ISBN 9780980731507

Dr Anne Sarzin and her daughter, Lisa Miranda Sarzin, have co-authored a new book, Hand in Hand: Jewish and Indigenous people working together, which features collaborative initiatives involving Jewish and Indigenous Australians.

In a prefatory message, the Governor of New South Wales, Professor Marie Bashir AC CVO, describes Hand in Hand as ‘an inspiring account of a journey of care and understanding being undertaken by two very significant Australian communities—the Australian Jewish community on the one hand, and on the other, Australia’s Indigenous community—the First Australians. ... It is an inspiring contribution to Australia.’

The NSW Minister for the State Plan and Minister for Community Services, Linda Burney MP, who launched the book on 22 April 2010 at the National Council of Jewish Women-NSW Council House in Woollahra, Sydney, writes: ‘The overarching message and strength of this book is its encouragement for further collaboration and joint initiatives. It shows the goodwill and capacity in both communities and provides models that can act as catalysts for future collaboration.’

Robin Margo SC, the President of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies, which commissioned the book, says ‘It presents a view of Reconciliation as a work in progress that benefits all Australians and seeks to inspire and encourage the further work that is still required.’

Professor Bettina Cass, Chair of the Board’s Social Justice Committee, says ‘The book documents compelling personal stories that reveal the goodwill on which Australians have and are building mutually respectful relationships and a more inclusive society.’

Anne Sarzin says ‘this book gave us a wonderful opportunity to identify what is good in society. We have created oral histories that we hope will resonate with our readers, as we have uncovered a great richness of human experience and especially the willingness to reach out to others in a caring society.’

Lisa Sarzin says ‘the stories we write about show the determination of individuals from both communities to add quality to the lives of others and how their own lives generally change for the better as well’.
 

Synopsis  
Dr Anne Sarzin and Lisa Miranda Sarzin wrote Hand in Hand — an initiative of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies and its Social Justice Committee — after intensive research and conducting 80 in-depth interviews with Jewish and Indigenous leaders, as well as with people working at a grassroots level. The book includes a chapter on historical connections, with reference to personalities and events significant in the area of human rights, such as William Cooper’s denunciation of Kristallnacht, Chief Justice James Spigelman’s participation in the Freedom Ride of 1965, and Ron Castan’s work in the area of native title.

The book focuses on a broad range of joint initiatives, such as the Shalom Gamarada residential scholarships for Indigenous medical and health students at Shalom College at the University of New South Wales; the volunteer dental scheme, ‘Filling the Gap’, which supports the Wuchopperen Health Service in Cairns, Queensland; Mazon Australia’s breakfast program at Djarragun College, a school for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in Gordonvale, Queensland; and the Rona Tranby Award that enables Aboriginal Elders to record their oral histories and preserve their traditional wisdom for future generations.
 

The authors  
Anne Sarzin, a widely published journalist and editor, has a PhD in English Literature from the University of Cape Town, having written a thesis on the playwright Athol Fugard. For her Master of Arts degree, also from UCT, she wrote a dissertation on the political novels of Benjamin Disraeli. She has a BA Hons. cum laude in English Literature from the University of Natal. She worked for many years as the University Writer in the Media Unit at the University of Sydney and then, as Editor, at the University of Technology, Sydney. In 2004, she started her own communications business, Write 4 U.

Lisa Miranda Sarzin has worked as a solicitor in Sydney, first at Blake Dawson Waldron where she was appointed Senior Associate in 2001, and then from 2002 to 2009 as Senior Legal Counsel with the MLC Legal Team, part of the National Australia Bank Group. She has a Bachelor of Business and a First Class Honours degree in Law from UTS; a Master of Laws from the University of Sydney; and is a doctoral candidate at UTS. Lisa has won numerous academic awards and was the first Australian recipient of the Lord Templeman Scholarship, enabling her to study Law at the University of the West of England, Bristol, in 1994.

Media coverage  

1. Wentworth Courier, 14 April 2010 ‘Hand in History’ by Rob Bates

2. Australian Jewish News, 30 April 2010 ‘Two Peoples Hand in Hand’ by Joshua Levi page 6; and ‘A chat with Lisa Sarzin’ page 12

3. JNTV online video coverage of book launch

4. ABC Radio National: Speaking Out, interview with Lisa Sarzin by Rhianna Patrick

5. ABC News Online, 3 May 2010 ‘Hand in Hand: book explores Jewish and Aboriginal ties’

6. National Indigenous Times, 29 April 2010 ‘Hand in Hand: Jewish and Indigenous people working together’ by Geoff Bagnall, p37