In the early 1830s, our Bunurong women were kidnapped. They were stolen from Country at two major points – Munmurr (Point Nepean) and Wurnmarrinh (Westernport Bay).
Our grandmothers were sold to sealing men. They were treated brutally, used as slaves, and forced into loveless marriages. Yet they remained strong, raising families connected to Culture and Country.
Over the generations, however, the ongoing persecutions of colonisation meant that our words gently, but slowly, started to sleep. By the turn of the 20th century, few words were spoken in our language. Our grandmothers were forbidden to speak the words of their mothers and fathers, the words of their Country. They and their children were beaten harshly if they did. And so our language went to sleep, to keep them safe.
