An Indigenous understanding of Reciprocity

Similarly the cultural value of the aboriginal also puts a heavy emphasis upon the social power system through family relationship structure known as Kinship (aboriginal culture 2015). It governs the behaviour, marriages and action of everyday life of an aboriginal (Indigenous Australia 2015) and provide moral and action guidelines. Elders of the aboriginal community regardless if they are a tribe, totemic groups or clans, are treated with respect for they teach skills, knowledge and personal experiences (Australian Museum 2015). Although through the rapid economic development of Australia and the introduction of technology into the aboriginal communities, some elders are undermined or even ignored by the tribes, particularly young members, in some tribes, elders still held a great amount of power in the daily life amongst the life of tribe members (Korff 2015).

The Australian Indigenous community hold extremely significant corrections to the land of Australia, of which they refer to as ‘Country.’ Indigenous people acquire deep meaning from the land, sea and the countless resources derived from them. This special relationship has formed for many centuries. To them ‘Country’ is paramount for overall wellbeing; the strong, significant, spiritual bonds embody their entire existence. Knowledge is continually passed down to create an unbroken connection of past,

It is a commonly known issue in Australia that as a minority group, the people of Indigenous Australian ethnicity have always been treated, or at least perceived, differently to those of non-Indigenous disposition. This can be applied to different contexts such as social, economic, education, or in relation to this essay – legal contexts. Generally, Indigenous Australians face issues such as less opportunity for formal education, less access to sufficient income, more health issues, and higher rates of imprisonment (Steering Committee for the Review of Government Service

During the Frontier period, Indigenous peoples resisted the non-Indigenous settlement of Australia, throughout 1770-1890. During approximately throughout the 1890’s to 1970’s, the non-Indigenous retaliations occurred, resulting in protection, segregation and the stolen generations. Which initiated an ongoing impact on Indigenous communities.

For the last 200 years Indigenous people have been victims of discrimination, prejudice and disadvantage. Poor education, poor living conditions and general poverty are still overwhelming issues for a large percentage of our people and we remain ‘as a group, the most poverty stricken sector of the working class’ in Australia (Cuthoys 1983).

After this time, many atrocities occurred, such as the fact that Aboriginals were often killed for sport, and massacres such as Myall Creek were occurring, where 28 Aboriginal men, women and children were murdered near Myall Creek Station in 1838. There was also the problem of the Stolen Generation, when Aboriginal children were forcibly taken from their homes to be raised as though they were white. It was only recently in 2008, that Kevin Rudd, the Prime Minister of Australia at the time, apologised for the actions that the government had undertaken. In another apologetic move, Prime Minister Paul Keating delivered a powerful speech regarding the fact that Aboriginal Communities were still segregated despite the fact that laws had been changed a number of years ago. This shows that the idea of atonement by Australia is quite a new topic. Does this prove the challenges that Aboriginal’s faced nearly 200 years ago are still present in today’s society? It was enough to force the Aboriginal men, women and children to begin act in support of their rights.

This essay will discuss the issues for Indigenous Australians only, this however, can be related to any culture, but for the purpose of this essay I will be referring to Indigenous Australians only.

In this research paper, I will be explaining how western colonialism and racism destroyed the reputation of aboriginal peoples in Canada. The reason why I chose this topic because it shows the strong relationship to anthropology and after taking aboriginal studies 30, it also shows that I have a clear understanding about the history of aboriginal peoples in Canada, the struggles they have been through over the past decade and the challenges they still face today in modern day society. I’ll be addressing these issues in a couple of paragraphs on the discrimination and the inequalities of these “minorities” and how they had to assimilate into European culture, leaving their way of life behind them.

I would like to begin this speech by recognising the owners of this land, the true ancestors of the country we call ‘ours’. To the Indigenous peoples of Australia, I acknowledge you, I thank you and most of all I apologise to you for the deep suffering and remorse you are put through. I am ashamed of this country’s treatment towards you. Past and Present.

Reciprocity is not a simple concept when it comes to the Aboriginal culture. It can mean many different things depending on the situation it is being used to define. Reciprocity may be the notion of taking care of your kin as they will do for you. It might be the give and take between families and communities in which everyone shares what they have. Reciprocity may be being held responsible for your kin’s actions. It might be the approximately equal trades conducted between nearby communities. It may be the taking of a life in exchange for another. Reciprocity may be taking care of things such that they will be there when required. Reciprocity is in part to do with survival, for example when food and supplies are shared. Eckermann (2010,

Through my life, I have seen several different approaches to Indigenous people’s rights and importance in Australia. I have been fortunate enough to visit Ayers Rock and undertake a tour which allowed me to see Aboriginal culture in art and drawings as well as hearing Dreamtime stories from guides. I have also witnessed family friends who have been severely racist and disrespectful of Indigenous heritage and history. I also was lucky to work with some Indigenous students who were in Reception during my Professional Experience 1, and I was able to see first-hand how a culture clash can affect a student’s behaviour. I feel that even before entering this course, I have had the privilege of being able to observe both positives and negatives

Reconciliation is the process of building respectful relationships between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and the wider Australian community. It is about understanding and respecting their culture and heritage and signifies ‘coming together’ to become one nation without racism and with equality for all. There are still vast differences in health, education, employment, and standards of living of the Indigenous peoples as compared to their non-Indigenous counterparts. Even today Indigenous peoples have a significantly lower life expectancy, up to 11.5 years for men and 9.7 years for women . The infant mortality rate for the Indigenous peoples is double the rate for non-Aboriginal Australians. Understanding these inequalities is the first step to reconciling the differences. Policies such as the stolen generation and assimilation policy destroyed Indigenous identity and culture and justified the dispossession of Indigenous people and the removal of Indigenous children from their parents. We can’t change the past but we can make a better future by understanding and learning from the mistakes of the past, reconciliation is about that. Many practical and symbolic strategies have been implemented over the last 50 years to achieve reconciliation such as ATSIC, Northern Territory Intervention and the Mabo decision. However, the most significant ones are the 1967 Referendum, Closing the Gap framework in 2008 and the ‘Sorry speech’. The aim is to improve the five dimensions of reconciliation: race relations, equality and equity, institutional integrity, unity, and historical acceptance.

However, a study by Gerber (2014) reveals that Aboriginal women are facing a gender gap in income “despite the fact that women surpass men in terms of educational certification” (p. 126). Furthermore, Gerber (2014) revealed that Indian and Inuit women are the “least likely to work full time” (p.133) and “despite their educational advantages, continue to lag behind men on each of the income measures – making them the poorest of the poor” (p.140). This challenge is a significant one in that it often repeats in each generation to come, as I feel without income it’s often hard to find income.

The Article the end from the beginning re (de)finding Aboriginality written by Michael Dodson explores the notions on how Aboriginal people have been represented and perceived by the early settlers. Michael Dodson makes a critique on the language from previous historians. They Mention in the beginning that the Aboriginal people were seen as Noble savages from the prehistoric beasts, blood thirsty, cunning ferocious” that they even fell in the classification of blood types which gives an idea of an animal like classification, scientific based and based purely on Age and descent. ( Dodson, 2003: 19-20). Michael Dodson Argues the question as to how can the colonisers understand all the aspects of the indigenous people if they

On the other hand, the children don’t always appreciate what their parents do for them, in contrast the parents do not necessarily expect something in return from their children. Foraging is part of this generalized reciprocity, because each person or family of this culture share equal amounts food depending on the gathering of the day. They have equal opportunities within the society and not require to give something in return when it comes to giving and receiving. Balanced reciprocity has greater social status than generalized reciprocity, because it has equal value, but also obligates a person to return something back within the giver and the receiver there is also a time limit for that. According to an article about Reciprocity (cultural anthropology) balanced reciprocity “refers to direct exchange of customary equivalent without any delay, and hence includes some forms of gift-exchange, as well as purchasers with primitive money. The exchange is less social, and is dominated by the material exchange and individual interest.” (Reciprocity (cultural anthropology). There is also a term that relates to this reciprocity called kula ring where patterns trading occurs between men and women meaning that they trade jewelry which they might keep for a certain period of time and then they pass these precious values to another generation they