Aboriginal Studies

Aboriginality

A combination of cultural heritage,
spirituality and an intrinsic link with the land from which you originate.

Assimilation

An idea that Aboriginal people should be 'improved' by being 'civilised' and Christianised

Colonisation

A process by which a different system of government is established by one nation over another group of peoples.

Contemporary

Within the timeframe from the 1960s to the present.

Criminal Justice System

The people, processes, institutions and laws associated with the defining, monitoring and enforcement of rules.

Cultural Genocide

An attempt to destroy all or part of the culture of a people which is the basis of group identity.

Customary Law

Laws based on traditions and customs.

Discrimination

Unfair treatment on the basis of perceived differences between people.

Dispossession

People being taken away or forced from their land, their economic base, their way of life and cultures.

Identity

The belief in, and acceptance of, who you are as determined by your culture.

Land Rights

The evolving struggle of Aboriginal and other Indigenous peoples for the legal and moral acknowledgement of prior ownership of their land.

Native Title Act

Australian legislation signed in 1993 that provides Aboriginal Australians with enhanced legal rights over land and resources within the country.

Self-Determination

Involves the effective participation of
Aboriginal peoples in all decision-making that affects them.

Sovereignty

The legal recognition of ownership of land and territory. Implicit in the concept is the right of self-government.

Terra Nullius

A concept in international law meaning 'a territory belonging to no- one' or 'over which no-one claims ownership'.

Social Justice

A principle that favours measures aimed at addressing inequities.

Torres Strait Islanders

Traditional owners of the islands that lie between Cape York in northern Queensland and Papua New Guinea.

Invasion

The act of forcibly taking over the land.

Dislocation

The forced movement of an individual, family or community from one area to another. This often occurred after people had been dispossessed of their land.

Culture

The accepted and traditionally patterned ways of behaving and a set of common understandings shared by the members of a group or community. Includes land, language, ways of living and working, artistic expression, relationship and identity.