"The stolen generations" is a term used to describe the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders who, while children, Australian state and federal governments forcibly removed from their parents from around the 1910's to the 1970's under acts of their respective parliaments. This occurred due to the governmental policy of Assimilation which was implemented from 1937 to 1965. It is a policy which enforces aboriginals to conform to the attitudes, customs and beliefs of the white society. The government believed that such integration would improve their way of life and shape them into more civilized individuals, as well as to improve integration of Aboriginal people into modern society. However, it did not improve the conditions for the Aborigines, and they were denied the most basic of rights - that of being accepted as Australian citizens unless they applied for a "certificate". Applying for a certificate meant denying one's aboriginal heritage and severing all ties with one's own indigenous community. Some of the other…
When the stolen generation was occurring only half-cast children were taken. Half-cast meaning one parent was white and the other was Aboriginal. Only half-cast children were taken because they believed that they could soon eradicate the culture and colour out of the young children. The children that were stolen were brought up in white communities and taught not to follow the aboriginal culture. Most were put into foster homes and used as servant and others were put into missions. Many we exposed to abuse. Acquiring this topic will teach us so much about how the government had a faux pas.…
They placed children under the care of Europeans because they thought this would mean “advancing” the aboriginal children. However, many Aborigines are still searching for their children, mothers and other family members. Through this forced separation many aboriginal people have struggled in life, experienced low-self esteem, feeling of worthlessness, social dysfunction, high rates of unemployment and ongoing health issues. This loss if identity can result in depression and other mental illness (Creative Spirit…
* Expressing the anguish and pain endured in victims of the policy and injustice imposed upon the Stolen Generation…
“This report is a tribute to the strength and struggles of many thousands of ATSI people affected by forcible removal. We acknowledge the hardships they endured and the sacrifices they made. We remember and lament all the children who will never come home.” This quote clearly describes the reasoning of The Bringing Them Home Report, which acknowledges the hardships that the children from the Stolen Generation and their families went through. The document lead to a national understanding of the physical and mental trauma that many from the Stolen Generation went through, many of the effects being life-long. “Why me, why was I taken? Its like a hole in you heart that can never heal.” (Page 177 in The Bringing Them Home Report). Using quotes like these further deepened the impact of the document. This also resulted in a national ‘Sorry Day’, a day on the 26th of May held “to commemorate the history of forcible removals and its effects.” In addition to this, the Stolen Generation got reconnected with their families and later received written apologies from each state and territory and apology in the form…
Stolen addresses the Stolen Generation and the social concerns surrounding the impact of individuals and the Indigenous community. Harrison splits up the action between five diverse characters, tracing their independent stories from childhood to adulthood. We have the sexually and physically abused (Ruby); the hopeful turned hopeless (Jimmy); the stolen child who in turn has her children stolen from her (Shirley), the lost (Sandy) and the 'black' girl in a 'white' man's world (Anne). In a workshop of the opening scene, 'Arriving' (pg. 1) in which the characters speak in the 'stream of conscious style' the difference in what each actor produced to portray their particular character was very noticeable. Harrison's use of a wide breadth of characters is effective in reflecting the broad spectrum of social concerns the Stolen Generation faced: physical, sexual and mental abuse, 'I promised not to tell' (Ruby: pg. 8); high suicide and depression rates, 'I can't fight' (Jimmy: pg. 34); cultural…
The stolen generation was a shameful period in Australia’s history. They, the stolen generation, were a large amount of aborigines called half-castes that were taken away from their family if they were part non-indigenous. These half-castes would have been taken away without any notice, then brought to an orphanage like place, where the girls would have been trained to become a domestic servant and the boys would be trained to become stockmen. The plan for the stolen generation was to breed aboriginal blood out, which was why it was mostly girls that were taken away.…
The strong presence of racism among Australian communities as depicted in the film caused such events, namely the Stolen Generation, to occur. This significant event was a period in late 1800s-1960s where children from both Indigenous, and non-Indigenous (i.e. ‘white’) origins were forcefully taken away from their families as a result of official Australian Government policy. In relation to the film, Gail’s recall of a bitter memory associated with Kay particularly sheds light upon this key historical event.…
The Stolen Generation describes the period of time in which the many Aboriginal children were forcibly removed from their families in order to discontinue the passing down of their culture, language and identity. These young children were sent to institutions or adopted by non-Indigenous families and received little to no form of education in comparison to the level of schooling offered to the white Australian children. Life was immeasurably harsh for the Aboriginal children as they were growing up within a society which taught them to believe their culture was nothing more than rubbish and were encouraged to deny their own heritage. This disabled their ability to flourish and explore their potential in the world due to their racial discrimination which vastly limited their future pathways as they…
Indigenous Australians are a prominently disadvantaged group that are subject to extreme discrimination impacting on their life’s. The Stolen generation had severe negative impacts on the victims of the stolen generation and has continued to negatively affect future generations. Further negative implications have stemmed from this extreme action. And it is the cause of many issues of inequality today among Indigenous Australians. This essay will define the stolen generation, outline and discuss the negative impacts that have stemmed from it and then link the impacts of assimilation to theories such as functionalist theory, structural, etc.…
Throughout this semester my learning experiences have been very significant towards my awareness of the Indigenous population. My personal perspectives have been impacted throughout this semester drastically also. This unit has helped increase my awareness toward the Indigenous people of Australia and the immoral battles they where put through in the past. My response to this unit of study was completely different to what I thought it would have been. My emotions have been triggered considerably throughout this semester. What really touched me was hearing about the horrific measures Indigenous children were put through. Getting taken away from their families purely because of their Aboriginal background, being mistreated, and having their innocents corrupted really upset me. Another aspect of history that really got to me was the story Rebecca told the class. The history on ‘closed adoptions’ that Rebecca was personally apart of.…
The expression "Stolen Generations" is utilized for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals mightily taken away from their families between the 1890s and 1970s, majority of them never to see their relatives again (Creative Spirits, 2015). The colonizers arrangement of forcefully removal of Indigenous children left a legacy of injury and misfortune that keeps on influencing Indigenous people. The persuasive expulsion of Indigenous children from their families was a belief system's piece of Assimilation. It was established on the supposition of dark mediocrity and white prevalence, which recommended that Indigenous individuals ought to be permitted to "cease to exist" through a procedure of regular disposal, or, where conceivable, ought to be acclimatized into the white group (Australians Together, 2015). Indigenous children taken from their guardians were taught to dismiss their Indigenous legacy, their names were changed, prohibited to talk their customary dialect and made to receive white system. Some were received by white families, and numerous were set in organizations, where mishandle and disregard were regular (Healey, 2001). The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children removal policy and the Assimilation, fall its point in enhancing the lives of Indigenous Australians by bringing them into white society.…
Given the ongoing and intergenerational effects of being taken away, is it useful to think of the Stolen Generations as something that happened in the past, or as a contemporary issue affecting Indigenous peoples? What implications are there for all Australians in recognizing the need for national healing?…
In reply to your letter, I would like to inform you, that the policy regarding the removal of Aboriginal children was not as you stated. As soon as a child was born, they were considered a ward of the state because of their Aboriginality.…
The United States is one of the most racially diverse countries on the planet. With the acclaimed title of “The Melting Pot” the United States is home to millions of immigrants and their families. News outlets, polls, and the general insight into immigration widely stop at the first generation immigrants. This can paint a negative outlook on immigration and only show the hardships each person suffers. However when looked into deeper the success of second-generation immigrants is astonishing. As second-generation immigrants adapt to society more than their parents they are open to a wide range of success. The rates of immigrants born children and citizen born on achievements are virtually the same. This educated population brought up by immigrants…
