Towards Truth

Towards Truth is a ground-breaking tool to empower First Nations truth-telling and reckon with our history.

This unique partnership with the UNSW Indigenous Law Centre shows in forensic detail how the decisions of our parliaments and governments have dispossessed and disempowered First Nations people. It also tells a story of resilience and resistance – the long history of Aboriginal people fighting for justice and driving reform of unjust laws and policies.

A world-first project, the Towards Truth website compiles laws and policies that have impacted First Nations people since colonisation began. Parliamentary debates, analysis, articles, reports and case studies demonstrate how those laws and policies have shaped First Nations communities over generations.

Our research spans subject areas falling into the broad themes of kinship, country, law and culture, and people. We have begun our analysis in NSW, with potential to expand to cover all laws from states, territories and the Commonwealth.

A tool for understanding our shared history

Towards Truth invites Australians to reckon with our past, as a foundation for repair, reform and recognition. 

It is a valuable resource for policymakers and lawyers, educators and academics, Aboriginal people and the community at large, to understand how the past has shaped our present.

It promotes a shared understanding of the wrongs, but also tells a story of resilience and resistance – the long history of Aboriginal people fighting for justice and driving reform of unjust laws and policies. It can also support First Nations people seeking to understand how the laws and policies of the day impacted their own families and communities.

Visit the site at www.towardstruth.org.au.

Building a body of truth

Towards Truth was developed as a response to the Uluru Statement from the Heart and its call for truth-telling about our history. The project’s website was launched in 2023, with new research being added regularly as it is completed.

Our dedicated internal team of predominantly First Nations legal researchers is supported by significant pro bono contributions from several leading law firms and corporate partners. Our work is reviewed by legal and academic experts with extensive knowledge of the issues it covers.

Contact Towards Truth Director Anna Harding at [email protected] for further information.

News and resources

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A year on from the Voice referendum campaign, we remain as committed to the Uluru Statement as ever.
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Ngemba man and Towards Truth Project Manager Corey Smith spoke to 2SER about the potential of the Truth and Justice Commission Bill.
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Towards Truth Director Anna Harding appeared on 2SER Breakfast to discuss the project's housing research.
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Towards Truth is a partnership between PIAC and UNSW Indigenous Law Centre.
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An opinion piece about truth-telling from Towards Truth's Sally Treveton, published in the National Indigenous Times.
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Towards Truth's Sally Treveton appeared on 2SER Breakfast to discuss Aboriginal fishing rights.

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