Raw- Scott Monk

Aboriginals believed in the Dreamtime, the time of creation. The Dreamtime is the origin of the universe, the workings of nature and the nature of humanity, the cycle of life and death. It is this religious experience and belief that binds Aboriginal people to the land and their source of life. Therefore it permeates all facets of Aboriginal life. Aboriginal religion revolves around living off the land. For this reason, when the land was dispossessed from the Aboriginal people, their culture disintegrated. No longer could rituals and traditions such as corroborees and initiations be practised and no longer could Sacre

The demise of the Aboriginal people continued until 1967 when a federal referendum granted Australian citizenship to Aboriginals and the right to vote. However Aboriginals still didn’t feel apart of Australia. They felt isolated and segregated. In 1972, Aboriginals established the Tent Embassy on the grass of Parliament House in Canberra in protest. This gained much media attention and worldwide awareness. It caused embarrassment to the Australian Government as the media gave a worldwide voice to their plight.

A consequence of this protection policy was the conviction that half-cast children were best served by removing them from their families to live in White settlements. There they received basic food and housing. The rational behind this was the dilution of Aboriginal bloodlines. Molly Craig, a fourteen-year-old child was an example of this treatment. A biographical movie directed by Phillip Noyce called Rabbit Proof Fence (2001) was made to convey Molly’s true account and experiences, her sheer determination and will to reject her predicament and return to her traditional home. This policy further eroded kinship relationships, community rules, gender roles and Aboriginal culture. Tribal languages were ultimately replaced with English. As a consequence, the core Aboriginal belief systems disintegrated.

Some topics in this essay:
Aboriginal European, Proof Fence, Due Europeans, Captain Cook, William Tench, Protector Hatherson, Dreamtime Europeans, , Native Title, Aboriginal Spirituality, aboriginal people, native title, land ownership, indigenous people, aboriginal culture, court concerning, pastoral leases, sacred sites, people culture, onto aboriginals,