Assignment 3 Reflective Essay Katherine Cox

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Western Sydney University *

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CULT1022

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Anthropology

Date

Oct 30, 2023

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docx

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Student Name: Katherine Cox Student No: 22078016 Total Number of words: 1519 (excluding title page, heading & references) Subject: HUMN1060 Introduction to Indigenous Australia: Peoples, Places and Philosophies Assignment 3: Reflective essay Acknowledgment of Country: I wish to acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land on which I live and work, the Walbunja and Brindja people of the Yuin Nation. I pay my respects to their Elders past, present and emerging. * Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are advised that this paper may contain names, images, and stories of deceased persons. Readers are warned that there may be culturally sensitive words and descriptions which might not normally be used in certain public or community contexts. Student Name: Katherine Cox Student No: 22078016

What effect has research into the Stolen Generation and Compounded Trauma had on my personal philosophy, along with how will that influence me in my career as the Team Leader at a Youth Refuge? As a non-Indigenous Australian with Australian Indigenous children and grandchildren, it is crucial for me to understand the Australian society's past, so that is why this unit influenced my views, values, and perspectives because of the damage the Indigenous community has experienced in the past resulting in generational compounded trauma. The purpose of this unit was to examine the significance of identity, diversity, representation, and resilience in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. As a result, it allowed me to understand the various Indigenous perspectives and knowledges about their history, which would help me in my current employment position as Team Leader at a Youth Refuge in an area that has a high percentage of Indigenous people. This author will be aware of the social issues they face in society and will be more aware and able to support them and their generational trauma through the stolen generation in Australia. The consequences of colonisation provided me with a better understanding of how the stolen generational compounded trauma has and will affect the past, current, and future Indigenous people. The two concepts that have impacted me are protectionism and assimilation, which revealed significant information about the impact the stolen generation had on the Aboriginal people. As a result of learning the core of Aboriginal history, I can accept their views, perspectives, and perspectives, which will allow me to interact with the Indigenous people regardless of age and embrace their distinctiveness as individuals. Prior to this unit, I had little understanding of the difficulties that Indigenous people faced. This unit has now supplied me with an in-depth understanding regarding their experiences. Primary school demonstrated that the first fleet, land ownership, colonisation, and stolen generation were difficult times for Aboriginals because they were treated unequally. However, awareness of this past did not continue into high school; in the 1970 - 1980s Australian History was not taught at schools. Instead, it was only by assumptions, racial views, or media that the Aboriginal community was known. As a result, this had a significant influence on me during this unit since I had limited knowledge as I wasn’t aware of the other side of the dark Australian history. As a result, admitting and recognising the past has transformed my mental state since I have become more conscious and educated on the Australian Indigenous side of history. The notion of colonisation was introduced to me in week 4 of this unit in order to learn about the governmental power Australians had over Indigenous peoples and the effect they experienced. However, my comprehension of colonisation was very restricted because little information about Indigenous people was taught in primary or high school, so I did not realise the severity brought to the Aboriginal population. As a result, when it came to week 4 and discussing different opinions about this Student Name: Katherine Cox Student No: 22078016

concept with others, I was unaware of the full Australian history from an Indigenous point of view. The description of colonisation that was given to me, 'the action or process of settling among and establishing dominance over the Indigenous peoples of a territory’, this has helped me since as I now understood the notion. However, a question emerged in my mind that I find challenging is why is it important to learn this information? Colonisation provided trade of products for the land and people, and in today's culture, it is not considered as having an influence on Aboriginals as it once did in history! However, this was my concept, which is clear that I must be ignorant on the subject because I had limited experience of the Aboriginal population in my younger years as a child. After learning about the concept, I now have a better grasp of the impact and long-term effects of colonisation on the stolen generation. According to the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (2003), it states that Indigenous children have been forcefully taken from their families and exploited for labor since the first day of European occupancy of Australia, and have endured violent fights over rights to land, food, and water supplies. As a result of this relationship, I can recognise the terrible circumstances of Indigenous people who endured throughout this period. Furthermore, according to Schaffer (p.6), the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (2003) report provides legitimacy and acknowledgement to the stories, loss of family, kinship, land and nation, and the ongoing repercussions of loss' through raising awareness of Aboriginal history. As a result of the repercussions of colonisation, this unit has educated me on the predicament that the Indigenous population was in and how these human rights violations have caused compounded trauma that has been passed down through generations. Understanding the concepts of Protectionism and Assimilation is essential for understanding the stages of colonialism, which raised awareness about the amount of protection the Indigenous people receives. The Aboriginal Protection Act 1869 was developed to curb the unjust acts of cruelty and encroachment on their property. This had an influence on their Aboriginal identity since they were forcibly removed from traditional territories and cultural practices, causing them to lose their spiritual and physical connection. Among this knowledge, my perspective on Aboriginal protection had significantly shifted, as it revealed that Aboriginal people do not receive the same protection as Australian individuals. This is unfair because the level of equality in society should be balanced (Australian Government: Australian Law Reform Commission 2010). Understanding this saddened my heart because Indigenous people (Australia’s First Nation) should be treated equally. In addition, learning about the notion of Assimilation in society, in which Aboriginal people were supposed to be citizens of equal standing with the same rights and benefits as persons in Australia. This notion revealed to me how assimilation produced numerous problems for the Aboriginal population since they had to give up their rights to land, cultural practices, and language, resulting in a loss of identity. As Student Name: Katherine Cox Student No: 22078016

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