Ryan Butta stumbled on a fascinating, forgotten history when visiting his father’s hometown of Brewarrina in north-west NSW in 2018.
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Flicking through the pages of a local history of the town his interest was piqued by a 19th-century photo of a camel train, and he soon found himself on the trail of Australia’s earliest Afghan camel drivers. Separating the bulldust from the bush poetry, Ryan reveals the breadth and depth of white Australian protectionism and prejudice.
Told with flair and authority, The Ballad of Abdul Wade interrogates why some people have been written out of history and defies the standard horse-powered folklore to reveal a previously unknown episode of Australian pioneering history.
Shepparton library is pleased to welcome Mr Butta to discuss the book on Friday, October 7, at 3pm.
Mr Butta, who grew up in regional NSW, reveals a gritty alternative history in The Ballad of Abdul Wade, exposing the untold debt that Australia owes to the humble camel — and the Afghans who brought them here and drove them through the outback.
When young Afghan entrepreneur Abdul Wade first brought his camel trains to the outback in the 1890s, he was hailed as a hero by local communities. The British colonies relied on horses, which couldn’t access many remote settlements — especially those stricken by flood or drought — so camel trains rode to the rescue time and time again.
But with success came fierce opposition fuelled by prejudice, and in a climate of colonial misinformation, hyperbole and fear, Wade — along with other Afghans involved in the camel business — found himself with a target firmly on his back when his business threatened the livelihoods of the European horse drivers.
The anti-Afghan movement took off, propelled by the union leaders and politicians of the time, leaving a legacy of xenophobia that endures in Australian society today. Yet all the while, for those in need, the ships of the desert continued to appear on the outback horizon.
The Ballad of Abdul Wade
If you would like to join Ryan Butta at the Shepparton Library to learn more about this fascinating aspect of Australian history, call 1300 374 765 or email shepparton@gvlibraries.com.au
Copies of the book will be available for purchase at the event.
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