Demi Tran 10A History [summaries] Miss Smith

The Varying experiences of the Stolen Generation

TERMS AND DEFINITIONS: Stolen Generation: The 'stolen generation' is a term which refers to the number of Indigenous Australian children who were mostly forcibly and often deceptively removed from their families, between 1900 and the 1970s. Around 10 000 Aboriginal children were removed from their families in New South Wales, they were either placed: Up for adoption to a white family In a church mission In an Aboriginal Homes Or sometimes in corrective institutions

Treatment: They received little education and had to work for long hours, in some cases they were forced to work long hours in order to be fed. Contact with their biological family was not allowed, they could not practice native traditions or speak their own language.

Removing of the children: The removing of Aboriginal people were harsh, the authorities would remove children through trickery, deception, threat and force. Authorities claimed that the removal was for the safety of the children as they would have a much better life with the white family. They were constantly looking for an excuse to remove the children; they also claimed that the children were being abused by their parents, so taking them away was the only safe option. The truth was that they aimed to eliminate the Aboriginal race. Although the removal of children was usually permanent, some states allowed for parents to appeal getting back their children, but this was rare as many did not have the money for it and they did not understand the process.

Physical, Psychological and stolen identities: The stolen children were denied access to the language, culture, heritage and role models, and this led to depression and a poor self esteem. Over time the stolen children would turn to drugs and alcohol, which would lead to poor health, poor education, poor

Demi Tran 10A History [summaries], Miss Smith

opportunities and being arrested for crimes. They were often sent to work as farmers, labourers and domestic servants after schooling year, even if they were bright students. They were paid straight into their bank accounts which were controlled by authorities. They failed to learn parenting skills as there were no good role models

They were unable to revive their relationship with biological parents and were always feeling isolated and different from the white society. They were brought up in a white family, treated differently but had to think like a white person, they didnt know who they were, which led to the f eeling of being different, being confused. At school, they were often bullied by other students for being Aboriginal, which put down their self esteem. Government policies: Established laws to empower them to remove children (Protection Acts) Established Protection Boards to administer this policy Gave power to the police and Protection officers to implement it Took over from parents their roles as legal guardians of their children

A minority of the politicians stated that it was stealing children if they were to create laws. Some said the children would be exploited as unpaid workers. Case study of Karen: Karen was a stolen child taken by the Australian Government and Social services She was placed up for adoption to a white family Karen felt lonely and different because she was bullied at school after realising her skin colour was different She moved out of the family to find her biological family at the age of 29 years old Her mother and father did not express their issues to her She had a half brother and sister who may have been separated She was confused and experienced a nervous breakdown when meeting her real family and she couldnt accept the situation.

Demi Tran 10A History [summaries], Miss Smith

Struggle of Aboriginal peoples for rights and freedoms

1966: Wave Hill; Stockmen walked off the job in the NT to protect poor working and living conditions. Wave Hill was regarded the beginning of the modern Aboriginal land rights movement. October 1966: Australia signed the International Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Racial Discrimination. 1967: Aboriginal Referendum was held 1972 onwards: The Aboriginal Tent embassy was established outside the Old Parliament House in Canberra for the development of Aboriginal rights and wanted to improve their lack of wages, appalling treatment and work conditions and the sexual abuse targeted at Aboriginal women at the workplace. 3 June 1992: Mabo decision/ ruling overturned the concept that Australia was terra nullius and the Mabos people wanted legal recognition of their land ownership rights. 1993: Native Title Act; recognised the existing land rights of all owners of property and allowed Aboriginals to claim traditional ownership of their land. 1996: Wik Decision; gave Aboriginals land rights for land already owned by pastoralists and stated that the Aboriginals and owners of the land must share it. 1998: Ten Point Plan; Howard proposes 10 points that make it harder to claim the land and easier for Native Title to be extinguished. It was viewed by the populace as a racist proposal and had many negative consequences for people wishing to claim native title rights. 1967 Referendum: It allowed for the Aboriginal people to be counted in the census and as part of the population It allowed for the commonwealth government to make laws regarding the aborigines It was held on the 27 May 1967 It occurred also because the laws changed between each state as the state government was in charge of making laws regarding indigenous people. This meant that the rights of an aboriginal person could change if they moved states. By voting yes, it allowed for aboriginals to have improved housing conditions, improved health and a better education.
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Demi Tran 10A History [summaries], Miss Smith

Native titles and land rights: Terms and definitions: Land rights: Indigenous peoples claim to land they occupied or used to occupy. Native Title: legal recognition of the existence of Indigenous peoples law and land ownership before 1788. Development of Aboriginal Rights: It involved returning the land to the aboriginal communities Compensation for groups which have been stripped of their land Providing financial assistance for those who could not claim back their land

Mabo Decision: 1879: QLD Government began to take over the Torres Strait Islander but Meriam Islanders continued to live on their island, living the traditional way of life. 1970s: land rights are taken from the Meriam people 1982: Eddie Koiki Mabo, Father David Passi, James Rice, Sam Passi and Celia Salee take the case to court They claimed that the indigenous people owned that land long before anyone could remember It was appealed to high court and was a historic turning point as it overwhelmed the fiction that Australia was known as Terra Nullius.

Native Title: Wik: 1990: Australia was divided over the issue of race December 1996: the case of the Wik people was handed to the high court after the land was used by pastoralists Court decided that the native title act should continue even if the land was taken, but if there was conflict, the pastoralist gained control 22 December 1993, the Native Title bill is passed by the federal government It did not apply to pastoralists, so they could keep their land 15% of Australias land was being recognised as the indigenous peoples land Aboriginal activism increased public discussion and legislation all helped maintain a focus on land rights. 10 December, Paul Keating took a further step to native title, he acknowledge the past injustice.