By KATHRYN BERMINGHAM
A SEA of hands covered the lawn at Beaconhills College, Pakenham, last week to mark National Sorry Day.
On Tuesday 26 May, senior students at the college held an assembly and placed 500 red, yellow and black hands into the ground to symbolise reconciliation.
The event was organised by teacher Lynette George, a member of the Wiradjri people, who told students that the hands were symbolic of Indigenous right to land, the process of reconciliation and the opportunity for greater mutual understanding and respect between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities.
“Today, we will be doing something special and creating a statement that we, as a senior school of Beaconhills College, recognise the ongoing need for reconciliation,” Ms George told students.
Other speakers included Mandy Nicholson from the Victorian Aboriginal Corporation for Languages and Shawn Andrews, managing director of education provider ‘Indigicate.’
The commemoration also featured a performance from children at Little Beacons Learning Centre, using their own version of clapsticks.
