‘If I’m representing Australia, I want to represent all Australians’ - Jess Jonassen shares powerful message post wukalina Walk
Australia women’s team will be seen wearing a First Nations jersey throughout next month's T20 World Cup in South Africa.
Star Australia cricketer, Ashleigh Gardner, recently, made the headlines when she took to social media and posted that it will be very difficult for her to take the field on January 26, given that it is a ‘day of hurt and a day of mourning’ for people of her community. Several cricketers including skipper, Meg Lanning, came in support of her and mentioned the importance of this day and the fact that the team wants to learn more about indigenous people, given that they are also a part of the great nation.
Therefore, ahead of the second T20I match at Bellerive Oval, Australian women enjoyed learning about First Nations people in Tasmania, via a local cultural experience. The cricketers experienced the infamous wukalina Walk, where they first took part in the smoking ceremony, which is often conducted to clean one’s spirit.
Later, they took a walk up through the mountains, learned about different trees, drank water from a local waterfall and most importantly educated themselves about the indigenous culture and the First Nations People along with the First Nations Culture. Jess Jonassen, who was part of the entire journey, later revealed the importance of this experience and shared a powerful message, where the cricketer mentioned that she wants to represent all Australians and thus, learning about the indigenous community is important to her.
“For me, if I’m representing Australia, I want to represent all Australians. So, having a better understanding about First Nations people is sort of part of that. It’s a really interesting and sometimes confronting journey to be on but one that I know that we’re all happy to be a part of,” said the 30-year-old after the entire journey.
Notably, in support of the indigenous community, Cricket Australia has decided to include elements that represent them in the Big Bash League uniforms (BBL) next season. In the meantime, the women’s team will be seen wearing a First Nations jersey throughout next month's T20 World Cup in South Africa.
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