Let the Franklin Flow
Saving the planet, one river at a time
Hi all,
Thank you for joining me for this week’s song, Let the Franklin Flow, a song from 1983 written by Shane Howard, a member of the Australian folk/rock band, Goanna.
If you’d like to hear the song before you read the background, I’ve included a YouTube video below the article.
Below, you’ll find my interpretation of the lyrics. I’ve written the lyrics in italics. As with most everything, there are many ways to interpret things. I invite you to leave a question or comment at the end.
For Japanese students, vocabulary words in bold are provided in Japanese below.
Background
(542 words)
In 1972, the Tasmanian Government in Australia allowed dams to be built on the Serpentine and Huon rivers, causing Lake Pedder to flood. This damaged a great deal of the environment in the area. In spite of protests, the dams were constructed. Activists, like Dr. Bob Brown, formed the Tasmanian Wilderness Society in 1976 to fight against deforestation, mining, and road building in wilderness areas.
In 1978, plans for a dam on the Gordon River created controversy due to potential damage to the Franklin River and its surroundings. The Wilderness Society and other environmental groups urged the government to protect the endangered species and First Nations rock art that was located there. Thousands of people protested in the streets against the planned dam.
A new government was elected in Tasmania, but it supported construction of the dam. Environmental groups asked the Australian Government to take action, but it refused.
In 1982, the Wilderness Society created a blockade of the Franklin River so that construction of the dam could not proceed. Of the 2,500 protesters, 1,400 were arrested. Some spent time in jail.
At that time, UNESCO listed the Franklin River as a World Heritage site, but the Tasmanian Government still refused to cancel plans for the dam.
In 1983, the Labor Party won the national election. Its leaders decided to stop the dam project from moving forward. The Tasmanian Government took the case to court, but the Australian government won and stopped the dam project.
This movement increased environmental awareness and led to the creation of green political parties, with the Greens becoming the third largest political party in Australia.
The Song
The song tells the story of these events and of how protecting this beautiful area of nature was worth fighting for.
The lyrics include the line, from Kuta Kina to the south-west shore. Kutakina Cave is located on the Franklin River. It has evidence of the First Nation people and part of it has been dated to about 14,000 years ago.
we fell (cut down) the forests and we scar the land … and desecrate it with greedy hands, destroy the beauty that nature planned
Here, songwriter Shane Howard is saying that there are companies who make a great deal of profit by cutting down the forests and building dams, but in the process, they destroy the wilderness that nature has designed.
a thousand people arrested and bailed
has to be something worth fighting for
voices crying in the wilderness
saying this is something worth fighting for
Here, he is saying that the people who were arrested were speaking on behalf of the thousands of natural species of plants, animals, and insects who live together in this natural environment.
Oh, Tasmania
the hardest heart would understand
just to feel your wilderness
your silence sings to me
Howard begs the listener to consider the request of the thousands of activists who were trying to save this habitat. Just being in the wilderness can cause a person with a “hard heart” to soften and come to appreciate the beauty and wonder of the place.
Rummin_matt on Instagram asked Shane Howard about the song. Howard replied, “You call it a protest song. I think of it as a prayer or a hymn to nature.”
VOCABULARY
deforestation 森林破壊
mining 鉱業
wilderness 荒野
controversy 論争
potential 潜在的
surroundings 周囲
urge 衝動
endangered species 絶滅危惧種
First Nations 先住民族
blockade 封鎖
evidence 証拠
scar 傷を残す
desecrate 冒涜する
greedy 欲張り
arrest 逮捕
World Heritage Site 世界遺産
bail 保釈金
on behalf of 代表して
hymn 讃美歌
Source:
https://digital-classroom.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/franklin-dam-protests
All photos via commons.wikimedia.org.
☮️💟 from Sydney, Australia