Urban myths: Exploring the unsettling nature of aboriginal presence in and through a regional Australian town

According to census data, Aboriginal Australians live predominantly in urban localities. Yet 'urban Aboriginality' has received limited attention in the Australian literature and continues to be generalised largely in terms of deficit and illegitimacy. Drawing on findings from recent research in Broome, Western Australia, this article explores how Aboriginal presence in and through a particular urban space disrupts overlain colonial boundaries regarding who and what constitutes 'urban Aboriginality'. It argues that not only have 'authenticity discourses' had a marginalising and disciplining effect on Aboriginal spatial geographies, they also paint a distorted picture of the realities of Aboriginal lived experiences in and through urban spaces.