Exert from Law Institute of Victoria Journal, April 2021 publication
Profile: Rita Tomlins
Arrernte/Warlpiri woman Rita Tomlins says that as a teenager growing up in Alice Springs (Mparntwe) she was sometimes on the wrong side of the law. “I remember being so disconnected. But I could see that it was a very complex system and I thought I’d love to study the law and understand it better.”
The deciding point was realising that bush lore in community back home on country isn’t recognised in Australian law “even though it’s still so strong in culture,” she says. “So I wanted to study that and learn why it wasn’t recognised and how different they are. I have the vision that one day both laws will be recognised in Australia.”
Moving to Ballarat last year with her child and partner, she enrolled in law at Deakin University where the NIKERI Institute has been a lifeline supporting her with her studies away from her own country and most of her family, during a time of lockdown. “I got through my first year and passed everything and, if I’m being really honest, being locked down was perfect study conditions.”
She says at this stage she is particularly interested in environmental law “because if we are talking about closing the gap initiatives, it’s in law reform around protecting country and Aboriginal culture and putting people before profits. But I know that as I go along in my degree other things are going to jump out at me, so I’m open to other directions as well.”
Deakin graduates Hayden Walker (2020) and Terri Pollard (2017) were also featured in profiles for the article.
https://www.liv.asn.au/Web/Law_Institute_Journal_and_News/Web/LIJ/Year/2021/04April/Diversity__Aboriginal_lawyers_making_inroads.aspx