A relative of a Victorian Labor candidate who has described herself as a "proud Yorta Yorta woman" has said their family has no Indigenous ancestry and has never identified as Aboriginal.

Key points:
Labor candidate for Richmond Lauren O'Dwyer has described herself as "a proud Yorta Yorta woman"
A member of Ms O'Dwyer’s family says they have never identified as Aboriginal
Yorta Yorta community members say Ms O'Dwyer has failed to engage with the Yorta Yorta Nation Aboriginal Corporation and the Elders Council
Lauren O'Dwyer is running for election in the battleground seat of Richmond in Melbourne's inner north at this weekend's state election.

The ABC understands Ms O'Dwyer said her Indigenous heritage comes from her great-grandfather, Graham Berry.

However Mr Berry's daughter, Joan Keele, has told the ABC her father was not Aboriginal and never identified as Indigenous.

"My father was not … Aboriginal. His father was born in Swan Hill and his mother was born in Richmond," Ms Keele said.  "So he's nowhere near Yorta Yorta country.  We had a good relationship. We could chat about anything and everything, but [he] never, ever mentioned that."
ABC


Sooooo.... would O'Dwyer - associate director of first nations foundations -  be eligible to be elected to the voice?  Have a look and see the power of self-identifying.....

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-11-21/lauren-odwyer-labor-candidate-aboriginal-...

She must be Aboriginal on the Bruce Pascie side of her family, what? 

Saw on Twitter today that the Nationals have come out against The Voice referendum.

First political party to officially declare their opposition to it?

I wonder if the Libs will also take that stance?

Bobby. wrote on Nov 28^th, 2022 at 1:44pm:


You are making Frank's mistake.

The voice wants to close the gap, not perpetuate it.

...regardless of what nonsense 'the voice' (other than Noel Pearson's voice) will come up with, in the usual misguided policies to close the gap.

Bobby. wrote on Nov 28^th, 2022 at 2:03pm:


The fact is there are about 300,000 (real) blacks in Oz, many of whom are living in 3rd world conditions.

As a nation we MUST deal with this, brushing the problem aside is not an option. 

Bobby. wrote on Nov 28^th, 2022 at 2:03pm:


The fact is there are about 300,000 (real) blacks in Oz, many of whom are living in 3rd world conditions.

As a nation we MUST deal with this, brushing the problem aside is not an option. 

https://media.gab.com/system/media_attachments/files/037/670/439/original/55ac22...

thegreatdivide wrote on Nov 28^th, 2022 at 2:19pm:


That is not the issue here - the issue here is whether or not they should have a separate voice to Parliament enshrined in the constitution. Try to stick with that for a while, would you?

All their other issues are just long term window dressing in this discussion.  Take them up elsewhere, you are clogging up discussion of this voice nonsense.

Let them fix their own problems like everyone else has to.