Tyrone Murray, the only Aboriginal shopkeeper in the Queensland town of Murgon, says racism has brought him to tears — but he refuses to be broken.
Key points:
- Tyrone Murray is the only Aboriginal man running a shop on the main street of Murgon
- Almost 20 per cent of Murgon’s population is Indigenous, compared to 2.7 per cent nationally
- There has been “a huge turnaround” at the local pub, which now employs six Aboriginal people
A barber, Mr Murray grew up watching his brother cutting hair at home in Cherbourg, an Aboriginal community and former mission, 7 kilometres down the road.
“I just wanted to take on the trade,” he said.
“You know, just wanted to copy after my big brother.”
Three hours’ drive north-west of Brisbane, Murgon has a population of just 2,300 people, 18.8 per cent of whom are Indigenous, compared to 2.7 per cent nationally.
Cherbourg, which is 97 per cent Indigenous, is home to an additional 1,200 people, but Murgon is the main service centre.
“I’m the first, I think, Aboriginal man to work on the street,” Mr Murray said.
“I get a lot of support from the South Burnett area — black, white.”
But it is hard to get a job — in Murgon 50.3 per cent of the population is out of the workforce, while in Cherbourg that number is 65 per cent.
“Back in the day this was really hard for my people to work here,” Mr Murray said.
‘Not going anywhere’
Mr Murray said while open segregation had ended and Cherbourg was run by an Indigenous council, racism still lurked in the community.
“I’ve put up with a lot it, putting up with racism,” he said.
“It’s just got to me, nearly broke me, and you know some days I was there crying, crying in the shop.”
Mr Murray said there were times when people would come into the salon where he was working and ask for someone who was not Aboriginal to serve them.
“Just getting put down every time … it’s like we’re not worthy of anything, you know?” he said.
Mr Murray has had his share of personal challenges.
He was a champion rugby league player and bull rider who knows what could have been if things had not gone the way they did.
“I’ve had to overcome the alcohol, drugs … just sad things in your life,” he said.
But with those days far behind him, he is defiant in the face of those who have judged his character by the colour of his skin.
“You come back tomorrow, next week, the month later, I said: ‘You’re going to always see this face’,” Mr Murray said.
“This face is not going anywhere, you’ll never break me … because I’m very strong, I’m a strong black man.”
Service with a smile
Mark Smith, the president of the Murgon Business Development Association, welcomed Mr Murray to the main street.
“I think it’s great, I think it’s fantastic,” said Mr Smith, who has run a local business in Murgon for 45 years.
“He’s a great role model for the young people following on.”
While there is now an Aboriginal-run barber in town, at Murgon’s main pub there a number of new Indigenous employees.
One of them, Stephen Simpson, is now a manager at the Australian Hotel.
“It’s a huge turnaround,” he said.
“There were none there a couple of years ago.”
Mr Simpson said racial division in Murgon was nothing like it once was, but he still dealt with it over the bar from time to time.
“You do get the odd person come in with that sort of attitude,” he said.
“I know I manage to get by — I still serve with a smile.”
‘Your dream is your dream’
Mr Simpson said having Indigenous people working in the pub had helped make the environment more welcoming.
“To see your brother or sister behind the bar — to them, it’s an opportunity to talk shit, pretty much, and have a laugh,” he said.
Over the road at the barber shop, Mr Murray is happy to have a fulfilling job close to home.
“You can’t wipe away my smile, because I got what I wanted,” he said.
“Nobody had belief — only my family and a few other people kept on pushing me and telling me that what is your dream is your dream.”
Credit: Source link
