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Chicka Dixon knew education was the key to closing the gap

Dick Estens

by Dick Estens

21 Apr 05:45am

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Filed under: Aboriginal Affairs, Employment, Jobs, Welfare

48 comments

When Charles “Chicka” Dixon passed away last month, Australia lost a vigorous advocate for Aboriginal rights. Chicka was an agitator and a unionist but he was also a realist who understood that to get ahead Indigenous people needed skills and training and opportunity.

Chicka Dixon, a great pioneer

But this training had to be real and translate to actual work. Aboriginal people are among the most trained people in this country, yet they represent the highest unemployed.

Chicka Dixon and I would have disagreed on many things, but on that point he could not have been more right.

Chicka was also one of the pioneers of Aboriginal policy making and, with Charles Perkins, broke new ground in setting up the first Department of Aboriginal Affairs.

But now, nearly 40 years later, Aboriginal policy seems to have lost its way and is dominated by well-meaning but risk-averse bureaucrats, who are paralyzed by a fear of failure and political fallout.

It is a state of affairs that benefits no-one and certainly does nothing to foster Indigenous success.

I have held this view for some time so more than 14 years ago I put my money where my mouth was and set up an organisation that would help Aboriginal people get the skills to have more than just menial jobs. My idea was that our first Australians needed the skills to have long-term and real careers.

That is where the Aboriginal Employment Strategy was born.

The AES is basically an employment company that helps get Indigenous people into long-term work and builds career paths. It is staffed almost entirely by Aboriginal people and offers a range of services, from recruitment through to youth entrepreneurial programs. In the past 14 years we have found jobs for more than 5000 Indigenous people.

Since 2002, we have taken a long-term view and put our efforts into building career paths and to do this have focused on school students and their futures.

One of the problems we confront is that Aboriginal kids tend to leave school between years 8 and 10. This happens for many reasons so to change this we need to teach youngsters about the commercial world, show them the opportunities and how to develop their careers.

From this we need to create a culture where young Aboriginal people want to climb the corporate ladder.

I believe the way to make this happen is via our School Based Training (SBT) program, which arranges for Year 10 students to spend one day each week in a workplace, while still studying for their Year 12 certificate – and getting paid.

The AES has more than 35 employers offering SBT positions including corporates such as ANZ, CBA, NAB and Westpac plus other large companies like Qantas, Telstra, Woodside Energy and Target Australia.

It is about building into these kids the ethos and the culture of achievement and the importance of working and progressing. It is about creating support structures and creating “stickability”.
And as well as keeping kids interested and engaged while finishing senior school, the SBT program gives Australian companies a chance to find enthusiastic workers who will become an asset to the business, and one day become employers themselves.

Over the past year our SBT program has placed more than 220 students with companies. And our figures show that around 30 per cent of these kids secure jobs with their host and many of the remaining 70 per cent move into other companies or go on to tertiary education.

These are solid results because they involve real companies and real jobs. And the program is not run by bureaucrats but by Aboriginal people. AES people visit schools, check progress and help organise career paths.

The reason the program works is because it is built on community. Because community results in peer pressure which builds self esteem and pride - the things all young people need to stick with the project.

This year we have a target of finding 500 SBT positions across Australia. It is an ambitious target, but one I know can be achieved provided we get more companies involved.

Over the coming month, we are holding workshops around Australia to brief corporates on the program and train them on how to work with Indigenous students and make the SBT program fly.

By any reasonable estimation, this is a program that makes complete sense. It is run by Aboriginal people, for Aboriginal people and achieves a long-term positive outcome. And that is a sentiment I know Chicka Dixon would have been happy to support.

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48 comments

Show oldest | newest first

    • John A Neve says:

      06:39am | 21/04/10

      Dick,
      Tells us that “Aboriginal people are the most trained people in this country”, but he fails to tell us why they have the highest rate of unemployment rate!!

      To the best of my knowledge all options provided by the state are open to early Australians. Public education is available to all and I see little evidence of discrimination as I walk around.

      I would suggest that if you live were there is little or no work, then it will be hard to get a job. The simple answer is to move.

      Reply

    • Pavlo says:

      08:38am | 21/04/10

      @john neve
      Why don’t you put your money where your mouth is? I wonder how you would experience things if you were actually black?
      Why don’t you do the experiment a la John Howard Griffin’s “Black Like Me’ where he becomes a black man (through make up etc) for a time.

      Then see if you can still say, ” I see little evidence of discrimination as I walk around.”

      Of course you don’t! - you’re a white man (presumably)

    • John A Neve says:

      09:12am | 21/04/10

      Pavlo,
      It is always dangerous to presume any thing. Are you suggesting early Australians are descriminated against?
      I thought discrimination in this country was saved for migrants and non Christains!!

    • Pavlo says:

      10:50am | 21/04/10

      @john neve
      By ‘early Australians’ do you mean Aboriginal Australians/Indigenous Australians?

      If that is what you mean, are you seriously suggesting that Aboriginal people in this country have not -  and are not - discriminated against in everyday life and in everyday situations that white people take for granted? 

      Aboriginal people are discriminated against simply because of the color of their skin -  a physical characteristic over which they have no control.

      John, it sounds to me like you have the ultimate white privilege - the privilege to deny that you have unearned privilege, yet remain completely ignorant of what it means.

    • Jones says:

      12:29pm | 21/04/10

      Pavlo,

      I am white, of anglo-saxon descent but was born and raised in Australia.  The definitions of “aboriginal” and “indigenous” people include people who were born in a country or who are native to a country.  By that definition, I am an indigenous Australian.

      By using the term “early Australians”, John is very skillfully avoiding any confusion about which group of aboriginal or indigenous Australians he is referring to (ie the white ones who were born here or the black ones who were also born here).

      Discrimination is the act of making a distinction on how people are treated, which is based on the usual variables (age, sex, sexual orientation, race, creed, and so on).  The various governments of Australia have put in place a raft of measures which define that the black type of indigenous Australians (ie early Australians) have access to more services than the white type of indigenous Australians.

      Why aren’t these measures means tested, so that disadvantaged white indigenous Australians can also get a leg-up?

    • John A Neve says:

      02:34pm | 21/04/10

      Acker @ 1234hrs,

      You talk of “truancy” and “commercial and vocational opportunity”. So tell us Acker is the a government or family issue?

      As to your comment “The White man has really got things screwed up with this urban madness”. If I had said that but changed the colour of the man, you’d be screaming racism.

    • acker says:

      03:07pm | 21/04/10

      @John Neve…Is what a friggin government or family issue ? it is an Australian issue that we all need to try to fix, as is over grown cities sucking all our rural resources to build more roads and rail to metro outer suburban oblivion.

    • John A Neve says:

      03:22pm | 21/04/10

      Acker,
      Simply put, you were talking about “truancy” and “commercial and vocational opportunity”. I ask again are these family of government issues?

      In my view thay are both family isues.

    • acker says:

      04:01pm | 21/04/10

      @ John Neve…yeah high truancy..declines when welfare payments or another policing strategy are used ..yeah commercial opportunity when governments re-introduce de-centralization incentives..yeah vocational opportunities when commercial activity comes.

      Perhaps if we as a nation rightfully charge city’s a transit tax for every item of food that comes into them (scaled to distance from source) these neglected rural areas and indigenous communities will start clawing back what years of destruction the city ripping off the country has done.

      In 1961 merino wool exports were worth 350 Million Pounds, thats what built your Opera house sunshine, and those same Merinos from rural Australia probably built a lot of the other infrastructure you take for granted around unsustainable metropolitan Australia including the bloody Sydney Harbor Bridge !

      Weipa and Mt Isa are smack bang in the middle of outback indigenous areas yet that money gets syphoned off to the cities. And bugger all goes back to those nearby communities, they struggle to get teachers out there because the local natural resources being mined or farmed are paying for an urban lifestyle that many of those teachers are trying to attract refuse to leave !

      Think about that while you swanning it around in a shopping center enjoying urban cheap groceries while these people are struggling to get a teacher to their community and are probably paying 8-10 dollars for a not to fresh lettuce or some other vegie…then urban folk with a Woolies or Coles within 1km scream these same indigenous people are not feeding their kids properly. Dick Estens is actively doing something to try and fix the problem, what positive constructive suggestions have you got champ ?

    • John A Neve says:

      04:47pm | 21/04/10

      Acker @ 101hrs,

      Tell me, why can’t you stick to the topic?
      What has any of your last post to do with the article?
      Wool exports in 1961 !!! Price of food in the country !!!!

      What is srange Acker, is the fact that I respond to questions, you try to dodge them, says a lot for you logic I don’t think.  If you don’t like it in the bush, move, you might find a job, Who knows you might even understand life in the real world.

    • Fred says:

      03:53pm | 22/04/10

      John I would be the first to jump on anyone saying anything negative about this topic, and I won’t here because I don’t think you’re saying anything particularly wrong. 

      The only point I would make is it’s not as simple as people being trained and jobs being available, there are many difficulties - some are inherent cultural things, others are as simple as not having available transport, it’s a very complex issue and I’m glad people like the author of this article are actually doing something about it

    • acker says:

      09:50am | 21/04/10

      @ John A Neve ...Due to many of the teachers outside a 300 km radius of city’s with populations above 500,000 where many indigenous people reside, being the leftovers rejected by city schools, it is probably a big factor contributing to this problem. Teachers in these areas should be paid significiently more than those in urban areas, to attract the better teachers.

      Reply

    • John A Neve says:

      10:32am | 21/04/10

      Acker,
      If I read you correctly, you are suggesting rural teachers are sub standard?
      Whether that is true or not is another issue, but even if true?  Wouldn’t that impact on ALL young people in that region?

      As to pay; I think all teachers are under paid.

    • acker says:

      11:34am | 21/04/10

      @John A Neve…if you visit http://www.myschool.edu.au  you will find my claim about teaching standards in more remote schools of all types mostly substantiated. To many indigenous schools being the remotest of all, it is a bigger major factor.

      Not the only factor but still a significient factor. Unfortunately many of these schools don’t so much get to choose a teaching applicant, rather they often have to take who comes along.

      Other factors include truancy and the major one Dick Estens, Andrew Forrest, Noel Pearson and most likely Chicka Dixon strived for “commercial and vocational opportunity”

      This issue is also tied in with the population debate, as city’s which only recycle are sucking the resources that would be better distributed to these communities. Including fresh food which is often produced within 200km of these indigenous settlements but ends up getting shipped to the city re-sold then shipped back out to them with a shorter shelf life and a lot more expensive.

      The white man has really got things screwed up with this urban madness….shame.

    • John A Neve says:

      02:13pm | 21/04/10

      Pavlo @ 1150hrs,
      No I don’t mean either aboriginal or indigenous both terms incorrectly used by some, I meant early Australians.

      While early Australians might have suffered discrimination in the past I don’t believe that is the case now. In fact some people would argue revers discrimination!!

      If I was a sensitive person Pavlo, I might think some of your comments were racist.

    • Dorothy Johnson says:

      10:03am | 21/04/10

      @John A Neve I am an indigenous woman who done Accounting got dinstinctions too but I ended up haveing to clean toilets as no-one would employ me if I had of said I ws Indian or any other nationalality I would have got a job. Do peolpe understand what we go through, I have even had people on the train tell me to move so they can sit down. There is so much disparity there ,this nation looks after only the newcomers and forgets the rest. I knew Chicka and had the most respect for him I was so angry with the media coverage they couldn’t even let him have his achievments without trying to take him down. I am totally ashamed of this beautiful country of ours.

      Reply

    • John A Neve says:

      10:39am | 21/04/10

      Dorothy,

      I don’t doubt you word but rudness and racial discrimination are not one and the same. Regarding your lack of ability to get an accountancy job. One would have to ask was this town or country, how many accountancy firms were in the area, did you apply for jobs outside your immediate region?

      As I have said earlier, you often have to go where the work is, it won’t always come to you.

    • Christian Real says:

      11:09am | 21/04/10

      John Neve,
      I would have to ask you, are you discriminating against Aboriginal people in your comments?
      And, perhaps you ought to wander down to Hervey Bay and Maryborough centrelink offices and you would see for yourself that not everyone in the huge dole queues are of Aboriginal origin, in fact most of them are white.
      Time to take of those rose coloured glasses John neve, apparently the white people can do nothing wrong in your eyes.

    • Christian Real says:

      11:30am | 21/04/10

      John Neve, I am inclined to agree with what Dorothy as written and I can relate to finding it hard at times to get employment because you are of Aboriginal origin.
      I have been a little more fortunate than others, even though I have also had a lot of my job applications knocked back, I am employed, but at present, off work after being injured at work, an injury that required an operatio, and extensive and ongoing physio.
      My first job John was at the age of 16, and was a job that I held for 30 years which not bad for a person of Aboriginal origin, until I was made redundant.
      And John Neve, it may not be Dorothy’s lack of ability to get an accountancy job,and it is also a fact that some employers do discriminate against people because they are not white.

    • Jones says:

      01:11pm | 21/04/10

      Christian,

      I applaud your hard work and your dignity.  I am in almost the same situation as you.  I got a job as soon as I was able, work hard for years and, due to unfortunate circumstances, now find myself lining up at Centrelink.  I have injuries that prevent me from working in a certain chunk of employment areas but I am still applying for everything that comes my way.

      I have been knocked back more times than I can count.  I was recently knocked back because of the colour of my skin.  As it turns out, they would only hire “indigenous Australians”.

    • John A Neve says:

      01:32pm | 21/04/10

      Christian,
      I would have thought by now that you know I don’t discriminate against any one,  what I see, hear and read is what I base my comments on.
      I also agree that there a many caucasians in the ranks of the unemployed. So what is your point?  I really do not see the relevance to my posts, please explain?

    • John A Neve says:

      01:39pm | 21/04/10

      Christian @ 1230hrs,
      At no time have I commented on Dorothy’s abilities, where you ever got that from is beyond me!!!

      Most people have at times found it hard to get a job, so what’s new?
      Sadly you make assertions that have no basis in fact, who is wearing those “coloured glasses” Christian?

    • Dorothy Johnson says:

      02:50pm | 22/04/10

      @John A Neve I live in Sydney there are lots of them here. Thank God for the Public Service

    • A Bob says:

      12:26pm | 21/04/10

      Thank you Dick, for this article and the very tangible efforts you have made to address a very real problem.

      Reply

    • Christian Real says:

      03:28pm | 21/04/10

      John Neve, In your own words,you appear to have commented on Dorothy’s abilities when you said.” regarding your lack of ability to get an accountancy job”
      It would appear that what you are saying John, is that Dorothy lacks the ability to get a job in accountancy, would it not?

      Reply

    • John A Neve says:

      03:47pm | 21/04/10

      Christian,
      Abilities are is a relative term. A person in year 10 has ablities, but a person in year 12 should/would have more.  “Your lack of ability” just means you don’t have the same or more ablity than the person who got the job. Come on Christian, take off those morbid glasses.

    • iansand says:

      03:37pm | 21/04/10

      John A Neve - I don’t know if you have ever had a few drinks in the professionals’ pub in any country town.  The bar where the people who make the employment decisions, but if you have you must have been deaf.  Discrimination in employment is very real.

      Reply

    • John A Neve says:

      03:51pm | 21/04/10

      Iansand,
      I would agree “discrimination in employment is very real”, but that does not mean it is racist inspired, does it?

    • iansand says:

      04:45pm | 21/04/10

      What?  Now you are making less sense than usual.

      I can assure you that there are no in depth discussions of the qualifications of individual applicants.  There is, however, an attitude about a large, identifiable group of people without analysis of individual merits (and I am not talking about old boys of GPS schools).  I would be fascinated to hear why that is not racist.

    • John A Neve says:

      05:17pm | 21/04/10

      Iansand,

      My only response to your last post, is to state that I don’t mix with the type of people you obviously do. But then I don’t drink in all male bars.

    • iansand says:

      07:33am | 22/04/10

      Then you should get out more before pontificating.

    • acker says:

      04:27pm | 21/04/10

      You have Almost 50% of the posts here “John a Nervending”  yet I still struggle to see much substance in your criticism.

      Reply

    • John A Neve says:

      04:51pm | 21/04/10

      Acker,
      I don’t believe I have criticised any thing. What I have done is ask some questions which you seem incapable of answering.

      I note Dorothy also failed to respond, sad really isn’t it?

    • acker says:

      08:02pm | 22/04/10

      @John Neve… I don’t know where you live but I suspect it is a long way and very different environment from that of Dick Estens and Chicka Dixon. Just remember John every rs-hole has an opinion whether any one listens thats another matter.

    • John A Neve says:

      07:30am | 23/04/10

      Acker,
      Your last post indicates the real value of your comments. Now we all know why you and those like you always blame others for you failures.

    • Angie says:

      02:07pm | 22/04/10

      Most of these comments so far seem to have totally missed the major point, unfortunately succumbing to personal observations.
      Both make good points, but while you are busy bickering, the divide is growing - whether you like or or not. I find it interesting that the ‘major commentators’ on this blog so far have reduced their arguments to a slanging match - based on elements of truth on all sides, but still personally biased and achieving little.
      I am Australian (white) with ancestors arriving here in chains! I am proud of my heritage and like to think that I follow the principle of ‘treat others how you would like to be treated’ - regardless of ancestry, colour etc etc.
      I think that, to date, many policy decisions addessing the needs of indigenous communities have been based on ‘knee jerk’ over-reaction and not particularly far-sighted. The “Let’s just throw some more money in the pot” and ‘Let’s include a clause in every application asking about Aboriginality” has done little but patronise Aboriginal communities and infuriate non-Aboriginal communities over what is seen to be some kind of favouritism.
      I am a teacher and I recently invited a colleague of mine to speak to my class - we were doing a unit of work on Australian Identity - she is not Aboriginal but has a Masters in Historiography, majoring in Aboriginal history and culture, and has spent many years working in Aboriginal communities. I felt she was far better qualified than I to lead an informed session to a bunch of 30 12 year old kids, 95% of whom are from cultural backgrounds other than Australian.
      When she spoke, you could have heard a pin drop - the first thing she showed these kids - and I had never seen such a simple visual provide such a strong message - was a chart, a timeline of Aboriginal history in Australia. One square represented 200 years in a 60,000 year timeline of Aboriginal existence in Australia - the page held 30 blocks, 29 of them white-free. White history in this country is regarded by Aboriginal people as ‘modern history’.
      I absolutelty deplore the slogan ‘white invasion’ and the reference to Australia Day as ‘Invasion Day’, however we must surely agree that in terms of drawing Aboriginal and white communities together we have done a pretty ordinary job so far. Rather than the bickering and point scoring that so far seems to have been the general comments made in this forum - and pretty common in everyday discussions -  we should be looking at how we can get it right!
      I’m no politician and no policy maker, but it seems obvious to me that we need to start looking at ways to give a ‘hand up’ to Aboriginal communities rather than more ‘hand outs’, as as all this seems to have achieved so far is further division and mistrust.
      If Charles ‘Chicka’ Dixon understood that for indigenous Australians to get ahead they require skill development, training and opportunity wasn’t he on the right track?

      Reply

    • Jones says:

      03:09pm | 22/04/10

      Quite right, Angie.

      I am the first to admit that I am resentful of the current treatment of black and white Australia.  I resent that the colour of someone’s skin is more of a defining factor in government assistance than their means and circumstances.  I believe in equality for all people, which is something we don’t see today.  Yes, there are still patches of outright racism of white people against other ethnic people (not just black Australians either), but I think it’s wrong and generally unhelpful to claim that racism against black Australians is rife and that this is the reason for the gap in circumstances in this day and age.

      I resent that black Australians feel they have the right to claim land that they may or may not have a tangible attachment to, in favour of a family of white farmers who has lived and breathed that land for generations.  Too bad if the white people feel a connection to the land - that connection is obviously not as important as the black fella’s connection.  The general argument has something to do with that 60000 years you quoted.  They have a cultural tie to the land going back 60000 years, which means that the farmer who was born there and lived his entire life there loving his property and caring for his property has no right to feel attached to it.  Where is that farmer supposed to go?  Back to England?  Maybe he can claim a strong cultural heritage to Stonehenge, since his ancestors 10000 years ago may or may not have lived there.  The native title movement seems to show no consideration for the fact that black people are not the only people who feel something for their surroundings, which is condescending and downright insulting.

      I resent that black Australians are given more centrelink benefits than other Australians purely because of the colour of their skin.  Of course, I know that there are many, many horribly disadvantaged black kids out there who need the help.  I do not begrudge them that help.  What I resent is the fact that there are equally disadvantaged white (or other ethnic) kids who can’t get the same level of support because they don’t have the right coloured skin.

      I treat one ethnic group in exactly the same way as I treat another.  I can sit down and have a fantastic conversation with anyone.  I think the same of a black homeless person as I do of a white homeless person.  And yet people call me racist because I don’t subscribe to the view that the poor poor black people (who, yes have a dark and terrible past since white settlement) deserve more than everyone else.

      I’m sure Chicka Dixon was on the right track - improving education and living standards is obviously the right direction to head in.  But the thing I usually see is black people demanding that the government “do something”.  Surely it’s equally up to black people to do something for themselves?  That’s what Chicka stood for.

      When we finally find that place where the government is supporting people who are doing something to help themselves, then we might see improvement.  These people screaming racism and bad luck need to step back and think a bit about life and responsibilities.  How long are they going to sit there in the dark waiting for someone else to stand up and turn on the light?

    • Fred says:

      04:05pm | 22/04/10

      Jones I see the point you’re trying to make but I think the problem is it’s not that black people ‘deserve’ more help than others - it’s that we need it.  When you make up around 2% of the population and yet 25% of the prison population, you must realise we’re going wrong somewhere along the line. 

      I think it all starts at education but awareness from non-indigenous areas help more than you think! (not saying that you are unaware!!)

    • goingstrong says:

      03:20pm | 22/04/10

      Jones says:
      Excuse me….but Aboriginal people on welfare payments receive exactly the same as non Aboriginal people, so please get your facts right, and as for the rest of the conversation going on here, total bull…t.  Do your research first before you go off on a rant about blackfellas….seems there is a lot of people out there that assume to know something about absolutely nothing.

      Reply

    • Jones says:

      04:05pm | 22/04/10

      Well, that was an angry response.

      I have gone to the Centrelink website and had a bit of a look around.  Quite right, it seems things over there at the Abstudy department have changed since last time I looked - Abstudy payments are now means tested (hallelujah).  I therefore retract my comments about aboriginal payments not being means tested.

      However, my statement stands.  Why is there a separate payment for a particular racial group?  Why is there even an Abstudy payment?

      “To be eligible for ABSTUDY, you need to meet the criteria below: You must be an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person.” (Taken from the Centrelink website).

      To have a whole separate system of payment for one race that is different from the system of payment for all other races is just plain wrong.  Everyone’s all about equality rights - how equal is it to single out black people like that?  Why can’t it just be one type of payment for a person in one type of situation?

      In terms of your comment, “As for the rest of the conversation going on here, total bull…t,” you might want to be a little more constructive with your criticism.  If you have anything to actually contribute, feel free.

    • Angie says:

      04:02pm | 22/04/10

      Absolutely agree with everything you said - I think the ‘hand out’ mentality which has prevailed for too long has taken its toll on ALL sides. It’s time we stopped the ‘blame game’ and the ‘you owe us’ mentality that is NOT unique to indigenous Australians - it cuts across pretty much every community group in one way or another.
      When we talk about ‘Stolen Generations’ for example, I have shed tears and I can only imagine the impact this well-meaning government policy had long-term on indigenous communities. On the flip side, however, my mother’s sister was taken from her inner city family home by childrens’ services, back in the early 40’s, because she was ‘dobbed in’ for being malnourished. My grandmother was a single mum of three girls and did the best she could - my aunt simply couldn’t bear to eat bread and dripping every night of the week!
      She was taken to what was commonly known as a ‘home for girls’; she was not placed with a wealthy family to be ‘beefed up’ and my grandmother was offered no support from anyone - my aunt worked like a slave scrubbing floors and cleaning in that ‘home’, and returned home some months later, no better for her horrible experience - this happened twice in her young life and NO-ONE ever explained this to her…or her mother. It was a traumatic event that stayed with my aunt right up to her death last year. Stolen? Yes. Compensated? Apology? No. All of us have a story to tell I’m sure.
      Be that as it may I, like you, resent the current inequalities and the poorly planned government policies which have created this ‘them’ vs ‘us’ mindset - it has to stop! I am no bleeding heart, believe me, and I have no political agenda whatsoever - there simply needs to be far more give and take, particularly in relation to opportunities given to all Australians - indigenous or not.
      You are absolutley right, in my opinion, when you say we ALL have to take responsibilty for our own advancement - I am always saying to the kids I teach, as well as to my own teenage sons, “Grab opportunities with both hands - work hard and your time will come”. Let’s hope that the opportunities aren’t squandered and that there is enough thought put into current and future policy so that NO Australian feels minimalised.
      Give people the tools and the purpose to be motivated enough to find the light, not just a wad of money, and I’m sure they will stand up and turn it on!

      Reply

    • Christian Real says:

      04:31pm | 22/04/10

      Angie,
      Perhaps I should put in a claim on my late Grandmother’s behalf, as she and her siblings were part of the stolen generation, and once more none of them ever got compensated for it, so your absurd claim is baseless.
      My grandmother was 14 when she was stolen from her rightful family and taken to work as a servant for an English family, that was 86 years ago, so compensation, plus interest for 86 years should amount to quite a bit.
      And when, I can’t put all our Aboriginal family tree together because the English in their wisdom (Not) took our ancestors children from their rightful families, then, yes, the English owe our people plenty.

    • Christian Real says:

      04:11pm | 22/04/10

      Jones,
      It appears that you should do some more research before you write your diatribe about our people. I am afraid Jones, that Aboriginal people receive exactly the same welfare payments as any other non -Aboriginal people.
      This appears to be the typical diatribe and a misconception of the facts,by you Jones, so go and research your facts, before you put your foot in your mouth, and then come back and apologise for peedling untrue myths, rumors and stories about our people.

      Reply

    • Jones says:

      05:27pm | 22/04/10

      As I wrote above, Christian, yes, it appears that things have changed and I was basing some of the things I said on old Centrelink rules.  I have already recognised the error of my ways and apologised for the incorrect statement I made.  But also please note my other comments about having a payment type specifically for one (and only one) racial group.  In any other situation this would be called racism.

    • iansand says:

      06:01pm | 22/04/10

      The sad thing is that it is all too easy to identify a severely disadvantaged group of people who undeniably require assistance.  If you took the Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander criterion out of the equation it would make almost no difference to the entitlements.

      That is a matter of national embarrassment and shame.

    • dee says:

      04:38pm | 22/04/10

      Hey Angie, the stolen generation were not take because of neglect, the majority of them were taken initially because they were Aboriginal, the lighter they were, the better to assimilate them into white society, this was their way of wiping them out. A racist policy initiated by earlier governments, and continued up until the late 70s.  Some lived through it and survived but most Aboriginal people were mentally and physically abused by a monstrous system that to seemed to be lacking in any compassion.  My own family had to endure all this, suffering abuse so bad, they were never ever the same people, and they are still suffering today.  It is so easy for some people to comment here on what Aboriginal people went through, and not having any understanding of the true story.  Maybe your did family suffer in institutions then but knowing what my family went through was even harder, they were treated like animals, truth to tell, animals would have been treated alot better.

      Reply

    • Jones says:

      05:59pm | 22/04/10

      Dee, I am truly sorry for what happened to your family and other people who were removed from their families.  Let it be known that I do not dispute the horrors of what was done to aboriginal people in the past.  I do think that the best way for everyone to deal with these issues is to move forward, rather than always harking back to what was done to them and their ancestors years ago.

      I wonder how responsible it is for you to claim that your family’s treatment was worse than Angie’s family’s.  Do you know the details of what happened to Angie’s aunt?

      Even if you did know those details, isn’t it better for everyone to look to the future and see what we can make of our lives from this point forward, instead of trying to figure out whose past is the most depressing?

    • Angie says:

      05:56pm | 22/04/10

      To Dee and Christian,
      Christian, I made absolutely no claim, or even suggestion, that all Aboriginal people have been compensated for being taken from their families - and my aunt and her family certainly would not expect anything other than a simple explanation. I cannot begin to imagine what your family has been through, nor would I be silly enough to make a generalised claim I have no right to make. I am sorry if I created the wrong impression. However, there are a lot of “the English” out there who are trying to make things right - I would like to be one of them - but don’t you think it might be time to acknowledge that, ever so slowly, people are waking up to what has failed in the past as far as real and practical ways to support Aboriginal people and are trying to now make better decisions? I don’t think it helps when every time a hand is held out in support that it is slapped back with bitter criticism do you?
      Dee, obviously your family has suffered badly due to a government policy that simply wasn’t right - I don’t know the real motivation for the policy, but clearly you have your own thoughts about it. I was not trying to compare one situation with another, or the impact on each of our families. All I know is that very bad decisions have been made in the past and that is where they need to remain. We don’t ever want to forget, but we should be using the mistakes and the memories to make it right, so that we are all offered a ‘fair go’. What we don’t need is to use the memories and mistakes as a weapon against each other!

      Reply
 
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