Hi, my name is Lesley and I am fundraising for the film, This Ground We Stand Upon. Check out our website groundedfilms.com.au

Set in 1950s and 60s Far North Queensland, the film brings to light a series of vivid incidents that spurred the creation of a unique organisation, the Cairns Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advancement League, to challenge the deeply engrained and systematic racism they faced and the historical context underpinning it. The film reveals both the courage and determination of those who stood up, and the enduring legacy of their struggle.

This film explores the extraordinary leadership shown by the organisation and its remarkable role, in collaboration with other groups and supporters, to represent Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living under the draconian laws of the Aboriginals Protection Act. Their networking and negotiating skills were extraordinary. Many were working in blue colour jobs which brought them into direct contact with the Trade union movement and with one of the most progressive political organisations at the time, the Communist Party of Australia. This mid-20th century activism will be brought to life with interviews, archival imagery including photographs, film, drawings, newsclippings and pamphlets and narrated readings of letters from the time. The film aims not only to bring to light a series of vivid incidents the League tackled, but also to give the historical colonial context underpinning the deeply engrained and systemic racism they faced.