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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2021-06-10 Daily Xml
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History Month

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER (Morialta—Minister for Education) (15:48): I am pleased to report to the house that the month of May, as members will recall, was History Month and the History Trust of South Australia reported to me that the17th History Festival proceeded extremely well. Members might recall that last year the History Festival had to be cancelled at late notice, which was a serious disappointment to all of us and the History Trust.

The History Festival attracts a significant number of its audience from amongst older residents in our community and it was obviously, in retrospect, the right thing to do. People who might have been vulnerable to the pandemic could not have been exposed to the risk in good conscience and so the 2020 festival was cancelled.

That was a great shame, because for many years the History Festival in South Australia has been growing and growing. It started in 2004 as History Week and then became a month, so significant was the community's response. In 2018 and then 2019, we had record numbers of events, record numbers of community organisations putting forward their events and record numbers of participants. Well over 100,000 South Australians were involved in attending History Festival activities throughout the 2019 festival.

The 2021 History Festival, I am very pleased to report to the house, had more than 380 event organisers getting back on track organising events, whether they be local history groups, sporting organisations, universities and institutions, significant South Australian businesses or local councils—organisations large and small celebrating the uniqueness of whatever their organisation or local community has to offer to our great state and collectively helping to bring together an understanding of what it is to be a South Australian in 2021. Knowing where we come from informs us of where we are and who we are, and helps us to do better in where we are going.

I was pleased that a number of events focused on recognising our Aboriginal history here in South Australia. Also, because of the relationship between the History Trust through the Migration Museum with many multicultural communities, it is not surprising that there was a particular focus at many events on multicultural South Australia. Some 620 events took place through the month of May and were enjoyed by many tens of thousands of South Australians.

The theme this year was that of change, and what more appropriate theme could there be in an extraordinary time such as this? Change for the better, change for the worse on a big or small scale, and everything in between; and event organisers were encouraged to plan around this idea, although many of the old favourites that every year attract many interested people—whether they be the cemetery tours or tours of tunnels in unusual places, or war bunkers in South Australia—were very much taken on board.

Events happened almost everywhere in our state, right across the great expanse of South Australia: in rural towns, in metropolitan Adelaide, in cities and suburbs, in museums and libraries, in boats, trains and buses, in heritage buildings, on the street, by the beach and in nature. I commend all those hundreds of organisations who took the time and trouble to organise those events for the broader community's benefit. Many of these events were free events available for all South Australians to learn a bit more about their state, a little bit more about their local area or potentially reach out and learn more about a different area.

If people are hearing about the History Festival for the first time, I hope they put it in their diaries for May next year because this year we have also moved to an online program. We were able to provide information to people who did not have access to a web portal if they were interested in the History Festival, but that online program also enabled a very easily searchable and modern approach for finding out about events.

I am looking forward to seeing the work the History Trust will continue to do in the years ahead. This is its 40th year. Indeed, I think Murray Hill was the Minister for the Arts in the Tonkin government who conceived and worked with David Tonkin to bring that about. It was announced on Proclamation Day in 1980, and it passed through both houses of parliament before the middle of 1981. So it was probably about 40 years ago to this sitting, or maybe off by a couple of weeks, that it took place.

Forty years of the History Trust. They have done a fantastic job, and they continue to evolve. I congratulate Elizabeth Ho and the trustees; Greg Mackie and the staff; and all the volunteers who have made the 2021 History Festival a great success. I cannot wait to see what they do in the future.

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