Australia and the Indigenous Australians: A Study Guide

Background: The Colonisation of Australia

  • Indigenous Inhabitants

    • Indigenous Australians are referred to as 'Aborigines' or 'first people'.
    • The term 'Aborigine' is derived from two Latin words: ab (meaning 'from') and originem (meaning 'origin'). This signifies they were recognized as being in Australia 'from the beginning'.
    • Aborigines currently constitute approximately 2.5%2.5\% of the modern Australian population.
    • At the time of British arrival in the 18th18^{\text{th}} century, the aboriginal population was estimated to be between 300,000300{,}000 and 1,000,0001{,}000{,}000.
    • They lived in small communities sharing common social and religious customs, though technology, food, and hunting practices varied based on local environments.
    • The largest concentrations of people were in the southern and eastern regions, specifically the Murray River Valley and coastal areas.
    • Today, Aborigines practicing traditional lifestyles are primarily found in desert areas where white settlement is minimal.

  • The 'History Wars'

    • Historical interpretations of aboriginal history are intensely debated.
    • Most historians acknowledge significant wrongs were committed against indigenous people.
    • Conservative historians contend that accounts of British brutality and the resulting consequences have been exaggerated for political purposes.

  • British Colonisation

    • Colonisation commenced in 17881788.
    • Britain faced a large prison population due to many people being convicted of minor crimes and receiving long sentences.
    • The British government implemented 'transportation', sending large numbers of convicts to Australia to provide labor for the new colony.
    • The British encountered Aborigines who had inhabited the land for more than 50,00050{,}000 years.
    • Authorities failed to recognize Aborigines as human beings, leading to destructive policies.

The Effects of British Settlement on the Aboriginal Population

  • Hostility and Displacement

    • Relations quickly became hostile as Aborigines were driven off their land and away from essential resources.
    • Many were forced into reservations, where starvation led to high mortality rates.
    • Australian authorities characterized Aborigines as children requiring protection.

  • Violence and Disease

    • Those not in reservations were often treated like wild animals.
    • Hunting parties were organized to kill Aborigines for sport, and some were deliberately poisoned.
    • Over a period of 150150 years, 80%80\% of the aboriginal population died through wars, massacres, or European diseases.
    • The population lacked immunity to diseases such as smallpox and influenza.
    • In southeast Australia, the disappearance of the population was so rapid that authorities expected them to die out completely.

  • Account from Dailapi

    • Dailapi, an Aborigine, reported being hunted, shot, and poisoned.
    • He mentioned specific mass poisonings at Kilcoy.
    • He stated that their land, where they previously sourced food, was stolen. If they took flour or killed cattle (bullocks) due to hunger, they were shot or poisoned.
    • The government's only compensation for the land was an annual 'Blanket Day' starting in the early 1900s1900\text{s}, where communities were given blankets.

  • Labor Exploitation

    • Aborigines were utilized as cheap labor work parties for the British colonists starting in the late 1700s1700\text{s}.

Race Theories and Pseudo-Science in the Early 20th Century

  • Justification for Mistreatment

    • Actions against Aborigines were justified using pseudo-scientific race theories common at the time.
    • Aborigines were characterized as biologically inferior and not needing to be treated as human beings.

  • W. Baldwin Spencer's Viewpoints

    • Spencer, a professor of biology and Chief Protector of Aborigines in the Northern Territory (19111911-19121912), described Aborigines as a 'curious mixture'.
    • He claimed they were mentally level with a child, lacked control over feelings, had no sense of responsibility, and lacked initiative.
    • He described their customs as 'revolting' and ranked them lower than the Papuan, New Zealander, or African native in 19131913.

  • Pseudo-Scientific Research

    • In the 1920s1920\text{s} and 1930s1930\text{s}, thousands of Aborigines were subjected to investigations into brain capacity and cranium size.
    • An Australian Professor of Anatomy claimed in 19261926 that Aborigines were 'too low in the scale of humanity' to benefit from Anglo-Saxon rule.
    • In 19291929, an anthropologist argued that Aborigines and African Negroes were not equal to white or yellow races.
    • Scientists at the British Museum sought to establish if Aborigines were closer to apes than humans before they reached 'the brink of extinction'.
    • Collections of hair and skin were found in the Royal College of Surgeons in England as recently as 20022002, before being returned for burial.

  • Indigenous Worldview and Culture

    • The hallmark of Aboriginal culture is 'oneness with nature'.
    • Traditional systems view nature and the landscape as sacred, comparable to the Bible in Christian culture.
    • Natural features (rocks, canyons, rivers, beaches), as well as celestial bodies and animals, have specific creation stories.
    • Environmental godliness is central to their belief; they lived in harmony with land and animals.
    • The concept of material possessions or individual 'ownership' of land was entirely foreign to their culture; everything was shared.

Debates Around Racial Suicide and Racial Decay

  • Racial Suicide

    • In the early 20th20^{\text{th}} century, a low white birth rate led to fears of 'racial suicide'.
    • There was concern that 'fit' (white) members would be outnumbered by 'unfit' (Aboriginal and non-European) members.
    • White Australians feared their population growth was too slow compared to rapidly expanding Asian countries to the north.
    • Government Interventions:
      • 19011901: Immigration Restriction Act (White Australia Policy). Immigrants had to pass a dictation test in a European language chosen by the officer.
      • 19191919: A 'Minister for Motherhood', Mr. J.J. McGirr (who had nine children), was appointed to encourage white families after World War One losses.
      • 19221922: The Settlement Act encouraged British adults to immigrate to increase 'British stock'.
      • 19461946: British children from orphanages were sent to Australia.

  • Racial Decay

    • Eugenics supporters believed 'unfit' members were having more children, leading to society's decline.
    • 19121912: The government offered white mothers £5\text{\pounds 5} (approximately R700R700) for each birth.
    • 19281928: Critics argued the policy encouraged 'pauper stock' (extremely poor) and 'mentally deficient' parents. The policy was amended to take 'eugenic considerations' into account to reduce families in 'lower groups'.
    • Racial Poisons: Eugenicists listed venereal disease, TB, prostitution, alcoholism, and criminality as 'racial poisons' infecting the 'racially contaminated'.
    • Proposed Solutions: Compulsory segregation of the 'unfit' during reproductive years, sterilization, and banning intermarriage between 'worthy' and 'unworthy' members.

White Immigration Policies and World War II

  • Immigration Shifts

    • Early voluntary immigrants were mainly British, but the 18511851 gold rush brought people from Ireland, Europe, China, and the United States.
    • After 19011901, laws gave strict priority to British immigrants to maintain the 'White Australia Policy'.

  • Impact of World War II

    • Australian civilians panicked during Japanese air and sea attacks.
    • Anti-Japanese propaganda and the treatment of Australian prisoners of war in Japanese camps fermented severe hatred.
    • Post-19451945 migration policy focused on keeping Japanese and other Asians out.
    • Prime Minister Ben Chif (19451945-19491949) declared: 'We must populate Australia as rapidly as we can before someone else decides to populate it for us!'
    • The goal was to attract 70,00070{,}000 immigrants annually, with 1010 out of every 11 expected to be from Britain.
    • The government actively advertised for British ex-servicemen and their families.

British Children Sent to Australia Post-WWII

  • The Scheme

    • Between 19451945 and the late 1960s1960\text{s}, roughly 10,00010{,}000 children aged between 33 and 1515 were sent from British orphanages and slums.
    • The British government, churches, and charities sent these 'undesirable' children to do 'productive work'.
    • Children were falsely told they were being adopted by loving families.

  • Reality of the Program

    • Upon arrival in Western Australia, children were often met by the Archbishop of Perth, who lectured them, stating: 'We welcome you to Australia. We need you for white stock.'
    • Siblings were forcibly separated, a process Hennessy (a survivor) recalls by the sound of 'screams'.
    • Instead of homes, children were trucked to institutions and tasked with manual labor using 'picks and shovels'.

The Stolen Generation and Assimilation Policies

  • Definition of the Stolen Generation

    • Refers to children forcibly removed from their families between 18691869 and the 1970s1970\text{s}.
    • While 'full-blooded' Aborigines were confined to reserves, authorities targeted 'half-caste' children (mixed Aboriginal and British descent).
    • Integration into white society was forced to prevent mixed-descent children from 'jeopardizing' the White Australia policy.

  • Conditions and Treatment

    • Laws allowed removal without evidence of neglect or mistreatment.
    • Transfers were carried out by police or 'Aboriginal Protection Officers'.
    • Children were placed in institutions (like the Kahlin Compound in the 1930s1930\text{s}) or foster families.
    • Abuse and Erasure:
      • Punished for speaking indigenous languages.
      • Names were changed.
      • Boys were trained as agricultural laborers; girls as domestic servants.
      • Suffered from inadequate clothing, food, and shelter.
      • High incidence of sexual assault within institutions and foster care.

  • Assimilation Leaders: Dr. Cecil Cook and A.O. Neville

    • 19151915: Parliament passed the Aborigines Protection Amending Act, forming the Aborigines' Protection Board.
    • Auber Octavius Neville: Chief Protector in Western Australia (19151915-19361936). Followed unscientific race theories and eugenics.
    • Neville's Policy: He aimed to 'reproduce the blackness out' of existence.
    • Methodology:
      • Full-blooded Aborigines would 'die out' if prevented from breeding.
      • Mixed-descent children were removed and encouraged to intermarry with the white community.
      • The 'biological model of absorption' focused on skin color. Neville argued that once people were 'sufficiently white', they would become like white people, eventually causing Australia to forget Aborigines ever existed.", "title": "Australia and the Indigenous Australians: A Study Guide"}