ABSTRACT
This chapter uses a personal narrative to illustrate how structural violence played out in the life of one individual: Coolibah. The Coolibah's life story illustrates one or other aspect of the structural violence which Coolibah or a member of his family suffered as a consequence of the marked differential in power, wealth, and access to civic amenities. Coolibah, the tall wiry stockman and legendary rider, his body worn out by relentless physical work, maintained a dignified figure in the midst of the busy children's ward. Coolibah's narrative provides a way of understanding how the disadvantage suffered by Aboriginal Australians has its origins in structural violence. Coolibah's story is emblematic of the lateral violence suffered by Aboriginal people which plays out in lethal dysfunction within and between families and is measured by the statistics for school attendance and consequent low literacy, and in high rates of juvenile detention.
