A 14-year-old Mildura boy says the driver of an SUV that ran into him last week did not stop to help, but yelled racist abuse before driving away.
Darren Perry Jr and his brother-in-law, 20-year-old Tom Garner, said they were riding their bikes about 12:30am on Wednesday when they stopped at the corner of Walnut Avenue and Eighth Street.
They said they were waiting for the vehicle to go through the roundabout.
Junior says the SUV "got halfway through the roundabout, so we went to go and then it hooked a left".
"When [the vehicle] went into the front of the bike … and the handlebars went up the bonnet, [I] thought I was going to die," he said.
He and Mr Garner said the driver stopped the car and yelled "get off the road, you black dogs" and shouted another racist slur before driving off.
'Pretty shocking'
Junior, a Watiwati and Latji Latji boy, said he was not seriously injured but was left with a sore shoulderblade and ribs and a damaged bike.
A police spokesperson said investigators were yet to determine the exact circumstances surrounding the incident and urged anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Junior said he had experienced a lot of racism, but had never heard the slur used against him until that night.
"I'm very proud of my culture and the colour of my skin," he says.
"But it made me feel like I shouldn't go out and shouldn't be proud, because there's people like that.
"It was pretty shocking when he said that."
Junior's father, Binjali/Ngarket man Darren Perry, says he is shocked and "utterly disgusted" by the alleged incident and is urging the driver to come forward.
Mr Perry said the impact had been "devastating".
"Not just for [Junior] — it's also for other Aboriginal children and the whole community here," he said.
"I thought we were addressing these issues and they were a thing of the past.
Strong support
Mr Perry says a lot of progress has been made in the fight against racism in Mildura and that the driver's alleged behaviour did not reflect most people's attitudes.
He says the family has been overwhelmed with support from the community in the aftermath of the alleged incident.
"We've been supported so well by so many people," Mr Perry said.
"It's amazing the people that we don't even know that have shown that they don't stand for this type of behaviour, and that they fully support the Aboriginal community here, and that only by working together we can make a better future for us all."
But Mr Perry said prejudice was regularly experienced by Aboriginal people in Mildura and elsewhere.
"When the kids go to the supermarket they'll be shadowed by security as soon as they get in the door till they leave," he said.
"Even when they've gone to the register, paid for their stuff, they'll still be stopped at the door and have their bag searched.
"That's a normal one for every Aboriginal kid in town — happens to them all.
"And there's other … more serious incidents of racial language … then you get this really violent racist element here.
