Nature vs. Nurture: Analyzing Violent Behavior Amongst Australian Aboriginals

Using an empirical approach, Douglas Brownridge conducted a large-scale sample experiment between Canadian women, focusing on the significance in increase of violence with Aboriginal Women based on many variables. Violence against Aboriginal women increased at all levels of severity, and are more likely to be ongoing than other non-Aboriginal relationships.

Even though most studies would have discussed the overrepresentation of Indigenous Australians in the criminal justice system, studies have actually found that in contrast with this, Indigenous Australians are not

The racism that goes on around Australia has a very serious impact on Indigenous Australians; this impact is the gap in the life expectancy between Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Australians. Life expectancy for native Australians is in comparison with third world countries with the probability of death being around 20 years lower than other Australians, which has increased since 1997 (Kim 2007). The life of Indigenous Australian 's is short-lived compared to other Australians as 66% of the deaths of native Australians were before the age of 65 (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2011). The life expectancy for non-indigenous Australian 's is 75 for males and 81 for females. The life expectancy for Indigenous Australian 's has been the same since the 1900’s with the life expectancy of males being 56 and females 61 (Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission 2001). The gap in life probability between

“These folks have been victimized twice. Once when their daughters, their sisters, their mothers have gone missing. And then, a second time when the justice system has utterly failed them in the pursuit of the justice they so rightly deserve. There can be no solution until we get to the truth in the heart of the matter, that this is a complex issue. The sources of this violence against Aboriginal women and girls is complex, but it… there’s no possibility of finding those solutions unless we actually have the truth on the table. And the resistance from this government time and time again, to have the courage and the leadership to approach this conversation and find that truth… is yet a third victimization of these families” (Pope C. & Smiley M., 2015)

Cunneens (2007) articles showed relative statistics, showing the negative effects of the relationship between the two groups, whether it is one groups wrong doing or not, the evidence shows that there is an issue that needs urgent attention and resolving. “Indigenous people were 17 times more likely to be held in custody than non-Indigenous people in Australia” this raw fact can be looked at from two different perspectives; number one the indigenous community are victimised by the police, or two a major percentage of the indigenous community are being involved in crime. Considering the indigenous population compared to the non indigenous community is so small, it does

In the article “Domestic violence against indigenous women is everybody’s problem” domestic violence is depicted as a serious social problem that involves “unspeakable acts of violence” that leaves victims experiencing fear and despair (Taylor 2014). More specifically, the social construction of domestic violence will be discussed with an emphasis on Aboriginal women and a typology of intimate partner violence. The social construction of domestic violence has serious implications for victims of domestic abuse because there is a failure to address the processes that perpetuate the violence. Instead, domestic violence is addressed through the illusion of social support. What is evident is that domestic violence is a social problem that requires comprehensive services, particularly for indigenous women, to address the complexity of the interaction between the individual’s social location and the causes that lead to the violence.

Women no matter where they are in the world are too often victims of violence. They face higher rates than men both if it is sexual assault, stalking, or severe spousal abuse and usually the results are that women will end up extremely injured or dead. With young women suffering the highest rates of violence, Aboriginal women in particular face an increased risk of violence compared to non-Aboriginal women. Aboriginal women in Canada are three times more likely to experience crucial and severe violence compared to non-Aboriginal women. Most of these women end up missing and murdered. The predicaments of missing and murdered Aboriginal women has brought tremendous pain and suffering in homes, in families and throughout Aboriginal communities. Many sources and factors have contributed to hindering solving this issue. Media and discrimination have long been known to have played a huge role in this tragedy.

The over-representation of Indigenous people in the criminal justice system is a large problem in society and reasons as to why this may be occurring need to be examined (Walker & McDonald, 1995; AIC, 2013). Indigenous Australians make up less than three per cent of the overall Australian population, however Indigenous people are over-represented in Australian prison populations, with imprisonment rates that are around 12 times those of the rest of the Australian population (AIC, 2013). Rates of over-representation are even higher in juvenile detention, with a 10-17 year old Indigenous person being around 24 times more likely to be in detention than a non-Indigenous person of the same age (AIC, 2013; Cunneen & White, 2011). Indigenous Australians overrepresentation in the criminal justice system is usually due to offences pertaining to violence and public disorder (ABS, 2010; Hogg & Carrignton, 2006). This is endorsed by the fact that Indigenous Australians currently make up 40 per cent of those imprisoned for assault offences (AIC, 2013). The over representation of Indigenous Australians in the criminal justice system may be attributed to a variety of reasons, known as risk factors (AIC, 2013).

THE POLICE criticism toward residents of a small inner-city Sydney suburb of Waterloo must signal the end of society and media depictions that has created an inability to deem the residents’ constant claim of police harassment and violence. It is time we should accept the grim fact that many existing attitudes towards the most disadvantaged people, Indigenous Australians, are part of this mayhem-like problem.

In April 1995 Pamela George, an Ojibway women, was brutally murdered in Saskatchewan. Her murderers Steven Kummerfield and Alex Ternowetsky, young middle-class white men, were convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to merely six and a half years in prison. George’s story is one of the many Indigenous women who have been murdered or missing over the past years. There are over 580 cases of missing and murdered Indigenous women, close to half are put aside and left unsolved. Only 53% of these cases have lead to charges of homicide (Klement 8). Drastically, statistics indicate that Aboriginals are faced with more hardships throughout their life compared to the average Canadian. Indigenous groups, particularly women, suffer from a lower rate of education, higher suicide rates and an array of health risks. This paper will examine the role settler colonization history has played in perpetuating conditions for violence to indigenous women, many of which are still experienced today. This will be accomplished by first assessing the history of settler colonization and its negative repercussions. Secondly, it will use Sherene Razak’s concept of “spatial segregation,” to illustrate how state institutions have facilitated violence through space, race and the law. Lastly, this paper will use evidence from the film “Finding Dawn” to further demonstrate how violence towards indigenous women is institutionally produced.

Indigenous communities are usually found in rural areas of Australia (Campbell, J 2003). Domestic violence is at high rates in remote areas, those who live in these areas lack telecommunication, transport and service (Campbell, J 2003).

In 1996, a Canadian Royal Commission 
on Aboriginal People, which found that
 “[r]epeated assaults on the culture and collective identity of aboriginal people have weakened the foundations of aboriginal society and contributed to the alienation 
that drives some to self-destruction and anti- social behaviour” (Indigenous). Many researchers have found that, compared to non-Aboriginals, Aboriginals are more likely to live in poverty and substandard housing; have lower levels of educational achievement; have poorer health, including much higher rates of diabetes, HIV/ AIDS and tuberculosis; have higher rates of alcohol and drug dependency; suffer higher rates of victimization by crime, particularly relationship violence; have higher youth suicide

It is an open secret that alcohol consumption corresponds with Australian’s social activity. With the high amount of alcohol consumption given to an individual who is easily irritated can result in their involvement in violence. Increased alcohol consumption is often associated with crime, misdemeanour, verbal and physical violence. Drinking in Australia with the purpose of getting drunk, makes it that much more probable that party goers will be at risk to violence. The question that lingers is will the policies and legislation be effective in reducing alcohol related violence amongst the party goers in Australia. The purpose of this research is to carefully analyze the amount of drinking problems in Australia with specific look at alcohol

Are some people born to be violent? An astonishing discovery proves theirs a single gene that has been associated with violent behavior. It is called “The Warrior Gene” it’s a very controversial science it has been discussed over its genetic

Some questions that I am sure has passed through everyone’s mind at least once is why are people violent? Why do people murder or hurt other people? The answers to these questions are not easily answered. It is clear that not everyone is violent, and perhaps some are only violent under certain circumstances. Which then leads us to addition questions on whether we all have the capacity to be violent. Are we all naturally violent creatures with those violent tendencies buried deep beneath the surface just waiting for something to set us off? Even so, where do these come from? Perhaps it is learned behavior from our society through the media, movies, and music we are constantly surrounded by. Or do we have our genetics to blame? Though we may never find complete concrete answers to the above questions, nature, and nurture, or our biology and our society in which we live, surely provide evidence as to the cause of why we are violent as humans. I see them both being equally important in playing a role in why