Our Story is the outcome of a research project that focuses on the period after the gold rushes of the 1850s, when it was more common for First Nations people to come into contact with Chinese arrivals. Both groups largely lived on the margins of White Settler society and were often subject to much disdain and discrimination.

The historical information collected in this book consists of two levels. One is the history of people, places and events that have been documented and affirmed over periods of time. The historians have compiled this material, and their work provides a backdrop to the second level of information: family stories. The book also includes contemporary views by eight artists, including seven Aboriginal Chinese artists, and one Chinese Australia artist. It provides personal stories about how descendants identify themselves and what they think of their family history.

The editor and the contributors have produced a superbly crafted book that combines high-quality scholarship with personal reflections, insights and historical content. The book is brilliantly edited connecting the academic overview with the voices of families and individuals, and with narratives found in contemporary art and photographs.

"The book beautifully captures the voices of contemporary families of Aboriginal and Chinese heritage that tells of this important history that will not be silenced." -- Peter Yu

"Our Story allows us to do three important things: it helps us retrieve the Chinese contribution to the development of colonial Australia; it will enlighten the general community about the almost unknown story of Chinese - First Nations relations; and more broadly, it will bring back into national consciousness the multicultural nature of colonial Australia." -- Henry Reynolds

"Zhou Xiaoping's 35-year commitment to Aboriginal art and culture was more than theoretical. He lived in the remote camps with desert artists like Jimmy Pike, a Walmajarri man, and Ganalpingu artist John Bulunbulun from Arnhem land, and supported them in so many unacknowledged ways. This is a pioneering project, arguably the first and largest body of work on this subject to date." -- Emeritus Curatorial Fellow: First Nations, National Museum of Australia

Author: Xiaoping Zhou (Editor)
ISBN: 9780958778572
Type: Paperback
Pages: 251
Dimensions: 285x236mm
Publisher: Museum of Chinese Australian History
Published Date: 2025

English Edition - also available in Chinese here