Dameyon Bonson

2022 Cohort

Dameyon is improving the health, wellbeing opportunities and suicide prevention for First Nations sexuality and gender minority groups.

Dameyon is an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descendant of the Jawoyn Peoples, Mangarrayi nation of the Mataranka region (NT) and the Bari Clan, from Mabuiag Island of the western island group Kala Lagaw Ya (TSI), known as the Wagedagam.

A gay man, he works as an independent suicidology practitioner and is recognised for his expertise in Indigenous LGBTIQA+SB suicide prevention. He is currently undertaking a Master of Suicidology by research while running a creative solutions agency designing and providing practical solutions to complex social problems. He works predominantly in remote and regional Australia and is based on Larrakia Country, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia.

In 2013 he founded Black Rainbow, Australia’s first and only national Indigenous LGBTIQA+SB suicide prevention charity. In 2016 as an inclusion expert, he developed the country’s first Indigenous LGBTIQA+SB cultural competency program for suicide prevention, health, and social services. His work to date has been the catalyst for three such current research studies in Australia. He also leads on a co-design project to create safer homes and communities for Indigenous LGBTIQA+SB young people. In 2020, he was recognised on Vogue Australia’s list of international change-makers.

“This fellowship is an opportunity for me to explore approaches towards dismantling the homophobic structural barriers we face as First Nations sex, sexuality, and gender minority group members from within our communities.”

Social change work

Dameyon’s social change project is to strengthen the Black Rainbow charity to be a more effective change agent in improving health, wellbeing and opportunities for First Nations sexuality and gender minority group members.