Essay Plan
Introduction/ Thesis
Cowlishaw may have a point, but it is understandable that the country would focus on the Stolen Generation rather than the generation before. This is because the children of the Stolen Generation were taken from their families from 1905-1970’s. Many of these individuals are still alive and can give first-hand accounts of their experiences. The ability to hear a person describe something that personally happened to them tends to resonate more than a story that has been passed down.
This paper will discuss Gillian Cowlishaw’s fear that the memories of the older Aboriginal people regarding what their lives were like will be forgotten as the country creates a narrative around the Stolen Generation.
This section will give a general overview of the history of the Aboriginal people from about 1600. It will look at their culture before and after the arrival of the Europeans to their land.
The Stolen Generation. Hundreds of thousands of “half-caste” children were removed from their families. There were many reasons that were given for taking such actions at the time. These included the assertion that the Aboriginal people were dying out, the assertion that the Aboriginal people were against the mixing of racial groups and would therefore, not provide “half-caste” children the same opportunities amongst their people, and finally it was believed that these children need protection from child abuse, poverty and neglect.
The Aboriginal people today. This will be a general overview of the problems that are still effecting the Aboriginal people.
Addressing the Past
In 1992 Prime Minister Paul Keating gave a speech in Redfern Park. While he did not formally apologize for the actions of the former government officials or those of white society prior to 1992. In his speech Keating addressed the actions of the European settlers and the generations of white society that followed against Aboriginal society. He said that while most of white society will never witness the injustice firsthand they must not ignore it. That is was the duty of everyone to work together in order to ensure a better future for both the indigenous people and those who had descended from the men and women who had adopted Australia as their homeland. .
The Apology
In 2008 the Prime Minister of Australia Kevin Rudd issued an apology to the Aboriginal people for the actions that had been committed against their population for nearly 250 years. There were many groups against the apology, not because they did not believe it was owed but because they felt that by apologizing for the errs of their ancestors they would be admitting to intentional guilt. Others felt that it would create a philosophy of guilt. In his speech Rudd promises to work to improve the lives of the Aboriginal people and addresses the need for equal opportunities for Aboriginal people.
Reaction
The Leader of the Opposition Dr. Brenden Nelson MP, who had originally been opposed to the apology gave a speech in which he endorsed the apology. However, he also makes it a point to indicate the past actions of the Europeans and the forced sacrifices of the Aboriginal people were necessary so that Australia could be an economically and socially successful country today. While he admits that the sacrifices of the Aboriginal people where not their choice, he goes on to imply strongly that the removal of the Aboriginal children from their families while being wrong in the sense that it had a negative emotional effect on numerous children and their families, but that it was necessary. It was necessary according to Nelson because there are not enough being done to handle the physical and sexual violence that takes place against children within the Aboriginal communities along with many other social and economic issues like poverty, joblessness, and alcoholism. He then concludes like Rudd that it is necessary to work with the Aboriginal population in order to remedy these issues.
Colishaw’s argument
This section will focus on Gillian Cowlishaw assertion that the older generation of Aboriginal People will be forgotten because the focus is on the Stolen Generation. Her fear is the result of the mention of the Stolen Generation in the speech given by Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. In his speech he mentions the mistreatment of the Stolen Generation and their forced removal from their families which caused a sense of loss and suffering for both the children and their families.
Cowlish seems to feel that if more attention is given to the Stolen Generation that this negates the actions that people will forget or ignore that actions taken against the Aboriginal people who lived before. This is because the Aboriginal people who were not part of the Stolen Generation, but were still effected by the events and actions of non-Aboriginal people can feel as though they have no voice.
The central point of Cowlishaw’s argument seems to be the fact that when the focus becomes solely the Stolen Generation rather than including the generation that lived before or the Aboriginal people who lived alongside them. The story shifts from that of actions propelled by racism and greed to that of a society that was trying to help the disenfranchised, but went about it the wrong way.
This section will look at the validity of Cowlishaw’s fears and look at the perspectives of others who agree with her.
Tim Rowse, who is a Professor at the University of Western Sydney seems to agree with Colishhaw’s assessment that the Australian government while admitting to their wrong doing and apologizing for their actions are also only focusing on one period in history and subgroup of Aboriginal people in order to make their actions a bit more palatable.
The Perspective of the Aboriginal People
This section will focus on the thoughts and attitudes of Australia’s Aboriginal people when it comes to the apology and whether or not there is a general consensus regarding the focus on the Stolen Generation in Rudd’s speech.
Conclusion
In conclusion the paper will wrap up the arguments and decide if Colishaw’s fear is justified or if perhaps it is a necessary to focus on the Stolen Generation in order that people can be directed to learning and understanding the truth about what happened to the other Aboriginal people.
References
Cowlishaw, Gillian. "On ‘getting it wrong‘ : Collateral damage in the history wars." Australian Historical Studies 37, no. 127 (2006): 181-202. doi:10.1080/10314610608601210.
Keating, Paul. "Redfern Speech (Year for the World's Indigenous People)." Speech, Redfern Park-Australia, December 10, 1992.
Nelson, Brenden. "APOLOGY TO AUSTRALIA’S INDIGENOUS PEOPLES SPEECH." Speech, House Of Representatives-Australia, February 13, 2008.
Rudd, Kevin. "APOLOGY TO AUSTRALIA’S INDIGENOUS PEOPLES." Speech, House of Representatives- Australia, February 13, 2008.
Rowse, Tim. Chapter One: “Those bad, wrong, sad policies of the past’: Diverse Communities of Memory in the 1990s.” PDF
