Aboriginal Issues

WHAT WAS THE STOLEN GENERATION?

The Stolen Generation

• Between the period 1910 and 1970, more than 100,000 light skinned aboriginal children were taken away from their families and sorted into missions and schools. But they weren't sorted into Aboriginal schools, because they did not exist. The Aboriginal children were forced to learn like white children.

Many aboriginal children never saw their parents again and very few were ever reunited.

CAUSES

But why were families seperated? Well, the government believed that because an Aboriginal child had any traces of white skin in their family, they needed to be taught under white men law.

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• So children were taken and forced to go to school and learn like white children. But the government never thought about what impacts it could have on those stolen and the surrounding community. They just said their parents would soon get over it and move one, but that wasn't the case.

IMPACTS

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• Being taken from all you know and forced to learn something that didn't even matter to you often led to sadness, disappointment, and even though they might of had friends, many felt like there was a hole in their life that would never heal because they would of had no real family to care for them, make them ,laugh, have a shoulder to rest on, or someone to be truly loved by.

But for those who searched for their loved ones, even when there was no hope, they would have learnt: bravery, determination and stubbornness, because they would not of given up on family, would you?

But it was not only just the aboriginal children who were affected, their once tribal members would of grieved and felt sorrow and despair, some might of felt like they had a hole in their heart that would never be repaired until their children returned.

And for those who caused this moment in history they would have felt satisfaction and the feeling that you can accomplish whatever you want.

SOLUTION

People need to be educated about the stolen generation, and although people know it exists, most don't know both sides of the story. My solution to this problem is to.........

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• Get more people like Mr Allen into the school to discuss what happened.
• Have more books in the library like "The Burnt Stick"
• Have a day where students can wear an item of clothing that is the color of the Aboriginal flag.
• Put up posters around the school with a short paragraph about the Stolen Generation
• We could present a short play about the Stolen Generation to the younger children.

The Stolen Generation was a tragic event in history that should never have happened. Many families were torn apart and there was nothing they could do to stop it. Although Kevin Rudd did apologize to the Aboriginals, sorry is just a word which can never heal everything.

OTHER FACTS

• National Sorry Day is on the 26th of May.
• National Sorry Day is the day when Aboriginal's across Australia got the recognition they deserve.
• Children were allowed to be taken away from their families until 1969.
• In 1909 the Aborigines Protection Act gave the Aborigines Protection Board legal sanction to take Aboriginal children from their families.

THANK YOU🤓