North Brisbane community shows the way in race relations Callum Clayton-Dixon
nganyaywana
Aboriginal, Islander, African & White – the ethnically diverse community of Stafford in north Brisbane came together on Saturday in a show of support for the family of the 15-year-old local boy who was killed in a tragic car accident on two weeks ago. 16-year-old Trinity Georgetown, a student at Everton Park State High School, was a friend of the deceased. The young First Nations man said the gathering helped to “bring more of an understanding the situation and made sure everyone is calm about what happened”. A crowd converged on Boles Street Park to say their goodbyes to Lachlan Cain, with both the Tongan and Aboriginal community paying respect with traditional ceremony. Trinity called Boles St Park “the heart of Stafford”. “It’s good to see everybody coming together,” he said. Despite the solemn nature of the event, there was also an element of optimism in how the community had united irrespective of ethnicity or creed. It was quite a contrast to so-called ‘race riots’ in Logan City earlier this year. Tongan community leader Elma Hiddleston believes this to be “a new beginning” and that it was very rare for the community to come together in this way. “He [Lachlan] didn’t die for nothing,” said Ms Hiddleston, a resident of Stafford for more than four decades. “He has brought us all together.” According to Ms Hiddleston, community gatherings like this will now be taking place on a regular basis. “We’ll all come here once or twice a month and have a barbeque. It will be a good way to get all the children to come closer together.” June 11, 2013
Members of the Stafford community - African, Islander, Aboriginal & White - gathered in Boles Street Park to show support for the family of a 15-year-old local boy who was killed in a tragic car accident on May 29. IMAGES: Callum Clayton-Dixon
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