Ridge Advocates for Indigenous Justice

NSW Institute of Sport (NSWIS) water polo athlete Amy Ridge has turned the passion and steely determination she displays in the water polo pool to advocate for indigenous justice.

“I am passionate about indigenous issues of justice – the intersectional and intergenerational disadvantage experienced by indigenous people,” Ridge said in the lead up to National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee (NAIDOC) Week.

The Tokyo Olympian’s interest inspired her to join the AIS Share A Yarn program and she organised for the Australian team to attend a cultural experience during a training camp on the Sunshine Coast. Ridge wanted to provide the Stingers with an opportunity to learn about aspects of indigenous culture that they probably hadn’t been exposed to before.

“When we are wearing the green and gold, I think it is important for us to know what history we are representing to be proud Australians,” said Ridge.

“We often don’t think about our indigenous Australians when we are competing on the world stage, because there isn’t a large proportion of Indigenous Australians in water polo, but I think it is important for us.”

Ridge, who is a lawyer, has pursued with great energy a wider knowledge of indigenous culture.

“I want to keep learning and having confronting conversations with people so that maybe I can understand more and more, which in turn will direct the way I want to go forward in helping people with the law.”

The 2024 NAIDOC Week theme is Keep the Fire Burning! Blak, Loud and Proud which celebrates not only the survival but also the relentless spirit and enduring strength of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

This theme calls for a reclamation of narratives, an amplification of voices, and an unwavering commitment to justice and equality, all of which Ridge is doing her best to address.

NSWIS