9 September 2021
Dr Tracy Westerman AM has received the Order of Australia this week ahead of the World Suicide Prevention Day concert to be held tomorrow.
The Westerman Jilya Institute will host a fundraising concert for Indigenous suicide prevention featuring a star-studded lineup of Indigenous artists, with special guest John Butler.
The Concert will feature top Indigenous artists Gina Williams AM and Guy Ghouse and Naomi Pigram and will be headlined by a special guest: internationally renowned, ARIA-award winning musician and songwriter John Butler, who is donating his time to perform.
Dr Westerman told Ngaarda Media that funds will go towards raising an army of Indigenous phycologists.
“It’s a poignant day and a marker of respect for those people who we have sadly lost people through suicide. So we’re actually running an event at the University of Western Australia at Winthrop Hall that specifically is for Indigenous people who’ve been bereaved by Suicide and to kind of bring attention to the fact that as Aboriginal people. We have at least double the rate of suicide as non-indigenous people sadly and the idea behind the concert is to raise funds specifically to get more indigenous psychologists into those remote communities.”