As Ian said in the interview, “authenticity” is a big deal these days. Certainly, I’d get more interest/money from a publisher if the manuscript were authored by a “genuine” First Nations writer than by someone else.
And yes, “cultural appropriation” is another big issue, too (not explicitly yet raised, I think, in the case of JB, but can’t be far behind now). An intelligent approach to this would suggest that any author, of any background, should be able to write about any issue... as long as there is some basic intellectual honesty/ transparency/acknowledgement going on. What’s hard for me to agree with is the ascendant view that only members of a designated group are permitted to write about that group. This rapidly gets into vertiginous territory... after all, if you can self-identify as [insert group name here] then who is to say whether you can/cannot write about it?
Racially insensitive... well, the conclusion I came to after all the shitty comments on Youtube is this: that it is apparently racially insensitive for two white boys, such as Ian and myself, to even raise the question of racial origins with a self-declared First Nations person. Personally, I think that’s a truly dreadful viewpoint... However are we to live in greater harmony on this planet if we can’t talk freely and honestly with each other? If there is a growing blacklist of topics that are verboten? Totalitarianism can’t be far behind.
Happily though, the following show with Dr. Leo Killsback was really excellent... he was warm, patient with our slightly daffy humour and I found what he had to say memorable.