"Sons of the Mighty West"

Footscray. This western suburb of inner Melbourne behind the business end of the port, has a surprisingly strong sense of community for one that is best known as a point of arrival for many immigrants. Newcomers, often refugees, live in Footscray as their first home, some stay for good. It is this feeling of displacement and relief to come home that has created an essential community bond where Africans mix with Asians as they all become Australian. The cultural melting pot then is quite diverse but the stand out flavours are Vietnamese and Sudanese. Footscray provided sanctuary to the infamous boat people who risked everything coming to Australia in the 1970s. It has since sheltered people escaping conflict in Sudan and I get the sense that the Footscray community is responsible for healing many war scars.

I took a tour of this intriguing suburb with the 'GO Show' bus as my Arts Festival programme selection. Beyond the fact that I was getting on a bus to do a road trip, I didn't know what to expect and I have to say that it was quite an unusual experience. Four bus loads of people tripped around the suburb on a mid-week evening. On our first leg we were greeted by Larry a local Aborigine who welcomed us with tales of his Kulin Nation and his own story of the rights fought for here in Footscray to give him citizenship to the country in which he was born. That only happened in the 1960s, prior to that more immigrants had citizenship than Aborigines.

Our first bus stop was the Teddy Whitten Oval, home to the Western Bulldogs, Footscray's beloved AFL team. The community seems to be footy mad judging by the performances experienced here tonight. We participated in some role playing footy practise with 'the Coach' and 'Mullet', our team member who has had a few too many blows to the head. We were rallied by the passionate and dedicated Doggies cheer squad and given party pies on the balcony as we watched Mullet kicked for goal. In between we heard the team song, 'Sons of the Mighty West' and had pompoms waved at us in the team colours of red, white and blue. Everyone in Footscray seems to be able to sing the 'Go Doggies' song. Back on the bus local sports writer Steve quizzed us on footy trivia and it was at this moment that I realised I was surrounded by locals with a passion for Footscray.

The second stop was Madden Square to discover the many ways in which this precinct centre is utilised by the community. We interacted with buskers, poetry readings, rock concerts, Tai Chi practisers, clean air protests, taggers, street artists, substance abusers, hip-hoppers and rappers. The square is Footscray's focal point for outdoor activity.

Back on the bus again for a Sudanese song by Theresa relating war and homeland before arriving at the Footscray Community Arts Centre for the final performance of the tour. This leg contained an eclectic mix of performances from the young people of the community featuring dance, rap, gospel choir, word definition ballet and cheerleading. It was an interesting evening and I came away with a better understanding of what makes up Footscray.