Non Aboriginal Community Research Paper

It was these systems of kinship which determined who, and for which, members of the clan were responsible. In a society in which excess and wealth were not valued, in fact discouraged, this was a method of survival and insuran ce. These kin relationships were the foundation for all forms of reciprocity within the clan. For example, when a larger animal was caught in the hunt, it was pre-determined, depending on who captured the animal, who would receive which parts of the animal (Edwards 2005, p. 49). Sharing and reciprocity was not a friendly gesture within Aboriginal communities, it was an obligation which was to be taken seriously. It was a method for Aboriginal people to survive in a sometimes harsh and unforgiving land, which took the lives of many settlers.

Kinship is relevant today due to the fact that Aboriginal people have lost virtually everything since the Europeans first colonised Australia. Kinship is the one thing that couldn’t be taken away. Kinship is all the Aboriginal people had left, and the most important, as it binds all their families and the wider community. Although kinship structure today is less formally elaborated than it was in the past, it is still relevant (Edwards, 1998. p.311). Some Aboriginal people draw strength from their traditional heritage. They still perform their ceremonies, sing their songs and do their dances; also they speak the language of their group, where they belong.

The identities of Aboriginal peoples have always been complex, however the act of colonization hindered the separate understanding of Aboriginal groups, given that “the process of acculturation and the demise of indigenous Aboriginal tribal associations [has] eroded Aboriginal self-identification” (11) for some time. Aboriginal people lack a homogeneous worldview, which has challenged the idea of a single form of “Aboriginality” (25). Each group is very different; their locations, language, religious practices, and traditions play a major role in their contrasting identities. Their shared misrepresentation prevented the healthy

Kinship is determined by both family relationships and a person’s totem thus crossing paths with ancestral spirits, the land and the Dreaming. Accordingly, being part of a kinship group emphasises a sense of belonging and responsibility within a clan in taking care of one another. For example, in Aboriginal religion an Aunty may not be blood related but she is an Aunty to many within her clan. The land is the foundation in which Aboriginal people come together, that being so, “It is, then, the land which is really speaking – offering, to those who can understand its language, an explanative discourse about how it came to be as it is now…” Thus, Aboriginal people constantly teach each other on how to be true stewards of the

The land was so important to the Aboriginal people, their ownership and legal systems were far different from the European legal systems. Different areas of land were created by the dreaming creation stories and each individual belonged to certain territories within the family group and also had different spiritual connections, therefore they belonged to their land they didn’t own it. Different systems placed each individual in different relationship to every other person in the groups and determined the behaviour of an individual to one another. This was called the ‘kingship’ system. It also determined the behaviour of individuals and how they spoke to one another, there were the codes of behaviour that outlined their roles on the community. The aboriginal people had different defined roles amongst the community depending on their age and genders; generally the men’s role was the hunter and was also giving the role of managing cultural obligations that were important to their group. Whereas the women’s role in the community was the gatherer where they prepared food for the family, they also had the role of early child rearing and they also had talks in cultural obligations. (Bearndt and Bearndt, 1992).

According to Feverbee, there are five different types of communities (Feverbee, 2015). The five types are communities are interest, action, place, practice, and circumstance. Interest is people sharing the same interest or passion. Action is people trying to bring about change. Place is where people are brought together by geographic boundaries. Practice are people in the same profession or undertake the same activities. Circumstance are people brought together by external events/ situations. All these different types of communities are the purposes that brings the community together (Feverbee, 2015). All these purposes are

Britannica states that, in terms of ecology, a community is "an interacting group of various species in a common location". While all of these definitions are different, they share one commonality: sharing. Sharing an association, sharing concerns, sharing a living space. My neighbor attends the same parish I attend–we belong to the same community. My friends and I all attend Gender Equality Club–we are members of the same community.

Communities play an important role in many lives. Communities are people that come together in a time of need. It doesn’t matter who you are, or where you live, you have a community around you. Communities are held together by compassion, understanding and the heart of the community is the volunteers.

When most people talk about community, they think of a location, an area in which people live. By definition “community” is a group of people living in the same location and under the same government. Community can also be defined as a group of people with the same common interests or segments in society. However, these definitions, which can be found in any dictionary, are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to explaining what community really is. Community is the memories and traditions of a certain area, as well as the interactions and responsibilities of its members. In order to truly belong to a community people must follow a set of values. These communal values are needed to provide stability among

When thinking about a community, it doesn’t matter what forms within however on a much greater scale. A community doesn’t just consist of buildings, in fact, a community is brought together through the use of three different concepts; emotional belonging, connections within the community and thirdly relationships between one’s self. These allow an individual to make a difference and allow for others to become inspired. To me, community means coming together to ensure one feels a sense of belongingness which in turns allows individuals to be themselves. Just like the quote “small acts, when multiplied by millions of people can transform the world” (Howard Zinn) This displays that when a community comes together as one that small act turns into something much more greater which results in a positive atmosphere.

Community is an elusive term, known by everyone yet somewhat difficult to get a firm grasp of, its relatively vague and many different norms and values fall under the direct distinction of community. Talcott Parsons describes community a collective of which the members share a common territorial area as their base of operations for daily activities. Every individual has their own idealised version of what a community is and what is should look like. There are many theoretical definitions of what a community is and just as many glorified versions of what a community should be. Anthony P. Cohen says that we, as a society are attached to the idea of community and strive to understand it “We confront an empirical phenomenon: people’s attachment to community. We seek an understanding of it by trying to capture some sense of their

I believe a community is a group of people who live in a common location. The community is filled with people who have and share similar interests, income, ethnic backgrounds, and religious beliefs. There are many different communities throughout the United States that vary in their interest, beliefs, backgrounds, education, etc. I believe this plays a part in affecting the community’s health care, jobs, resources, etc. For example, there could be a wealthy community made up of doctors and lawyers who receive the best housing and the best health care. However, there could be a community within fifteen minutes of those same doctors and lawyers who are hard blue-collar workers that receive adequate health care and housing. This also could be the same for a community who is considered poor and has no health care and little opportunities for housing and jobs.

Community is a broad concept within the social sciences (sociology specifically) and one that is used frequently. It is one of the most vague and ambiguous terms, yet is commonplace to everyday life. The core concept of the term refers to social bonds and connections that exist between individuals in a particular geographical location. However vague the term may be, ‘Community’ as a construct is indeed of great importance when attempting to understand the impact of an era of social, political, economic, cultural and technological change.

A community is a social unit of any size that shares common values, or that is situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a village or town). It is a group of people who are connected by durable relations that extend beyond immediate genealogical ties, and who usually define that relationship as important to their social identity and practice.

Culture has always played an integral role in the development of societies and the interactions between people. For many, culture is embedded from a young age and it is not much of a challenge to feel in touch with one’s roots. However, an oft-found issue in Aboriginal populations is the perceived lack of cultural knowledge. Be it through politics or oppression, many Aboriginal people feel a disconnect between them and their culture and have trouble connecting with their cultural backgrounds on a social level.