Vibrant display of culture in St Barbara’s Square for Harmony Week

A vibrant display of culture and community transformed St Barbara’s Square on Thursday night as part of the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder’s Harmony Week celebrations.

Traditional dances and songs were performed by the Goldfields Fiji Association, Nepalese Dance Group, and Filipino Australian Multicultural Association.

Goldfields Ghanaian community member Peter Young addressed the crowd and said Australia was one nation full of different people.

“We should learn to work in peace and harmony, and if we can do that, we’ll become strong,” he said.

“Let’s respect each other, let’s work together in harmony, let’s work in peace, because if we work together — especially with different people with different backgrounds and cultures — we become stronger and we get better results.”

Mr Young, an associate pastor at Oasis AOG Australian Christian Church, visited Kalgoorlie-Boulder high schools this week to talk with them about harmony, culture, and celebration.

During these visits, he asked the students to circle where they were born or where their parents came from on a map of the world.

On Thursday night, he showed the crowd a world map, and invited them to do the same.

“You can see that almost everywhere in the world, every continent, there is somebody here, represented in Australia,” he said.

“Wherever you are, no matter who you are, not only during Harmony Week but for every day of our lives — let’s make good choices.

“Let’s learn to work together with one another in peace and harmony . . . the best way to do that is to be curious and be willing to learn, have an open mind, talk to people that look different from you, and therefore make Australia a better place to live and work.”

The city’s Harmony Week celebrations will continue this weekend at the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Community Fair with more performances, activities, and artwork.