The land-grab from indigenous peoples continue, even in nations one would think it has been fully accomplished but every square metre is demanded by those who seek to make a profit, particularly in prime real estate.
40 years since a group of idealistic, young Aboriginal men and women got fed up with living in "slums and pig sties" and formed a housing association in the heart of Sydney, called The Block. he organisation, which started in 1973 with a grant from the Whitlam government to cover the cost of 41 terrace houses for Sydney's growing and dispossessed urban Indigenous population, has mutated into a private company, the modern-day Aboriginal Housing Company headed by Mick Mundine, with plans to soon build a residential and commercial complex. The first stage includes a $70 million office and retail development. The company has a membership capped at 100 and says it cannot afford to provide housing for Aboriginal people on The Block and has erected "private property" signs. Mundine, the long- standing chief executive, throws up his hands and says it is the government's responsibility to provide affordable housing for the Aboriginal community. A source from the former NSW Labor government said that money had been withheld from re-building affordable homes in The Block would create a new urban slum with major crime and drug problems.
They're called the grandmothers and the Block has been their home for generations. Three weeks ago, the grandmothers pitched a tent embassy under the shadows of towering apartments to oppose the Aboriginal Housing Company's plans to redevelop the area into student accommodation. On Saturday, 200 more people joined them for a subdued protest to campaign for affordable housing. Placards read "always was, always will be Aboriginal land" and "this is not private land"
Kay Hookey grew up in number 98. “We were against the land being sold because it's no one's land, it belongs to the community."
From here
40 years since a group of idealistic, young Aboriginal men and women got fed up with living in "slums and pig sties" and formed a housing association in the heart of Sydney, called The Block. he organisation, which started in 1973 with a grant from the Whitlam government to cover the cost of 41 terrace houses for Sydney's growing and dispossessed urban Indigenous population, has mutated into a private company, the modern-day Aboriginal Housing Company headed by Mick Mundine, with plans to soon build a residential and commercial complex. The first stage includes a $70 million office and retail development. The company has a membership capped at 100 and says it cannot afford to provide housing for Aboriginal people on The Block and has erected "private property" signs. Mundine, the long- standing chief executive, throws up his hands and says it is the government's responsibility to provide affordable housing for the Aboriginal community. A source from the former NSW Labor government said that money had been withheld from re-building affordable homes in The Block would create a new urban slum with major crime and drug problems.
They're called the grandmothers and the Block has been their home for generations. Three weeks ago, the grandmothers pitched a tent embassy under the shadows of towering apartments to oppose the Aboriginal Housing Company's plans to redevelop the area into student accommodation. On Saturday, 200 more people joined them for a subdued protest to campaign for affordable housing. Placards read "always was, always will be Aboriginal land" and "this is not private land"
Kay Hookey grew up in number 98. “We were against the land being sold because it's no one's land, it belongs to the community."
From here
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