Larissa Behrendt
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Larissa Yasmin Behrendt (born 1969) is an Australian legal academic, writer,
filmmaker Filmmaking or film production is the process by which a Film, motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, beginning with an initial story, idea, or commission. Production then continues through screen ...
and Indigenous rights advocate. she is a professor of law and director of research and academic programs at the Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous Education and Research at the
University of Technology Sydney The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) is a public university, public research university located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The university was founded in its current form in 1988, though its origins as a Institute of technology, ...
, and holds the inaugural Chair in Indigenous Research at UTS.


Early life and education

Behrendt was born in Cooma, New South Wales, in 1969, of Eualeyai/ Kamillaroi descent on her father's side. Her mother, who was non-Indigenous, worked in naval intelligence, while her father was an air traffic controller and later an Aboriginal Studies academic. He established the Aboriginal Research and Resource Centre at the
University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW) is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was established in 1949. The university comprises seven faculties, through which it offers bachelor's, master's and docto ...
, Sydney in 1988, around the time when Behrendt commenced studying there. After attending Kirrawee High School, Behrendt completed a Bachelor of Jurisprudence and
Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...
degree at the University of New South Wales in 1992. In the same year, she was admitted by the
Supreme Court of New South Wales The Supreme Court of New South Wales is the highest state court of the Australian States and territories of Australia, State of New South Wales. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state in civil law (common law), civil matters, and hears ...
to practise as a solicitor. After a stint of working in
family law Family law (also called matrimonial law or the law of domestic relations) is an area of the law that deals with family matters and domestic relations. Overview Subjects that commonly fall under a nation's body of family law include: * Marriag ...
and legal aid, she travelled on a scholarship to the United States, where she completed a Master of Laws at
Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, Harvard Law School is the oldest law school in continuous operation in the United ...
in 1994, and a
Doctor of Juridical Science A Doctor of Juridical Science (SJD; ), or a Doctor of the Science of Law (JSD; ), is a research doctorate degree in law that is equivalent to a Ph.D. degree. In most countries, it is the most advanced law degree that can be earned. Australia ...
from the same institution in 1998. Behrendt was the first indigenous Australian to graduate from Harvard Law School. She also earned a Graduate Diploma in Screenwriting (2012) and Graduate Diploma in Documentary (2013) at the Australian Film, Television and Radio School (AFTRS), and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (2013).


Career


Legal and academic

After graduating from Harvard Law School in the mid-1990s, Behrendt worked in Canada for a year with a range of
First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...
organisations. In 1999, she worked with the Assembly of First Nations in developing a gender equality policy, and she represented the Assembly at the United Nations. The same year, she did a study for the Slavey people comparing native title developments in Australia, Canada and New Zealand. Behrendt returned to Australia to become a
postdoctoral researcher A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). Postdocs most commonly, but not always, have a temporary acade ...
at the
Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public university, public research university and member of the Group of Eight (Australian universities), Group of Eight, located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton, A ...
, moving to University of Technology, Sydney (UTS) in 2000. In 2000, she was admitted by the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory to practise as a
barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...
. Behrendt is a republican, opposing the institution of monarchy in Australia. Behrendt has been involved in several pro bono test cases involving adverse treatment of Aboriginal peoples in the criminal justice system, including appearing as junior counsel in the NSW Supreme Court case of ''Campbell v Director of Public Prosecutions'' 008 She worked inside the NSW prison system between 2003 and 2012 in her role as Alternative Chair of the Serious Offenders Review Council. She has also held judicial positions on the Administrative Decisions Tribunal (Equal Opportunity Division) and as a Land Commissioner on the Land and Environment Court.


Current positions

she is a professor of law and director of research and academic programs at the Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous Education and Research at the University of Technology Sydney, and holds the inaugural Chair in Indigenous Research, a leadership position that advises the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) on Indigenous strategy. She is also a fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia and a Foundation Fellow of the
Australian Academy of Law The Australian Academy of Law (AAL) is a permanent, non-government organisation devoted to the advancement of the discipline of law. According to its Constitution, the Australian Academy of Law comprises individuals of exceptional distinction from a ...
.


Other work


In education and community

Behrendt has been active in issues around Indigenous education including literacy. In 2002, she was the co-recipient of the inaugural Neville Bonner National Teaching Award. She has served on the board of Tranby Aboriginal College in Glebe, Sydney and has been ambassador for the Gawura Campus (an Indigenous primary school) of St Andrew's Cathedral School since at least 2012. She was a founder of the Sydney Story Factory in 2012, which established a literacy program in Redfern. In April 2011, Behrendt was appointed to chair the Review of Higher Education Access and Outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People for the
federal government A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a political union, union of partially federated state, self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a #Federal governments, federal government (federalism) ...
. The Review, tasked with providing a roadmap for Indigenous university education, delivered its report in September 2012 and received a widely positive response for its emphasis on achievable parity targets and the re-allocation of existing resources to support meaningful outcomes such as "fostering a 'professional class' of Indigenous graduates". In releasing the report on 14 September 2012, Senator Chris Evans, Minister for Tertiary Education, accepted all of its recommendations. From 2009 to 2012, she co-chaired the City of Sydney's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Panel.


In the arts

Behrendt has played an active role in creating and supporting arts organisations and initiatives and is a consistent advocate of increased funding for the arts. She was the inaugural chair of National Indigenous Television (NITV), the first broadcast television network in Australia dedicated to Indigenous programming, from 2006 to 2009. In 2008, she was appointed to the board of the
Bangarra Dance Theatre Bangarra Dance Theatre is an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dance company focused on contemporary dance. It was founded by African American dancer and choreographer Carole Y. Johnson, Gumbaynggirr man Rob Bryant, and South African-bor ...
and was chair from 2010 20 2014. She was appointed to the board of Museums and Galleries NSW in 2012, a role which continues . Behrendt has served on the board of the Sydney Writers' Festival since 2015, the board of the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, chairing their Indigenous Advisory Panel (2007–2012). She was a board member of the Australian Major Performing Arts Group (AMPAG) from 2013 to 2014, was a judge of non-fiction on the New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards (2013–2014) and has been a member of the Australia Council Major Performing Arts Panel since 2015.


Writing

Behrendt has written extensively on legal and Indigenous
social justice Social justice is justice in relation to the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society where individuals' rights are recognized and protected. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has of ...
issues. Her books include ''Aboriginal Dispute Resolution'' (1995) and ''Achieving Social Justice'' (2003). In 2005 she co-authored the book ''Treaty''. Behrendt has also written three works of fiction, including a novel, ''Home'', which won the
Queensland Premier's Literary Awards The Queensland Premier's Literary Awards were an Australian suite of literary awards inaugurated in 1999 and disestablished in 2012. It was one of the most generous suites of literary awards within Australia, with $225,000 in prize money across ...
, the
David Unaipon David Ngunaitponi (28 September 1872 – 7 February 1967), known as David Unaipon, was an Aboriginal Australian preacher, inventor, and author. A Ngarrindjeri man, his contribution to Australian society helped to break many stereotypes of Abo ...
Award in 2002, and the Commonwealth Writers Prize for Best First Novel in the south-east Asian/South Pacific region in 2005. Her second novel, ''Legacy'', won the Victorian Premier's Literary Award for Prize for Indigenous Writing (2010). Her third novel, After Story, was published in 2021. In 2012, Behrendt published ''Indigenous Australia For Dummies''.


Film

Behrendt has written, directed, and/or produced a number of documentary films since 2013, including ''Innocence Betrayed'' (2013, writer) '' In My Blood It Runs'' (2019, producer) and ''Maralinga Tjarutja'' (2020, writer), the latter about the British nuclear tests at Maralinga in
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...
. She was Indigenous consultant for the TV documentary
miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...
'' Australia: The Story of Us'' in 2015, '' Who do you think you are?'' (2018–2019) and other projects. In 2016 Behrendt (as director) Michaela Perske (writer and producer) and were awarded the Indigenous Feature Documentary Initiative funding by the
Adelaide Film Festival The Adelaide Film Festival (AFF, formerly ADLFF) is a film festival usually held for two weeks in mid-October in movie theater, cinemas in Adelaide, South Australia. Originally presented wikt:Special:Search/biennial, biennially in March from 2 ...
in conjunction with Screen Australia and KOJO to work on their feature documentary project, '' After the Apology'', and on 9 October 2017, AFF held the world première of the resulting film. The film looks at the increase in Indigenous child removal in the years following
Kevin Rudd Kevin Michael Rudd (born 21 September 1957) is an Australian diplomat and former politician who served as the 26th prime minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010 and June to September 2013. He held office as the Leaders of the Australian Labo ...
's Apology to Australia's Indigenous peoples. It won Best Direction of a Documentary Feature Film from the Australian Directors Guild in 2018, and was nominated in three categories in the 2018
AACTA Awards The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards, known as the AACTA Awards, are presented annually by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA). The awards recognise excellence in the cinema of Australia, film and ...
, including Best Direction in Nonfiction Television. Behrendt directed '' Maralinga Tjarutja'', a May 2020 television documentary made by Blackfella Films for ABC Television, which tells the story of the people of Maralinga,
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...
, since the 1950s British nuclear tests at Maralinga. It was deliberately broadcast around the same time that the drama series '' Operation Buffalo'' was on, to give voice to the Indigenous people of the area and show how it disrupted their lives. Screenhub gave it 4.5 stars, calling it an "excellent documentary". The film shows the resilience of the Maralinga Tjarutja people, and how they have continued to fight for their rights to look after the contaminated land. In 2020 Behrendt worked as a writer for Season 2 of ''Total Control'' (TV series), and as writer/director on a documentary film entitled ''The Fight Together''. In 2021 Behrendt released the documentary ''Araatika: Rise Up!''. Behrendt worked on, and released the documentary ''One Mind, One Heart'' in 2024, which follows the long political campaigns to preserve culture and maintain Aboriginal land rights, through the story of the Yirrkala Bark Petitions.


Radio

Behrendt presents radio programme ''Speaking Out'', covering "politics, arts and culture from a range of Indigenous perspectives". it broadcasts on ABC Radio National on Fridays at 12pm (noon) and on ABC Local Radio on Sundays at 9pm.


Recognition

*In 1993, Behrendt was the winner of the Lionel Murphy Foundation Scholarship. *In 2002, she was the co-recipient of the inaugural Neville Bonner National Teaching Award. *2002 David Unaipon Award in the Queensland Premier's Literary Awards for her fiction work ''Home''. *In 2004 she won the award for outstanding achievement in literature in the 2004 Deadlys. *2005 Commonwealth Writers' Prize – Best first novel (Asia/Pacific). *In 2009, Behrendt was named National NAIDOC Person of the Year. *2009 Victorian Premier's Literary Award, Prize for Indigenous Writing for ''Legacy''. *In 2011, she was named the NSW Australian of the Year. *2012 AFTRS's AW Myer Indigenous Award. *2018 Australian Directors Guild award for Best Direction of a Documentary Feature Film for ''After the Apology''. *In the 2020 Australia Day Honours, Behrendt was made an Officer in the General Division of the
Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...
(AO), for her "distinguished service to Indigenous education and research, the law and the visual and performing arts". *In the 2021 Human Rights Awards (Australia), she won the Human Rights medal. *2023, appointed Fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities.


Personal life

Behrendt married US artist Kris Faller in 1997 while at Harvard. They separated amicably in 2001 and were later divorced. She had a long-term relationship with Geoff Scott, a senior Indigenous bureaucrat, former CEO of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission, and current CEO of NSW Aboriginal Land Council. In 2009, Behrendt began a relationship with Michael Lavarch, former
Attorney-General of Australia The attorney-general of Australia (AG), also known as the Commonwealth attorney-general, is the minister of state and chief law officer of the Commonwealth of Australia charged with overseeing federal legal affairs and public security as the ...
; they married in 2011.


Bibliography


Novels

* * ''
Legacy Legacy or Legacies may refer to: Arts and entertainment Comics * " Batman: Legacy", a 1996 Batman storyline * '' DC Universe: Legacies'', a comic book series from DC Comics * ''Legacy'', a 1999 quarterly series from Antarctic Press * ''Legacy ...
'', University of Queensland Press, St Lucia, QLD, 2009, *'' After Story'', University of Queensland Press, St Lucia, QLD, 2021,


Short stories

* The Space Between Us, in Behrendt et al., ''10 short stories you must read in 2011'', the Australia Council for the Arts, Australia, 2011, , Chapter 3: pp. 47–67


Children's fiction

* ''Crossroads'', Oxford University Press, South Melbourne, VIC, 2011,


Non-fiction

* ''Aboriginal Dispute Resolution: A step towards
self-determination Self-determination refers to a people's right to form its own political entity, and internal self-determination is the right to representative government with full suffrage. Self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international la ...
and community autonomy'', Federation Press, Leichhardt, NSW 1995, * ''Achieving social justice: indigenous rights and Australia's future'', Federation Press, Annandale, NSW, 2003, * ''Resolving Indigenous Disputes: Land conflict and beyond'', co-authored with Loretta Kelly, Federation Press, Leichhardt, NSW, 2008, * * ''Indigenous Australia for Dummies'', John Wiley & Sons, Milton, QLD, 2012, * ''Rabbit-proof Fence'', Currency Press, Sydney, NSW, 2012, * ''Finding Eliza: Power and colonial storytelling'', University of Queensland Press, St Lucia, QLD, 2016,


2011 tweet storm and ''Eatock v Bolt''

Comments made by Behrendt on
Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
that appeared to disparage
Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...
Member of the Legislative Assembly, Territory Minister, and Aboriginal elder Bess Price caused controversy despite Behrendt's continued insistence that the tweet was taken out of context. She maintains that she was referring not to Price, but to the acrimonious tenor of a debate on the television program '' Q+A''. Behrendt had replied to a Twitter comment that had expressed outrage about Price's support for the Northern Territory intervention, writing "I watched a show where a guy had sex with a horse and I'm sure it was less offensive than Bess Price", referring to TV series '' Deadwood''. Behrendt apologised both publicly and privately to Price, who did not formally accept her apology. Behrendt said that the throwaway comment has made her a target for a campaign of character assassination, with several commentators agreeing, most notably Robert Manne. ''
The Australian ''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet daily newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964. As the only Australian daily newspaper distributed nationally, its readership of b ...
'' published 15 stories on Behrendt within two weeks of the tweet. The disparagement of Behrendt was subsequently characterised as a coordinated response to a court case in which she and eight others were simultaneously involved against
News Corp The second and current incarnation of News Corporation, doing business as News Corp, is an American mass media and publishing company headquartered at 1211 Avenue of the Americas in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. The company was formed on ...
, known as '' Eatock v Bolt''. ''
Herald Sun The ''Herald Sun'' is a Conservatism, conservative daily tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia, published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Corp Australia, itself a subsidiary of the American Rupert Murdoch, Murd ...
'' columnist Andrew Bolt had used Behrendt's name in two articles about "political" Aboriginal people. Bolt asserted that Behrendt and other fair-skinned Aboriginal people claimed
Aboriginality Aboriginal Australian identity, sometimes known as Aboriginality, is the perception of oneself as Aboriginal Australian, or the recognition by others of that identity. Aboriginal Australians are one of two Indigenous Australian groups of peopl ...
to advance their careers. The Federal Court ruled that the articles were inflammatory, offensive and contravened the '' Racial Discrimination Act''..


Notes


References

* * *


External links

* *


''After the Apology''

* 15-minute video, presented by Stan Grant in the program '' Matter of Fact with Stan Grant'', which includes Behrendt and one of the grandmothers who features in the film. * (Online rental of complete film) {{DEFAULTSORT:Behrendt, Larissa 1969 births 20th-century Australian novelists Living people Australian non-fiction writers Australian women novelists Australian republicans Harvard Law School alumni Indigenous Australian writers University of New South Wales Law School alumni 20th-century Australian women writers Academic staff of the University of Technology Sydney Australian feminist writers Officers of the Order of Australia Fellows of the Australian Academy of Law Fellows of the Australian Academy of the Humanities Fellows of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia Indigenous Australian academics Indigenous Australian women academics Australian women academics Australian feminists Australian women legal scholars