SCRIBNER AUSTRALIA TO PUBLISH SANTILLA CHINGAIPE’S GROUNDBREAKING BOOK ON THE FIRST BLACK CONVICTS IN AUSTRALIA

Scribner Australia is delighted to announce a deal with Grace Heifetz of Left Bank Literary to publish Santilla Chingaipe’s groundbreaking Black Convicts: How Slavery Shaped Colonised Australia. Based on four years’ research, this book examines the main founding act of white Australia – the First Fleet – revealing that at least ten of the convicts were of African descent. They were the first of around 500 African descended convicts whose stories have been largely erased from Australia’s history – including that of the first convict bushranger – whose legacy remains even beyond their tens of thousands of descendants. By restituting these stories, Black Convicts challenges the racist over-writing of Australia’s history, and shows how deeply rooted in the global economics of slavery the colonisation of this country was. 

Scribner’s publisher Ben Ball commented: ‘The First Fleet has become the origin myth of much white Australian identity. By showing that event to have been racially complex, Santilla peels off another layer of the whitewashing of our history and further breaks down oppressive images of homogeneity in Australia’s identity. Our history is not binary – Santilla writes brilliantly about the complex interactions between First Nations peoples and convicts of African descent – and it is not isolated from wider global forces; by deepening our understanding of the slave trade, Black Convicts reminds us that our modern nation was built on the back of forced labour. It is a compelling addition to our national understanding.’

Santilla Chingaipe is a well-known and respected journalist, filmmaker and author. She added: ‘My ongoing investigation into the forgotten stories of people of African descent in colonial Australia has revealed that the foundation of this modern country is not only complex and complicated – but deeply flawed. These ancestors’ stories underscore the brutality of the colonialism, slavery and racism that have been our inheritance, highlighting the impact that these structures continue to have in Australia – and around the world. I’m delighted that it has found a home at Scribner Australia, and look forward to sharing Black Convicts with readers.’ 

Scribner Australia acquired ANZ rights to Black Convicts: How Slavery Shaped Colonised Australia and will publish it in 2023.