LOCAL LIFE
Aunty Edna’ s dedication to First Nations
culture recognised with top honour
A First Nations woman who overcame discrimination and devoted her life to preserving and teaching her culture has been awarded Blacktown City’ s highest honour.
Blacktown City Mayor, Brad Bunting, this month presented Aunty Edna Watson OAM with the Key to the City in recognition of her tireless efforts to preserve and promote Dharug language, knowledge, and cultural practices— particularly throughout Mount Druitt.
Aunty Edna began sharing her knowledge informally from her garage, before schools, TAFE colleges and universities began to seek out her stories and teachings.
Mayor Bunting said the community owed her a great debt.
“ Aunty Edna’ s work in passing on the language, stories and knowledge of Dharug culture helps the next generation of First Nations people connect with their heritage and identity,” he said.
“ It is vital that Council honours Aunty Edna’ s efforts to help all members of our community better understand the world’ s oldest living culture.”
Aunty Edna has been a guest speaker at Council events including NAIDOC Week and Reconciliation Week, and her artwork has featured in Council publications.
As a child, Aunty Edna was not taught Dharug. Her mother had feared that speaking the language would draw the attention of authorities and risk the removal of her children.
Later in life, Aunty Edna embraced her heritage and began teaching from her home to ensure Dharug culture was not lost to future generations.
She visited schools across Western Sydney, promoting First Nations culture and eventually developed Dharug language curriculum for the NSW Department of Education.
In 2024, Aunty Edna was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for her service to the First Nations community of New South Wales.
Her daughter, Leanne Mulgo Redpath, said the family remains committed to continuing her legacy. Leanne now leads the Dharug Custodian Aboriginal Corporation, while granddaughter Rhiannon Wright works as an Aboriginal Education Officer in public schools and teaches the Dharug language.
Aunty Edna, family and Mayor Bunting
BLACKTOWN CITY INDEPENDENT theindependentmagazine. com. au ISSUE 50 // MAY 2025 9