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Module 3: Post 3 – Australian Aboriginal Land Map

As I have limited knowledge of Australia’s Aboriginal people I am researching to learn as much as I can. Yesterday I decided to do a basic search to acquire some basic information on Aboriginal peoples in Australia.

I was surprised to see National Geographic be one of the first results in an internet search. The link takes you to a recent article on Australian Aboriginals. The article centers around author Michael Finkel’s experiences with an Aboriginal community in the Northern Territory.

What I found most interesting on this site was the link to a map showing Australia’s Aboriginal communities across the country. The map states that since the 1970s Australian Aboriginals have been returning to their ancestral homelands. The map also claims that this return ‘home’ sees healthier communities with lower rates of addiction and lifestyle related diseases. A stark contrast to the information presented in Pilger’s articles. The map highlights both the remoteness of the land as well as the low population of the land in comparison to other parts of Australia. These are interesting demographics to consider. Why is it that Aboriginal peoples seem to leave in isolation from Australian society?

A brief introduction to Australian Aboriginal peoples/land, and a good generator of questions about Australia’s Aboriginal peoples.

Module 3: Post 2 Aboriginal Opera

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As I was reading the Guardian today, I unexpectedly came across an article on Aboriginal Opera singer, Deborah Cheetham. Cheetham is an accomplished opera singer who has performed across Australia and at major events such as the opening ceremonies of the Sydney Olympics and the rugby World Cup. She is believed to be the only professional opera singer of Australian Aboriginal descent.

The article notes that Cheetham was frustrated by the lack of Aboriginal voices in opera so she decided to write an opera for and about Aboriginal communities. Opening in 2010, Pecan Summer has been successful across Australia. The opera tells the story of the 1939 Cummeragunja mission ‘walk off’ where 200 Aboriginal peoples living in the Cummeragunja mission left the mission in protest of the poor living conditions and strict control. The seemingly simple step of walking away from the mission is an important step in the struggle for Aboriginal rights.

I was also interested to see in this article that Cheetham is part of Australia’s Stolen Generations. She was adopted at three weeks old and later told that her birth mother had abandoned her in a box in a field. It wasn’t until she was 22 that she discovered that she wasn’t abandoned and that she was able to find her birth mother.

I find this article very intriguing as it’s current, related to the topic that I am researching (Stolen Generations) and so interesting to see an Aboriginal woman bringing Aboriginal people and stories to opera.

Module 3: Post 1 – Utopia

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John Pilger, journalist, author and film maker, has created a new documentary, Utopia that highlights the life and struggles of many Australian Aboriginal peoples. The documentary is set to explore several topics that seemingly highlight the racist treatment of Australia’s Aboriginal peoples.

In press related to the documentary Pilger describes an area of Western Australia that is experiencing a mining boom. Advertising shows Aboriginal peoples working the land. Yet Pilger finds that a fraction of the monies earned from the natural resources benefit Aboriginal people. In fact, many live in poverty. He notes in particular the health issues Aboriginal children face.

Pilger also discusses a trip to Rottnest Island. Rottnest Island is today a tourist destination, geared towards families. In the past it was the home of a prison populated by Aboriginal peoples. Today, tourists have no idea that the hotel/spa they stay at was once a prison, and that the site of a country club is actually over a mass grave. Pilger further points out that the former head of the prison, a violent man who murdered two prisoners, is now a celebrated historical figure on the island.

Pilger also discusses his own education in Australia and the knowledge he gained of Aboriginal peoples. The textbook that he studied history from stated that Aborigines were “completely amoral” and that “we are civilized and they are not.”

I am very intrigued by Pilger’s documentary and the articles I have read thus far. It seems to connect with so many of the themes we have discussed in this course and is a very real reminder of the horrible ways in which Indigenous peoples have been and continue to be treated around the world.

Module 2: Post 5 – Apology by Prime Minster Stephen Harper to the Residential School Survivors

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In June 2008, Prime Minister Stephen Harper officially apologized to the Indigenous peoples of Canada for removing children from their homes and forcing them to attend residential schools in an effort to assimilate Indigenous children into the dominant culture.

In his apology Harper acknowledges that the residential school system was created on the assumption that Indigenous languages and culture were inferior to the dominant culture. He noted that this assumption/belief was wrong and had caused harm to Indigenous communities.

Harper also includes in his apology statistics regarding the number of schools, locations of schools as well as the involvement of various Christian churches in the running of the school.

What is curious to me is Harper’s statement that ‘some’ of these children died whilst attending residential schools. In many reports the death rate at residential schools was of serious concern. It has been noted that due to poor sanitation, hygiene, and access to medical care, death rates at residential schools was on average around 25 – 30%. Often times, the practice was to send children who were critically ill home. In some schools the death rate of students who returned home was as high as 74%.

Harper goes on to recognize the damaging effects of the residential school system on individuals, families and Indigenous communities. He then apologizes for ‘Canada’s role in the Indian Residential Schools System.’

Harper ends his speech with a discussion of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and its role in educating all Canadians on residential schools and forming a new relationship between Canada’s Indigenous peoples and Canadians.

Module 2: Post 4 – Apology by the Prime Minister to the Stolen Generations

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In February, 2008, Kevin Rudd, Prime Minister of Australia, apologized to the Aboriginal peoples of Australia for the government’s policy of removing children from their homes and putting them into care in an effort of assimilate the Aboriginal children into the dominant culture. This apology was one part of the healing process for the thousands of people who had been affected by this policy that existed for nearly 100 years.

On the occasion of the Prime Minister’s apology, Lola Edwards, one of the Stolen Generations, shares her memories of being taken from her family at the age of 4 and then reunited with her mother decades later when she was an adult. Edwards has an interesting statement near the end of the interview where she does not seem concerned with the reaction of Australia to the apology, rather she is more concerned that all citizens are aware of the Stolen Generations – that they know this part of Australia’s history. She notes that she could feel ‘bitter and twisted’ because of what happened, but that she doesn’t. She goes on to say, “This is the history of Australia. This is the real history of Australia. This is what happened in Australia.”

Module 2: Post 3 – A Guide to Australia’s Stolen Generations

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Australia’s Stolen Generations refers to the unknown number of Aboriginal children that were forcibly removed from their homes and sent to live in Christian missions, foster homes or with foster families. This practise was in place from the 1890s – 1970s. The ultimate goal of this policy was assimilation of Aboriginal people into the dominant culture. This goal echoes that of the Canadian government’s residential school policy for Canada’s Indigenous children during roughly the same time period.

One seemingly different aspect of the Australian policy of removing children from the Canadian government’s policy of sending children to residential schools is the the Australian aboriginal children were permanently removed from their families. Unlike Canadian Indigenous children they did not return home during summer vacations. When Aboriginal children turned 18 they were released from care. Many could not remember their names or remember much about their families. Some were removed as babies and thus knew nothing of their families. Part of reconciliation in Australia involves trying to reunite individuals with their families.

In is interesting to consider that two similar policies occurred in two different countries, on two different continents during a similar period of time.

Module 2: Post 2 – Indigenous Foundations

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Indigenous Foundations is a website created by the First Nations Studies Program at UBC as a resource for students, instructors and researchers to begin their exploration into Aboriginal culture. The website is a comprehensive starting point that is rich in information, and also includes primary and secondary sources.

Many topics are covered: identity, land and rights, government policy, community and politics, culture, and global indigenous issues.

For individuals without much knowledge of the Residential School System, this website proves a good beginning. The site clearly and succinctly explains the concept of Residential School, how the government policy came into place, living conditions at the schools, the decline of residential schools, long-term impacts and government apology.

Finally, the site includes a list of books, articles and websites for further reading.

Module 2: Post 1 – Where are the Children?

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Where are the Children is a website created by Library and Archives Canada to give insight into the residential school experience. The real strength of this site is the wealth of primary resources – both photographs from residential schools as well as video clips from survivors.

Although I do find the explanations of the photographs at times brief, I feel that there is much to be gleaned from looking at the photos. They offer an insight into many aspects of residential schools: leaving home, classroom, school activities, life at the residential school, the children that never returned home, contemporary role models etc. For individuals who have little or no experience/knowledge of residential schools, these photographs provide a beginning look at life at the residential school. The video clips provide insight into what it was like for students at the residential schools.

The site includes other information, such as: a brief history of residential schools, government policy, curriculum, effects on children and families, the end of residential schools and the road to healing. Additionally, the site features a timeline with a map to show the spread of residential schools across Canada, textbooks that were taught as well as a teacher’s guide,

This site is a good starting point for those who are interested in knowing about residential schools in Canada.

Government Interventions with Indigenous Peoples

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At this point in the course, my interest lies in Government ‘interventions’ with Indigenous peoples. Specifically, I am considering residential schools in Canada and Australian intervention with mixed-raced Aboriginal children being removed from their homes and put into state institutions. I am intrigued by the governments’ rationale and thinking behind these policies as well as the length of time that they were enacted. I am curious as to how policies that today seem to be oppressive and against human rights were enforced by a government under the premise of being in the best interest of its citizens, for over one hundred years. As a historian, I am interested in the historical context and societal beliefs that fostered these policies for so long. Personally I am interested in residential schools as one of the largest/most notorious schools was in my hometown.

I am not quite sure just yet how I will narrow the topic, but am hopeful this will naturally become apparent in the early stages of my research.

Some resources I think will be useful are:

– Cassidy, J. (2006). The stolen generations – Canada and Australia: The legacy of assimilation. Deakin Law Review, 11,1, 131-177.

– Indigenous Foundations – Comprehensive website from UBC that considers varied Indigenous topics (government policy, culture, community and politics, global indigenous issues)

– Jacobs, M.D. (2005). Maternal colonialsim: White women and Indigenous child removal in the American west and Australia, 1880 – 1940. The Western Historical Quarterly, 36, 4, 453-476.

– Miller, J. R. Shingwauk’s Vision. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1996.

– Milloy, John S. A National Crime: The Canadian Government and the Residential School System, 1879 to 1986.Winnipeg: University of Manitoba Press, 1999.

– Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council, Indian Residential Schools: The Nuu-Chah-Nulth Experience. Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council, 1996.

– Report of the Royal Commission of Aboriginal Peoples – Report created by the department of Indian and Northern Affairs

– Where Are the Children – An interactive website that looks at the residential school experience, by Library and Archives Canada.

Module 1 – Post 2: Sean Atleo, Chancellor of VIU

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In 2008, Chief Sean Atleo from the Ahousaht First Nation was named Chancellor of Vancouver Island University (VIU). This is interesting to me as I completed my undergrad degrees at VIU and Ahousaht is not too far from where I grew up on Vancouver Island. Initially, my interest in this topic lies in personal connections.

As I begin to discover more about Chief Atleo’s position as Chancellor I learn that he is the first university chancellor of First Nation’s heritage in the province of British Colombia. Although it doesn’t particularly surprise me, it seems to be fairly consistent throughout history that positions of power are largely held by Caucasian men, it made me begin to think about Indigenous people and positions of power. I have long noticed the lack of women in leadership roles, but haven’t thought much about Indigenous people in leadership roles.

As I search further I discover that just this weekend The Globe and Mail reported that an Aboriginal chancellor has been appointed at the University of Saskatchewan. That it is news for an aboriginal person to be made a university chancellor makes me think that perhaps this is a bit of a rarity. Most of the articles I have found are of Chief Atleo and Blaine Favel from the University of Saskatchewan.

I continue to wonder about diversity of those in leadership roles. What are the consequences when the majority of leadership roles are held by people of similar backgrounds, gender, socioeconomic status. What might change when leaders are a diverse group of individuals? What message is sent to young people when the majority of leaders are Caucasian men?