Post World War Two Racism, in Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal Communities.
Over the years Australia has had many different problems with racism and racism affecting peoples’ lives. Many racial groups have been affected, most significantly the Aboriginals. The end of world war two in 1945 marked a huge change in types of racism. Australia went from the ‘superior’ white Australians dominating over immigrants and aboriginals. To a relatively multicultural and accepting society that is present today.
During world war two Australia came close to being invaded, the Japanese in Sydney Harbor were a huge fright to many Australians. After world war two it seemed Australia needed to populate or perish. So the government made a big push to fill Australia. Many children were born due to this new idea. They were called the 'Baby boomers'. The baby boomers were being born at huge rates and inflating Australians population. The white Australia policy was pretty much abandoned as migrants flooded into Australia. White Australians still felt that they were superior but they needed these immigrants to populate Australia.
Over the five years following the war, about 171,000 immigrants came to Australia. The government introduced the assisted passage scheme which gave immigrants temporary accommodation in Australia in exchange for two years of labour. Most immigrants came from places such as Poland, Yugoslavia and the Baltic States and then later Germany, Grease, Italy and Malta. The immigrant families were placed in old army barracks in severely poor conditions, and exposed to racial discrimination. They were often referred to with names such as ‘wogs’, ‘bolt’ and’ reffo’. Families were separated. Men were sent off to work on things such as t...
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... we could be or the worst other countries have been but it still is not acceptable the way they are treated, dissimilar to other white Australians. Eventually Australia will and must change.
http://www.unhcr.org/statistics/STATISTICS/47daae862.pdf
http://cacreview.blogspot.com/2007/06/aboriginals-in-australia-still-worst.html
http://agsearch.ag.gov.au/clsearch/home?query=aboriginal&new=1
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=379056
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_to_Australia
http://www.johnpilger.com/page.asp?partid=9.
http://www.schools.nsw.edu.au/events/statecompetitions/webawards/winners2005/secondary/11/aboriginaldis.htm
http://www.thewe.cc/weplanet/news/people/australia/breaking_the_circle_of_crime.html
http://www.racismnoway.com.au/library/history/
http://www.biographybase.com/biography/Mabo_Eddie.html
emily evelyn hill
The Assimilation was a policy set by the government in 1937 and went to till 1964. This policy of Assimilation was set not just for Aborigines in Australia but for all foreign immigrants that were not European and white in colour. Having this policy set in place meant that Aborigines were forced to give up their heritage and adopt the culture of the British/Anglo Saxons. This law sent children away from their families to learn how to become and live like a white Australian, leaving all memories, beliefs, and traditions behind. Another major impact this had toward the Aborigines was they had no rights or freedoms and finally all culture, heritage, beliefs were left behind and made to start a new life living as a 'white fella’.
...ndigenous recognition and the removal of racist remarks has been an on-going theme for a vast majority of time. The necessity of Constitutional reform to close the gap on cultural divide as well as support the on-going concept of reconciliation is essential in ensuring Australia continues to improve and nurture its relationship with Indigenous peoples. The process of amendment through referendum has proven to be problematic in the past, with the success rate exceptionally low. Though with key factors such as bi-partisan support, widespread public knowledge and correct management, the alteration to remove racial discrimination and provide recognition for Indigenous persons within the Constitution is highly achievable. If proposed and eventually passed, this will provide assistance in eliminating many of the cultural gaps Indigenous persons face throughout society.
Australia is a relatively young country; only becoming a unified nation in 1901 (Commonwealth of Australia, 2012). A young country is no different from a young person; identity is an issue. Questions of who am I and where do I fit in the world are asked, and unfortunately not often answered until a tragedy occurs. National identity is a sense of a nation and its people as a connected whole. This feeling of cohesiveness can be shaped by many events in a nation’s history but none more so than war. War is a stressful, traumatic affair that changes forever, not only the people that go to it but the nation as a whole. Many consider the Great War Australia’s tragedy where we became a nation (Bollard, 2013) with our own modern identity.
Key events in Aboriginal Australian history stem from the time Australia was first discovered in 1788. For instance, when Federation came into existence in 1901, there was a prevailing belief held by non Aboriginal Australians that the Aborigines were a dying race (Nichol, 2005:259) which resulted in the Indigenous people being excluded from the constitution except for two mentions – Section 127 excluded Aborigines from the census and Section 51, part 26, which gave power over Aborigines to the States rather than to the Federal Government. Aboriginal people were officially excluded from the vote, public service, the Armed Forces and pensions. The White Australia mentality/policy Australia as “White” and unfortunately this policy was not abolished until 1972. REFERENCE
In the nineteenth century, the “History wars” became the fight between the most prominent historians revolving around the deception of frontier conflict between the labor and coalition. The debate aroused from the different interpretations of the violence that took place during the European colonization and to what degree. It became a crisis in history, emerging from the dispossession of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders (ATSI) that resulted in exclusion of their traditions and culture. The ATSI were the first people of Australia that brought along a different culture, language, kinship structures and a different way of life (Face the Facts, 2012). Post European colonization was a time where the ATSI people experienced disadvantage in the land they called home. With the paramount role as future educators, it demands proficient knowledge on the Australian history and one of the most influential moments in our history started from the first European settlers.
Though Australia is perceived as a democratic country whose government is open to public scrutiny, this belief is erroneous. The Australian Government’s apathy towards asylum seekers is neglectful of the fundamental human right to liberty and a sense of safety. Australia will need to overturn these inhumane laws to move forward as a country. If you believe Australia is a country of equality and acceptance then you are deluding yourself.
Within Australia, beginning from approximately the time of European settlement to late 1969, the Aboriginal population of Australia experienced the detrimental effects of the stolen generation. A majority of the abducted children were ’half-castes’, in which they had one white parent and the other of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent. Following the government policies, the European police and government continued the assimilation of Aboriginal children into ‘white’ society. Oblivious to the destruction and devastation they were causing, the British had believed that they were doing this for “their [Aborigines] own good”, that they were “protecting” them as their families and culture were deemed unfit to raise them. These beliefs caused ...
‘Approximately 1 in 5 people and 7 in 10 teens are victim to racism.’ This is truly alarming and worrying for Australia. Racism has been in Australia from the very first settlement in 1788. Britain claimed Australia as ‘terra nullius’ (empty land) even though they knew that aboriginals existed. The indigenous people of our land were treated more like flora and fauna than citizens of Australia and only were counted in
Indigenous Australians began to be robbed of their rights and freedoms when the Europeans colonized Australia. Since then, Aboriginal people and Indigenous supporters have taken steps towards equality and reconciliation.
Racism in Australia traces both previous incidents in the past and present racist attitudes which is the result of continuous defamation of indigenous people and the mass migration of people to Australia. In Australia the most prevalent people who in Australia’s past and still to this day show acts of racism on a large scale are the white settlers who after dispossessing the land from the aboriginals started a continuous wave of racism and hate. The main target of racial attacks in Australia are the Aboriginals and migrants who after suffering are still subjected to continuous racism and racists remarks. Racism in Australia is a large scale problem as it has numerous detrimental effects
...rial covered in the unit Aboriginal People that I have been studying at the University of Notre Dame Fremantle, Aboriginal people have had a long history of being subjected to dispossession and discriminatory acts that has been keep quite for too long. By standing together we are far more likely to achieve long lasting positive outcomes and a better future for all Australians.
The assimilation policy was a policy that existed between the 1940’s and the 1970’s, and replaced that of protectionism. Its purpose was to have all persons of aboriginal blood and mixed blood living like ‘white’ Australians, this established practice of removing Aboriginal children (generally half-bloods) from their homes was to bring them up without their culture, and they were encouraged to forget their aboriginal heritage. Children were placed in institutions where they could be 'trained' to take their place in white society. During the time of assimilation Aboriginal people were to be educated for full citizenship, and have access to public education, housing and services. However, most commonly aboriginal people did not receive equal rights and opportunities, for example, their wages were usually less than that paid to the white workers and they often did not receive recognition for the roles they played in the defence of Australia and their contribution to the cattle industry. It wasn’t until the early 1960’s that expendi...
Immigration is an important feature of Australian society. Since 1945, over six million people from 200 countries have come to Australia as new settlers. Migrants have made a major contribution to shaping modern Australia. People born overseas make up almost one quarter of the total population. About its ethics distribution, aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people totaled 410 003 at the last census, nearly 2.2 per cent of the population. Two thirds of the indigenous people live in towns and cities. Many others live in rural and remote areas, and some still have a broadly traditional way of life.(Ning)
After the release of Rabbit Proof Fence, many `politically right' white Australians tried to promote that the film was based on myth and misunderstanding but in facet is not as the film itself promotes the openness of racism. Racism was not only a problem is Australia but throughout the world and is continuing to stay a problem, even in our own backyard. The racism between the white Australians and the Aborigines is quite similar to the racism shown in schools and even in parliament here in New Zealand between the Maori and Europeans, or once again between the `white' and the `black'.
In the Northern Territory especially the Indigenous Australians are given separate laws that they alone must follow. Laws exist in the NT that limit Indigenous Australians basic human rights and freedom of expression; although from a white man’s stand point it may seem like a positive move, by restricting the lives of another human the decision is being made that white man knows best and they should do as we do, much the same as the assimilation movement in the 1800’s. Not only do these laws make it easier to target the Indigenous population, it also violates their basic human rights. An example of this is compulsorily weekly health checks for Indigenous children; in theory is a great idea, but with threats such as loss of welfare payment or even removal of children from their parents a great pressure is placed onto these families. It would be completely unacceptable for such a notion to be invoked into a white community; this is but one of the many racially profiled laws that are in place throughout Australia. This inequality in the justice system is felt among the Indigenous population of Australia, constantly feeling wronged and targeted, making it extremely hard to gain the confidence to change their pattern of living. Justice relies on an understanding of one’s everyday life, social justice and the acknowledgement that people live different lives. When Mick Dodson was