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John Howard's Argumentative Analysis

Decent Essays

Former prime minister, John Howard’s contentious statement that “Australians of this generation should not be required to accept blame for the past actions and policies over which they had no control” (Howard statement, human rights report) contradicts Australia’s character. This destructive comment has deepened old wounds that are present from the genocide committed towards Aboriginals of the Stolen Generation. Australia must accept liability for past policies as they have inflicted life-long impacts towards the victims, Australia continues to suffer division unless an apology is stated and Australia has previously apologised for the past policies of former governments. If the nation continues to deny its history, Australia will never close …show more content…

Australia has stalled the process of addressing the issues of former governments as the nation possesses a narrow mindset of not being responsible for other people’s actions. Many continue to deny the existence of the Stolen Generation as Howard stated, “I didn’t believe genocide had taken place, and I still don’t.” (Howard’s statement, the Guardian) Due to the failure to act in a just and sympathetic manner, it has resulted in 16,846 Aboriginal children in out-of-home care in 2016, in comparison to 2,785 Aboriginal children in 1997. Australia must remove the finger from the national pause button to provide comfort for the deserving Aborigines who were exposed to prolonged suffering, abuse and persecution. The past, present and future generations need to apologise as it is a continuous lifelong struggle for Aborigines as “it never goes away. Just ‘cause we’re not walking around on crutches, doesn’t mean we’re not hurting.” (Confidential Evidence 580, Queensland Bringing Them Home Report.) Australia’s patriotic society lacks nationalistic sorrow towards the victims affected by these policies. This proves that Australians of this generation are obligated to feel remorse as the insensitivity towards Aboriginals

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