed focuses for the first time squarely on the cultural contributions of Caribbean Australians. Caribbean artists from various fields will consider through the prism of their practice questions like: do Caribbean artists work within a ‘diaspora’ or ‘community’ in Australia? Or do their experiences tend to be more isolated, on the one hand, or placed into broader groups, such as the global African or South Asian diasporas, on the other? How have Caribbean artists in Australia navigated the experience of being, in many cases, part of minoritized racial groups? What have been the connections and relations between Caribbean and First Nations people? How do the experiences of Caribbean artists compare with those who have emigrated to other parts of the world?
Caribbean Australian Podcast Series
I’m thrilled to announce Dr Ben Etherington and I in partnership with Impact Studios (UTS) and the Writing and Society Research Centre (WSU) will be co-producing a podcast series about Caribbean Lives in Australia. From big names like champion boxer Peter Jackson and cabaret star Nellie Small to the untold stories of gentleman activist Gilbert Robertson Esquire, and merchant Susannah Andrews. For Impact Studios, we’ll be working with Sarah Gilbert, executive producer & Jane Curtis, senior audio producer. Stay tuned for updates!
https://impactstudios.edu.au/about-us/
https://www.westernsydney.edu.au/.../AustralianCentrePub.../
Image - Peter Jackson Australian Heavyweight Champion
I had the immense pleasure of giving a presentation for the Center for Reparation Research at the University of the West Indies. It was a highlight of my visit to Jamaica on a research trip sponsored by an ARC Development Project Grant.
My talk was then published in Jamaica's oldest newspaper - The Gleaner. As a young child growing up there, I would never have imagined this!
I spent a week at the CSA Conference on the island of St Croix. It was an amazing week of connecting with academics and historians from across the Caribbean and also those who came from places like Brazil, Germany, US, France, Mexico and South America.
I gave a paper - Immigration Belonging: the Caribbean Experience in Australia in the 19th Century.
I was honoured to be invited to be a Judge for the The WestWords/Ultimo Prize which is a new prize that aims to reveal the diversity of a contemporary Australia. Click the link to find out who the winner was!
