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.”