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The
Tears of Strangers, by Stan
Grant. Harper
Collins, Pymble, 2002. ISBN
0732271533. RRP
A$29.95. |
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"The
tears of strangers are nothing but water" is the Russian
proverb from which Stan Grant's memoir takes its name
and is telling of Grant's theme in The Tears of Strangers.
This work is primarily a search for identity and, having
both Wiradjuri and Irish origins, the search is more cryptic
for Grant than for most. "History belongs to the white
man; it is a white story... So it is that I tell this
story not from the memory of my own people, the defeated,
but from the record of the victors" (64), he writes, seeking
to document his own family history, both Aboriginal and
European. In order for readers to understand the context
of this personal story, a great deal of Australian history
is presented to the reader, Grant succeeding in not only
sharing his own plight but the plight of Australia and
the "wounded mess" (Etchells 2002) that is our racial
politics. In the course of doing so, I feel Grant also
debunks many myths of Australian identity.
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Stan
Grant has been a successful journalist for almost twenty
years, working with major broadcasters including the ABC
and Channel 7 (Grant 2002). Unfortunately, it is probably
his 'notoriety' (his affair with fellow newscaster Tracey
Holmes which was conducted at the expense of both their
positions (Lateline 2002)) that the public probably remembers
him for. His relationship with Holmes, now his second
wife, is detailed in The Tears of Strangers as
an important part of his life, but Grant avoids defending
himself against the media controversy. He does tell, however,
of his personal struggle:
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Love doesn't
seek permission, it poses more questions than it answers...
My shattered taboos were not just moral, but racial...
And I was black; and I would never let her forget
it... It was an uncontrollable reflexive hatred. It
came from that scar on my soul ... from not ever feeling
good enough. The truth is Tracey wasn't the racist
— I was. (252)
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Grant's
memoir is not just about Wiradjuri Australians from New
South Wales, but a balance of both black and white perspectives
on Aboriginal identity. Neither is it written with a direct
target audience in mind. You don't need to be Aboriginal
to feel the fear of a people who, instead of being protected
by the law, were directly threatened by it. Nor do you
need to have been an eyewitness to feel a pit in your
stomach after picturing "distraught young mothers wailing
as they used rocks to cave in their babies' skulls" (113)
as an attempt to counteract forced assimilation policies.
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It
is common knowledge that the first encounters between
whites and Aboriginals in Australia were not amicable.
However, the lengths that white settlers went to exterminate
the Aboriginal culture, and the level of success they
achieved in their goal, is shocking. The "daily epidemic"
of old women bashed to the point of death by white stockmen,
girls as young as eight or nine used as little more than
sex slaves, and the plague-like incidence of venereal
disease (115) are some of the images painted in the book
that do not come up in most colonial texts.
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As
an Aboriginal, Grant tells of the anguish of having no
other way to define his heritage except in terms of the
'other'. The huge scar left by the forced assimilation
of the Aboriginal people is made clear. Aboriginal identity
became "untenable" (129) infiltrated by Christianity and
agriculture, and hence the only way to survive and be
'successful' was adoption of a white identity. Grant tells
us of his relationship with Australia,
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I've never
wanted to let Australia off the hook ... I have despised
Australia at times for stealing my sense of wonder
and condemning me to look at the world through the
eyes of a cynic ... The white blood in my veins makes
me reject Australia all the more, because I know the
price my family has paid for our whiteness. (250)
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Grant,
and his Aboriginal ancestors, have never had an opportunity
to fully understand their heritage without white paternalistic
influence. Grant talks of his Aunt who was part of the
'Stolen Generation' as he tells us of Wiindhuraydhine,
the leader of the Wiradjuri tribe that fought against
the British instead of passively surrendering as he was
led to believe.
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Grant
writes with resonating sincerity. There is a definite
journalistic quality to the book, however the personal
story is not, as Gutkind warns, lost in wooden objectivity
(1997: 19). The Tears of Stangers could
never be called a feel-good story. Although it deals with
confrontational themes, Grant's book finishes on an optimistic
note, but not to the point of complete resolution. What
Grant has done is open up the issues closest to his heart,
issues that affect us all today as Australians, whether
we choose to engage with them or not. His story should
be given high national importance. |
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References
Etchells,
T., Three Introductions for Brussels, <http://kunstenfestivaldesarts.be/fr/2002/pdf.forced.pdf>
[Accessed 19 Aug 2002].
Grant, S., <http://www.abc.net.au/messate/tv/ms/s548522.htm>
[Accessed 19 Aug 2002].
Gutkind, L., The Art of Creative Non Fiction,
John Wiley, New York, 1997.
Lateline, Program transcript, <http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/s164822.htm>
[Accessed 22 Sep 2002].
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