Trigger warning: Mention of genocide, pointless slaughter of a people and crimes against humanity.
I would like to begin by acknowledging the Traditional Custodians of the land on which I am residing, and pay my respects to their Elders past and present. I extend that respect to any Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander person reading this article.
I am not of Aboriginal descent and I am in no way, shape or form, attempting to speak for this diverse, beautiful group of people. I am merely someone reacting to a terrible history that has continued to affect new generations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. If you are an Aboriginal person and at any point in this article, I offend or insult you, I sincerely apologise. My intention in writing this post is to educate but I have no formal qualifications and I am liable to make mistakes and pass on misinformation. Please correct me and accept my sincere apology.
To Those Of You Thinking The Europeans Improved Australia, Here’s A Description Of Australia Before They Arrived To Prove You Wrong
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are a diverse group. In 1788, there were 250 distinct languages. Each of those languages had numerous dialects. The average child spoke four to six languages and diversity was not only tolerated, it was actively encouraged. The original people of Australia recognised the many advantages provided by diversity. They had greater networks, access to travel and trade and they interacted with people from numerous backgrounds.
On top of that, Aboriginal people were incredibly efficient and sustainable. Only using enough of a resource to still have enough left for the next people and the next year was ingrained within their culture.
Now, I know I may sound like I am romanticising the culture. I may be. I only know as much information as that is currently available to me. I’m sure they had flaws as any culture did. But they certainly weren’t “savages” that needed to be taught how to live the “proper way”. If anything, they were running the country perfectly before the European colonisers arrived and had a competition on how quickly they could destroy the place.
Just remember that Australia holds the record for the most mammalian extinctions in the world. 90 species have gone extinct in the past two centuries.
This never could have happened under the guidance of Aboriginal people. They had an intimate knowledge of the land they were living on and a strong connection to it. They lived in the most remote, most unliveable of places. They had a thorough understanding of how to manage the climate. For example, they practised backburning so that during bushfire season, the damage caused was minimal.
Life would be better if Aboriginal people had encountered explorers who wanted to learn rather than colonisers who wanted to destroy. It was shown that Aboriginal people learned languages quite quickly. It would have only taken a minimal amount of decency, kindness and humanity to create a relationship. There could have been mutual teaching and understanding.
Face It: The Colonisers Were Evil
In 1788, Australia and its people were invaded. It was not a settlement. There was no decency, not a single human right not violated and not a single war crime not committed. The European invaders saw the native people of Australia as part of the flora and fauna. They saw a peaceful, beautiful, diverse nation who genuinely respected the land and made it a sport to kill them. Aboriginal people were slaughtered. In fact, there were even financial incentives provided by the government to kill Aboriginal people. And until the 1930s, the killing of Aboriginal people were routinely unpunished.
Yes, 1930s. If that surprises you and you are Australian, please go ahead and look up this information. I implore you to educate yourself on the history of the land you are residing on. It may be horrific and hard to imagine that anyone could be capable of such atrocities but we need to be aware of our own history in order to ensure that it never happens again.
Aboriginal People Are Still Affected By Colonization
The unfortunate fact of the matter is that Aboriginal people are still heavily affected by the colonization in their recent history. Their culture and way of life was heavily disrupted, and in many cases destroyed, by colonization. Furthermore, it is only in recent years that their right to their land has been recognized as valid in the eyes of the law. It wasn’t until 1967 that a referendum allowed Aboriginal Australians to even be included in the census.
Aboriginal people suffer from socioeconomic disadvantages and health inequality. Not to mention that Aboriginal kids are highly over represented in youth detention as shown in the quote below.
On an average night in the June quarter 2018, nearly 3 in 5 (59%) young people aged 10–17 in detention were Indigenous, despite Indigenous young people making up only 5% of the general population aged 10–17.
Bulletin 145 • December 2018 Youth detention population in Australia 2018
There can be no doubt that Aboriginal people still face severe disadvantages. Disadvantages that may be brought on by trauma, racial profiling, left over colonialist propaganda and a range of other things. It is essential that we recognise these issues as both the aftereffects of colonization and symptoms of a racist society.
If we are ever to change this, we have to first acknowledge that it exists. Ignorance is not an excuse. And neither is claiming that it’s “too sad”.
Final Thoughts
Aboriginal people would be more than justified if they attempted to kick everyone off their land. They are more than justified if they desire revenge. And any assistance they may receive from the government is less than the reparations they should have received.
Everything that we have (as non aboriginal people) has been stolen. We are not entitled to the land or it’s resources. We are simply taking advantage of stolen land. So if there is a scholarship specifically for aboriginal people, don’t be entitled. No amount of money will ever make up for the harm caused to them. And they have a greater right to this land than anyone else.
References
https://therevelator.org/australia-bushfires-extinction/
Australia’s welfare 2017: in brief
https://australianstogether.org.au/discover/australian-history/colonisation/
https://www.abc.net.au/life/why-acknowledgement-of-country-is-important-and-how-to-give-one/11881902
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