In 'The White Possessive: Property, Power and Indigenous Sovereignty', Goenpul woman, Professor Aileen Moreton-Robinson states "These cities signify with every building and every street that this is now possessed by others; signs of white possession are embedded everywhere in the landscape. The omnipresence of Indigenous sovereignties exists here too, but it is disavowed through the materiality of these significations, which are perceived as evidence of ownership by those who have taken possession. This is territory that has been marked by and through violence and race. Racism is thus inextricably tied to the theft and appropriation of Indigenous lands in the first world. In fact, its existence in the United States, Canada, Australia and Hawaiʻi, and New Zealand was dependent on this happening. The dehumanizing impulses of colonization are successfully acted upon because racisms in these countries are predicated on the logic of possession." p. xiii. The book includes a chapter titled 'The Legacy of Cook's Choice' which discusses Cook's decision to take illegally claim possession of the East Coast of the Australian continent in the name of his monarch, King George III. The chapter provides some context regarding the current debate around monuments and Cook's role in colonial history. I highly recommend this book for those wishing to unpack colonial mythology and the history we've been fed for far too long. Pictured: 'Unlearning Cook, Part Three', 2016, 16 fixed lumen prints, 81cm x 102cm, unique work. & Aileen Moreton-Robinson, 'The White Possessive: Property, Power and Indigenous Sovereignty', Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2015 #mfaproject #mfaresearch #MythofTerraNullius #captaincookresearchproject @vca_mcm
