This Indigenous-led analysis identified six interconnected pathways through which racism disrupts the social and emotional wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples: threatening cultural survival; undermining kinship systems; denigrating systems of power and justice; perpetuating harmful stereotypes; inflicting health harms; and challenging self-determination and sovereignty. 

Racism emerged as an everyday and intergenerational burden, deeply embedded within settler-colonial institutions, policies and dominant social narratives. Participants articulated how systemic racism continues to undermine cultural survival, erode sovereignty and constrain self-determination. Despite these harms, narratives of strength, identity and cultural continuity highlighted the central role of collective resistance, pride and community connection.

The study underscores the need to move beyond individualised health models toward decolonial systems of care grounded in self-determination, truth-telling and structural change. These findings contribute to growing calls for structural transformation, emphasising the urgency of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-led, community-driven responses to health and wellbeing.