Alice Spring residents are invited to a free R U OK? community event encouraging everyone to chat over a free sausage sizzle and cuppa, on Thursday, June 1 from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm at the United Church Lawns on Todd Street Mall in Alice Springs.
The event’s theme “Stronger Together” encourages the community to talk with a family member or a mate and ask the all-important question “Are you okay?”
This public health promotion event aims to inspire and empower individuals to connect with people in their communities who might be struggling with life, organisers said.
New videos, social media tiles and posters form part of ‘Stronger Together’, a targeted campaign to increase the sense of connection and belonging within Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. The resources feature messages that promote a sense of connection, hope and identity.
The event will involve workshops with Arrernte, Luritja, Pitjantjatjara, and Warlpiri language speakers and focus on individual community needs and cultural values, empowering community members to make the R U OK? message their own.
R U OK? Stronger Together campaign manager Steven Satour said the event would improve emotional well-being and empower people to bolster their self-determination.
“We’ve been bringing communities together to translate these resources because we know language is central to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures. Culture is fundamental for our overall social and emotional well-being,” Mr Satour said.
Reducing suicide deaths and suicidal behaviour among Indigenous Australians is a priority for most Indigenous communities, organisers said.
“National data shows that Indigenous people die from suicide at twice the rate of non-Indigenous people. Suicide is the fifth largest cause of death for First Nations Australians and the fifth leading cause of death for non-Indigenous Australians,” R U OK? chairperson for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Group Dr Vanessa Lee-Ah Mat said.
R U OK?’s “Stronger Together” campaign started in 2019 to help improve the mental well-being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
Throughout the year R U OK? provides free resources that boost the willingness and confidence of all Australians to recognize the signs that someone is struggling, start a genuine conversation and lend the needed support.
“We know that starting conversations early can help prevent small problems from growing into big ones. We need our mob to know that they already have what it takes to ask the question in their way,” Mr Satour said.
‘Stronger Together’ resources are available for free at ruok.org.au.
A support line for Aboriginal and Torres Strait folks, 13YARN (13 92 76), is also available providing a confidential 24/7 one-on-one yarning opportunity with a Lifeline-trained crisis supporter.
Free and confidential support is available at Lifeline by calling 13 11 14, or texting 0477 13 14, and through chat online at lifeline.org.au.
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