For a century, Private William Allan Irwin DCM — a proud Gomeroi soldier who gave his life on the battlefields of France — remained unrecognised by Australia.
William enlisted in 1916, at a time when he was not recognised as a citizen of the country he fought for. Since his death in 1918, his family has carried his memory while his name sat largely absent from Australia's official tributes. His descendant Peter Milliken has spent the past decade petitioning politicians and government bodies for William's medals to be upgraded to reflect the bravery he showed. Each request has been denied.
If William can't get the recognition he deserves in his own country, Peter wonders — how do the French feel about him? 106 years after William's death, Peter travels to the Somme, where a French community decides to honour him in a way Australia has not: as an honorary citizen of the region, the first WWI soldier ever to receive such a distinction.
Weaving between past and present, archive and living memory, Yaluu (See You Again) asks how far Australia still has to go in acknowledging the service and sacrifice of its Indigenous soldiers.
"Up until this day, there's never been a Victoria Cross awarded to an Aboriginal man."— Kristine Johnson, Great Niece of W.A. Irwin DCM Yaluu (See You Again)
On 31 August 1918, Private Irwin single-handedly charged three German machine-gun posts before being fatally wounded attempting a fourth. A fellow soldier from the same battalion, on the same day, received the Victoria Cross for capturing one. No Indigenous Australian has ever been awarded the VC. Sign the petition to call on the Australian Government to review his case.