Negotiating university ‘equity’ from Indigenous standpoints: a shaky bridge

Abstract

Indigenous presence in the Australian university is a relatively recent phenomenon, initially framed by policies of equity that were, and continue to be, problematic in their assumptions – what they say and don’t say – about cultural difference, justice, sovereignty and more. From the lead author’s Aboriginal standpoint, the paper analyses the repercussions of ‘equity’ thinking that have intersected with Indigenous experiences of higher education activity in Australia, covering the range of aspects of university life and work: staffing, teaching, curriculum, governance, research and community engagement. The paper critiques how dominant notions of ‘equity’ subordinate or cannibalise possibilities for what higher education could mean for Indigenous peoples; and it gestures towards what might emerge from a standpoint of Indigenous agency to re-imagine the university.

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