The Aboriginals of Australia 1

The Aboriginals of Australia – A Case Study

Student’s Name

Institution
 The Aboriginals of Australia 2

The Aboriginals of Australia – A case Study

Introduction

The Aboriginals are Australia’s first people, having lived on the continent for more than

50000 years. The aboriginal people in Australia are made up of two groups. There are those that

relate to the people that inhabited mainland Australia at the time the British colonized it in the

late 18th century. There are also Torres Strait Islanders who are descendants of residents of

Torres Strait Islands that are located in modern era Queensland Australia. The Aboriginal people

further subdivided into about 250 distinct language speaking groups across Australia. Legally,

the aboriginal people are recognized as people of aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent

(Attwood, 2011, p.171).

The Aboriginal people in Australia make up about 3% of the entire population. This

statistic makes this group of people a minority in Australia. The aboriginals are spread across

different regions of Australia with the Northern Territory housing a majority of them. In terms of

culture, the Aboriginals have their own indigenous set of values and norms that are different

from mainstream Australia. This group of people is completely different from the rest of the

population in different ways (Attwood, 2011, p.171). The differences exist in form of languages

spoken, religion, approach to health, and the food they eat.

Factors Affecting the Aboriginal

The aboriginal community in Australia have a unique culture that is distinct from the rest

of the population. Their culture is based on the norms they have practised since moving to

Australia 50000 years ago. This group of people has also been affected by political and social

factors throughout their stay in Australia.

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Historical Factors

The most significant historical factors that the Aboriginal people in Australia have

endured date back to the time when the Spanish explorer Luiz Torres travelled through the

region in the early 17th century. His arrival introduced a new culture to the people as it

incorporated new civilization. At the time Torres Strait Islanders had good close contact with

communities from Papua New Guinea and the aboriginal (Attwood, 2011, p.173). The arrival

resulted in strained relationships between these communities, something that is still evident to

some extent in today’s era.

The history of the aboriginal people in Australia can also be assessed in terms of two

periods, the time before Christians visited the continent and after their visit. Before the arrival of

missionaries, the aboriginal had traditional religious customs. After the arrival of Christian

missionaries, indigenous communities of Australia were introduced to Christianity (Attwood,

2011, p.173). The change in religious activities changed the majority of these communities as

they had new norms to abide by.

The most significant historical factor that changed the lives of the Aboriginal people is

the arrival of Europeans in the mid-19th century. Increased contact with Europeans resulted in

changes in how the Aboriginal lived. Firstly, they had to give up some of their lands to the new

guests. The Europeans created new borders among the communities in an attempt to make

government easier. The government was designed by the visitors in an attempt to control the

region (Attwood, 2011, p.175).

The arrival of the Europeans also prompted the aboriginal to fight for their rights. The

community saw the arrival as an attempt to deny them their long-lived freedoms of owning

property. The British, who colonized this community, engaged in a prolonged fight that resulted
 The Aboriginals of Australia 4

in the majority of the aboriginal losing their lives. The fight for property persisted when the

Aboriginal people started running out of their food supplies as they had been disrupted by the

arrival of the Europeans (Attwood, 2011, p.177). The arrival of the British and other Europeans

also resulted in the introduction of new foods, implements, and tobacco. This were things that the

Aboriginal were not used to and therefore, mounted a resistance to the visitors. The overall effect

of the arrival of Europeans that it made the aboriginal fringe dwellers of European society in

their own land.

After the settlement of the Europeans, the Aboriginal were subjected to oppressive

legislation. At federation, the Australian territories and states controlled and were responsible for

the Aboriginal community. Each of the territories and states came up with laws that were

restrictive and punitive towards the Aboriginal and other indigenous people in Australia. One of

the contentious pieces of legislation was the Western Australian Aboriginal Act of 1905 that

resulted in the internment of the aboriginal people in bleak reserves, forceful removal of

children, and general gross degradation of people’s rights (Attwood, 2011, p.181). This forced

the aboriginal people to live lives of despair and servitude to the Europeans.

Social Factors

One of the main social factors that the Aboriginal have had to endure is access to

education. The majority of the Aboriginal have found it difficult trying to balance between their

cultural forms of education and the modern system (Fast and Collin-Vézina, 2010, p.170).

Attending schools has become difficult due to a number of reasons. Firstly, all those who go to

school are painted with the same brush, regardless of background. There are no mechanisms of

integrating the Aboriginal into the modern system of education. Additionally, access to education
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opportunities among certain Aboriginal has been blocked by societal discrimination.

Discrimination, in this case, is in the form of racism and segregation.

Another social factor affecting Aboriginals is the concept of religion. As many

Aboriginals are now Christians after the arrival of missionaries and Europeans, there is still a

good number of those that still believe in their ancient traditional religion. As a result, those who

still conserve their traditions are often not respected as independent religious sect. the push by

those who abide by the majority religion is to convert this group into Christians and abandon

their culture (Fast and Collin-Vézina, 2010, p.170). This has forced many to face hostility from

the general public for being hard-headed and not being open to change. Complete conversion to

Christianity, for instance, would result in a loss of identity for the Aboriginal community.

Political Factors

The aboriginal people have attempted to have representation in Australian politics.

Through politics, many in this community believe that they will be able to receive equal

representation. As a result, many in the community have tried vying for different political seats,

either locally or at the national level. The main issue faced by those who would like to represent

the Aboriginals is the lack of support from the rest of the population. Very few aboriginals are

represented in the Australian government and even in local governments (Kingsley et al., 2009,

p.120). The majority of those that are in leadership positions are white Australians and other

immigrant communities.

Current Issues Facing the Aboriginal People – A Literature Review

In today’s era, the Aboriginals in Australia face a myriad of issues. The issues affect their

daily lives. They range from social, cultural, to political issues within their communities.
 The Aboriginals of Australia 6

One of the main issues affecting the Aboriginal community is the lack of healthcare

services. Gwynne et al. (2016, p.47) argue that aboriginal communities find it difficult to access

medical and disability services. Medical and disability services are often expensive for this group

of people to afford. The available services are not situated in areas inhabited by the Aboriginals

and many have to travel long distances to access such services. Medical care services such as

dental care are also very limited. Based on this issue, the majority of people who cannot afford or

gain access the services are forced to rely on some of their traditional customs, which are not

sustainable nor effective.

Secondly, Aboriginal Australians experience a problem when trying to access education.

The modern society has centred life success on at least having good education. According to

Panaretto et al. (2017, p.37), the majority of aboriginal people have recorded a decline in demand

for education services. School attendance among the Aboriginal community is at its lowest. The

decline in demand for education services among the Aboriginal is attributed to cultural values

and different forms of discrimination in the Australian education system.

The Aboriginal community in Australia, additionally, faces high levels of unemployment.

Michalos and Orlando (2017, p.255) state that the Aboriginal people, together with other

indigenous communities have faced issues when trying to find job opportunities. One of the

ways is due to their skills set not matching the requirements for certain jobs. People in this

community do not have enough training to secure some of the lucrative jobs across the country.

The second issue is that their education level and experience do not match the requirements

(Michalos and Orlando, 2017, p.267). When opportunities arise, the majority of people in this

community have been found to have insufficient experience and training. There are also scarce
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jobs in remote areas where the Aboriginal people reside from. This is precipitated by increased

drought in some of their settlements which force investors out.

The Aboriginals, furthermore, face a higher crime rate than the rest of the population.

Problems caused by lack of education and unemployment have forced the Aboriginal youth to

engage in unconventional ways of earning a living (Folds, 2019, p.108). A good number of the

youth in this community have resorted to vices such as stealing and committing crimes. In

certain cases, the youth in the Aboriginal community engage in other law-breaking activities

such as the selling and consumption of drugs, increasing the possibility of criminal activity.

Another issue that faces the Aboriginals of Australia is ineffective government programs.

In Australia, there are hundreds of organizations that are run by states and federal governments.

These organizations receive millions of taxpayer’s money but are ineffective in delivering the

required service to the communities (Brown et al., 2017, p.28). The ineffectiveness of the

programs is also attributed to the fact that there is little coordination between the organizations

and members of the Aboriginal community. The majority of the aboriginals in Australia are

unaware of the existence of some of the organizations and programs that are supposed to help

them. In programs that are known to the people, they are still ineffective in terms of service

delivery and improving the lives of the Aboriginal community in Australia.

Aboriginals Access to Care

Access to care services among the aboriginal community faces a series of obstacles. The

obstacles related to the economic and social aspects of this community.

The first obstacle is the inability to pay for care services. A good number of Aboriginals

live in poverty and are unemployed (Zambas and Wright, 2016, p.399). This makes it difficult to

access care services like medical and general healthcare. The cost of such care in Australia is
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high. The cheap available services are often bombarded with people who cannot afford the other

services.

The second obstacle is the ability to seek and perceive health-related care. Health

literacy, beliefs, trust, and expectations have resulted in the Aboriginal having some negative

perceptions about health care in Australia (Panaretto et al., 2017, p.39). Additionally, personal

and social values together with gender and autonomy have made it difficult for those in the

Aboriginal community to seek services. These issues pose a big obstacle or some in the

community to receive the necessary care they need.

Additionally, the Aboriginal community face the inability to reach and engage obstacles

when trying to access healthcare services. In terms of the inability to reach, the Aboriginal live in

environments that are far from healthcare centres and have poor infrastructure. In the case of the

inability to engage, Aboriginals do not have adequate access to the relevant information and

limited support from caregivers (Panaretto et al., 2017, p.43). These aspects have made it more

difficult to access and receive the needed care among this group of people.

Opportunities that Exist for Access to Care

The barriers to access to care services among the Aboriginal have resulted in

opportunities presenting themselves in the community. The opportunities arise from the people

coming up with ways of reducing the impacts of the obstacles. The society, in general, has

helped create opportunities for care services in the Aboriginal community.

Firstly, a good number of Aboriginals are attaining relevant education and training to

provide care services to their communities. In recent years, more Aboriginals have enrolled in

fields such as medicine, counselling, and psychology. A good number is also receiving training

and skills to perform jobs such as social work and nursing (Brown et al., 2015, p.30). These
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opportunities create optimism for the future of the Aboriginals in terms of receiving good care.

When these people are fully educated or trained, they will integrate into their communities

making it easier for the people to seek and access different kinds of care services.

Secondly, their infrastructural developments being done by the states and federal

governments. The government as increased funding to some of the key infrastructural projects

across Australia (Martin et al., 2019, p.122). This will make areas that are inhabited by the

Aboriginal and other indigenous people to be easily accessible. This opportunity also creates a

path for investors to open shops in Aboriginal areas. With investors and businesses being

approved to operate in Aboriginal communities, care services such as health and medical

facilities will crop up and at affordable costs. This will make it easier for the Aboriginal to afford

and easily access the care services.

Developing Culturally Competent Services and Practices

The concept of cultural competence refers to the ability to effectively interact,

communicate with, and understand people across different cultures. It centers on the

development of positive attitudes towards people of other cultures. Cultural competence towards

the Aboriginals in Australia requires one to have specific skills and attributes (Liaw et al., 2011,

p.241). The skills and attributes include cultural awareness, cultural safety, critical reflexivity,

and racism.

In terms of cultural awareness, people who work with the Aboriginals in Australia should

receive adequate training on different cultural issues affecting this group of people. Practitioners,

for instance, should have skills that enable them to be culturally sensitive when dealing with the

Aboriginal community (Wendt and Gone, 2012, p.208). This involves understanding what the

Aboriginals value culturally and what they do not.

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In the case of cultural safety, people who want to work with the Aboriginals should create

a safe environment. This includes being able to provide equal services to everyone without any

threats being directed to those receiving help (Wendt and Gone, 2012, p.210). Practitioners, for

instance, can assure people of their security and confidentiality when providing them with care.

Cultural reflexivity is a process where people build their skills over a period of time. It

also includes developing values and relevant knowledge that results in ethical and respectful

cultural diversity. It involves developing relevant knowledge about how society perceives people

from different cultural backgrounds. The race of people, for instance, can be used to inform

others of what the real issues affecting a community are. This is outlined by the social identity

theory that holds that people from different diverse backgrounds may receive negative outcomes

if the society is not diverse enough (Durey, 2010, p.89).

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References

Attwood, B., 2011. Aboriginal history, minority histories and historical wounds: the postcolonial

condition, historical knowledge and the public life of history in Australia. Postcolonial

Studies, 14(2), pp.171-186.

Brown, S.J., Weetra, D., Glover, K., Buckskin, M., Ah Kit, J., Leane, C., Mitchell, A., Stuart‐

Butler, D., Turner, M., Gartland, D. and Yelland, J., 2015. Improving Aboriginal

women's experiences of antenatal care: findings from the Aboriginal families study in

South Australia. Birth, 42(1), pp.27-37.

Durey, A., 2010. Reducing racism in Aboriginal health care in Australia: where does cultural

education fit? Australian and New Zealand journal of public health, 34, pp.S87-S92.

Fast, E. and Collin-Vézina, D., 2010. Historical trauma, race-based trauma, and resilience of

indigenous peoples: A literature review. First Peoples Child & Family Review, 14(1),

pp.166-181.

Folds, R., 2019. Aboriginal crime at the cultural interface in Central Australia. Crime, Media,

Culture, 15(1), pp.107-124.

Gwynne, K., Irving, M.J., McCowen, D., Rambaldini, B., Skinner, J., Naoum, S. and Blinkhorn,

A., 2016. Developing a sustainable model of oral health care for disadvantaged aboriginal

people living in rural and remote communities in NSW, using collective impact

methodology. Journal of health care for the poor and underserved, 27(1), pp.46-53.

Kingsley, J., Aldous, D., Townsend, M., Phillips, R. and Henderson-Wilson, C., 2009.

Investigating health, economic and socio-political factors that need consideration when

establishing Victorian Aboriginal land management projects. Australasian Journal of

Environmental Management, 16(2), pp.113-123.

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Liaw, S.T., Lau, P., Pyett, P., Furler, J., Burchill, M., Rowley, K. and Kelaher, M., 2011.

Successful chronic disease care for Aboriginal Australians requires cultural

competence. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 35(3), pp.238-248.

Martin, J.M., White, J., Roberts, S., Haussegger, Z., Greenwood, E., Grant, K. and Haines, T.,

2019. Aboriginal Wellbeing: A Culturally Safe, Trauma-Informed Framework for Health

and Mental Health Services. In Mental Health Policy, Practice, and Service Accessibility

in Contemporary Society (pp. 107-133). IGI Global.

Michalos, A.C. and Orlando, J.A., 2017. Quality of Life of Some Under-Represented Survey

Respondents: Youth, Aboriginals and Unemployed. In Connecting the Quality of Life

Theory to Health, Well-being and Education (pp. 255-275). Springer, Cham.

Panaretto, K.S., Dellit, A., Hollins, A., Wason, G., Sidhom, C., Chilcott, K., Malthouse, D.,

Andrews, S., Mein, J., Ahkee, B. and McDermott, R., 2017. Understanding patient access

patterns for primary health-care services for Aboriginal and Islander people in

Queensland: a geospatial mapping approach. Australian Journal of Primary

Health, 23(1), pp.37-45.

Wendt, D.C. and Gone, J.P., 2012. Rethinking cultural competence: Insights from indigenous

community treatment settings. Transcultural Psychiatry, 49(2), pp.206-222.

Zambas, S.I. and Wright, J., 2016. Impact of colonialism on Māori and Aboriginal healthcare

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