The 1967 Referendum to Include Aboriginals in the National Census Was a Failure
The 1967 Referendum to include Aboriginals in the census was a failure.
The 1967 referendum asked Australians to decide whether Aboriginals should be included in the national census, with over ninety per cent voting yes, many consider the referendum to be a great success. In that respect the referendum was indeed a success because the vast majority of voters wished to include Aboriginals in the census, but in many ways the poll was a failure. Some Aboriginals and many other Australians believed that the referendum would mean equality between the natives and the white Australians. Despite these beliefs, many if not most of the Aboriginals wishes and needs were not met. The referendums success meant that the federal government was able to make laws in relation to Indigenous Australians, meaning that the government was allowed to create laws promoting the racial discrimination of aboriginals.
Contrary to popular belief, the victory of the referendum did not mean equality between Aboriginals and the rest of the nation. The referendum didn’t create equal opportunity and living standards between native Australians and the rest of the country. Even today a sense of inequality regarding the treatment and rights of Aboriginals continues to be a part of Australia. As still illustrated, even after actions made by the government to improve Aboriginals life quality the average life span of other Australians is 17 years higher than that of an Aboriginals2. This alone depicts that not enough has been done by the government to make the aboriginal population equal to everyone else. One of the direct reasons for this lower lifespan is the lack of government-funding provided to the aboriginal community in relation to their health. According to the Australian Medical Association indigenous peoples health needs were underfunded by four hundred and sixty million dollars in 20102. The lack of medical assistance provided to Aboriginal communities is immensely lower than that of the
The 1967 referendum asked Australians to decide whether Aboriginals should be included in the national census, with over ninety per cent voting yes, many consider the referendum to be a great success. In that respect the referendum was indeed a success because the vast majority of voters wished to include Aboriginals in the census, but in many ways the poll was a failure. Some Aboriginals and many other Australians believed that the referendum would mean equality between the natives and the white Australians. Despite these beliefs, many if not most of the Aboriginals wishes and needs were not met. The referendums success meant that the federal government was able to make laws in relation to Indigenous Australians, meaning that the government was allowed to create laws promoting the racial discrimination of aboriginals.
Contrary to popular belief, the victory of the referendum did not mean equality between Aboriginals and the rest of the nation. The referendum didn’t create equal opportunity and living standards between native Australians and the rest of the country. Even today a sense of inequality regarding the treatment and rights of Aboriginals continues to be a part of Australia. As still illustrated, even after actions made by the government to improve Aboriginals life quality the average life span of other Australians is 17 years higher than that of an Aboriginals2. This alone depicts that not enough has been done by the government to make the aboriginal population equal to everyone else. One of the direct reasons for this lower lifespan is the lack of government-funding provided to the aboriginal community in relation to their health. According to the Australian Medical Association indigenous peoples health needs were underfunded by four hundred and sixty million dollars in 20102. The lack of medical assistance provided to Aboriginal communities is immensely lower than that of the