The trees have no tongues

(2019)

The Trees Have No Tongues reveals the traces of Aboriginal women lost to the orders of colonial white supremacy. It speaks to thousands of years of Aboriginal cultural practices dismantled by Aboriginal Mission Stations throughout the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These institutions employed brutal assimilation methods, including domestic slavery, racial segregation, and the banning of cultural traditions essential to Indigenous life. Established by colonial-settler authorities, they aimed to erase Aboriginal identities and forcibly assimilate people into Western society. The trauma they inflicted tore families apart and left deep psychological and emotional scars. The heaviness of these women’s spirits marks the places they touched, leaving behind remnants of stories rooted in bare survival.

This series speaks deeply to my great-great-grandmother, who was forced into domestic slavery as a child. The wounds she endured did not end with her; they bled through her life and into the lives of her children, including my great-grandmother, grandmother, and mother. Their stories of survival and resilience ripple through generations, carrying both the weight of trauma and the strength of endurance.

The title, The Trees Have No Tongues, reflects the silent witnesses of these histories, carrying the weight of untold stories and unspoken grief. These trees, the women themselves, stand as quiet reminders of lives lived under oppression.

Through The Trees Have No Tongues, we confront the haunting legacy of domestic slavery endured by Aboriginal women. Forced into servitude within colonial households, they faced unimaginable hardships under oppressive conditions, stripped of autonomy and dignity. Yet even in these brutal circumstances, their resilience and strength endured. Their stories, carried forward by descendants like myself, testify not only to survival but to a continuing spirit of resistance.

This history extends beyond the past. The legacy of these wounds still influences ongoing efforts for cultural preservation, justice, and healing within Aboriginal communities today. The Trees Have No Tongues urges us to witness and remember, giving voice to those silenced and honouring the enduring strength of Aboriginal women’s lives.