Prejudice And Discrimination In Australia

Superior Essays
Prejudice and Discrimination Against the Australian Aboriginal
Prejudice and discrimination are terrible things that deeply affect people who are getting discriminated on. Prejudice has been a problem in many countries and is something that takes years to fix like it did in America. America is not obviously the only country that has dealt with racism. Australia has had major racism problems. The Australian Aborigine are people who have been heavily discriminated for thousands of years. The Aborigine are the natives of Australia and have lived there the longest. They have suffered racism for a long time now and gone through much suffering and unfairness. Robyn Davidson, the author of the book Tracks, witnessed some of the prejudice when
…show more content…
James Cook, but the first colony was settled by Captain Arthur Phillip in 1788 and that is when the discrimination began (Aboriginal). Obviously the Europeans and Aborigine did not like each right away, starting off on the wrong foot (Aboriginal). The Europeans had a slighted view from when they came across the Aborigine (Aboriginal). They did not understand the Aborigine’s way of tribal life, living off the Earth. Since the Aborigine lived completely off the land and ocean, they could not lived without it (Aboriginal). The Europeans were annoyed by the Aborigine’s natural lives and were tired of them taking up their new colonies (Aboriginal). One thing the Europeans understood about the Aborigine was that they were very family oriented and if they were together, they could survive (Aboriginal). The Europeans used that against them and got rid of some Aboriginal clans in northern Sydney (Aboriginal). They sent the Dharug clan to western Australia and the Dharawal clan to southern Australia (Aboriginal). Soon the Aborigine had food issues (Aboriginal). The Europeans began to take all their food sources away (Aboriginal). They caught fish with huge nets, leaving none for the Aborigine and almost hunted kangaroos for sport also leaving none for the Aborigine (Aboriginal). The Europeans polluted the ocean and quickly eliminated many animals on the land (Aboriginal). Almost for every clan, starvation for the Aborigine people …show more content…
Even though there were thirty Aborigine camps in Alice Springs, there were only five water taps. Most of their food, they got from the dumpster which caused major malnutrition (Davidson). The Aborigine did not have much money obviously because they could not get decent jobs and then Davidson said the money they did have went to inexpensive wine because most of them were alcoholics. The camps were not clean and the town council always threatened to remove the camps because they wanted more tourists and they did not want to keep them away from the unclean camps (Davidson). The Aborigine who lived in Alice Springs experience major prejudice when they were in town and how every day was a struggle (Davidson). Robyn says in Tracks, “It is a daily experience for blacks in Alice Springs. It reinforces their worthlessness and self-hate. The constant frustration in not being able to change their lives, many of them give up hope, turns into alcoholics, because that, at least, provides some form of release from untenable situation, and finally, grants them oblivion.” Throughout the book, Davidson talks more about the awful situations the Aborigine were in the late 1970s and talks about the Aborigine people she met. Robyn Davidson felt for them and was kind to

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Why is racism so deeply rooted among American history? Why is something as simple as skin color such subject to prejudice and discrimination in today’s society? The United States of America is built off of cruel acts of slavery and racism. So many white Americans did not realize that the acts they performed were horribly wrong and inhumane. They excused themselves simply because darker skin meant that that person was also inferior. Millions of minorities have suffered because of this.…

    • 1263 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Discrimination is also marked among the Aboriginal people themselves. According to Richard Frank, a director to Aboriginal people, Some Aboriginal people have light colored skin while others have dark colored skin. The difference in the skin color among the indigenous Austrian people leads to lateral violence amongst themselves with the light colored Aboriginal discriminating the dark colored Aboriginal people. This is an issue that is currently common among the Aboriginal people. When the British arrived in Australia in 1788 and announced the land as their own under the terra nullius rule, the immediate impact of it on the locals was a cancellation of their rights and citizenship. Immigration laws were introduced that preferred the white race,…

    • 127 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Aborigines were the original inhibitors of Australia. They were unique in many ways. Their culture contained many sacred aspects such as Cult songs. Even though their homeland has lost it original identity, aboriginal culture still lives…

    • 906 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    As a country we should be addressing our culture and prejudice against our indigenous Australians.…

    • 313 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Racism is the belief that belonging to a particular race means a person has inherent characteristics that one deemed either superior or inferior. Based on racist belief, prejudice and discrimination are still alive today, though important figures as Martin L. King Jr. lead the movements to end this and enact anti-segregation laws. These ideas are being transmitted to younger generations despite the progress that has been made. The minorities and people who are victimized by this injustice find it often difficult to focus on the task at hand and the goals they set out for. When victimized, people often respond in two ways: acting out in a violent manner, or fighting against others. For African Americans, it is important to advocate self-control,…

    • 1326 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Australia is classed as a multicultural society consisting of people from a variety of ethnic backgrounds. After World War Two there was an influx of Greek and Italian people settling in Australia. The end of the Vietnam War saw an increase in the population by displaced Vietnamese people. In recent times, displaced persons arriving and settling in Australia are from Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and African nations including Somalia, Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan. Each of these population groups brings their own cultural and linguistic attributes to Australia. Also included in the broad sense of Culturally and Linguistic Diverse communities are Indigenous peoples and those with a disability. Culture is the beliefs, values, knowledge and…

    • 1667 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Stereotypes In Australia

    • 1252 Words
    • 6 Pages

    It seems like there are countless news stories, documentaries, and lists every year about how everything in Australia is incredibly dangerous and probably trying to kill you. While these things may be true, it gives Australia a bad rap when it is really a wonderful place that is most certainly not trying to kill you. From government health initiatives, to high livability, to an emphasis on fitness (and even an adorable creature or two), there really are quite a few things in Australia that are not actively trying to kill you. Here are ten notable examples.…

    • 1252 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Civil Rights In Australia

    • 1261 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Originally, Aborigines were considered savages and fell under the Flora and Fauna Act, but through the reconciliation movement and advocation of rights Aborigines are now recognised as Australia’s first peoples and citizens of the commonwealth. The civil right campaigns, which significantly impacted the referendum, were conducted by some of the first Aboriginals to…

    • 1261 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In 1909 the White government made a Aboriginal Protection Act to “protect aborigines for the better good” of aboriginals, but in this era half blooded aboriginals who were called half castes, were removed from their homes and family and went to live in the white communities. A.O Neville was in charge of the Aboriginal Protection Board in between the years of 1915-1940, but Neville always put white Australians first giving them clean water and sustainable living conditions. At the time he had a lot of power and no one could stop him from removing half castes from their families. His theory was to try and eventually wash out the aboriginal blood from Australia with generations to come, many say Neville…

    • 477 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    The Australian South Sea Islanders (ASSI) have had a significant impact on Australia's development throughout 1863 to 1904. They made a positive economic contribution by working on sugar plantations and in the cotton farms . However due to the discriminating attitudes of the time, they were treated equivalent to slaves in relationships with the colonialists, and were unable to contribute much to Australian society at the time.…

    • 122 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Australia is a country that is home to a very diverse range of people, with 2011 census data reporting that 24.6% of the Australian population was born overseas (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2012). Despite almost a quarter of the population being from overseas, many Australians still struggle with the tolerance, understanding and acceptance of cultures that are different. Despite there being a number of obstacles that people of different cultures face, there are also a number of solutions that will allow Australia to continue forward on a path of cultural tolerance, acceptance and understanding.…

    • 456 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Prejudice In America

    • 950 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Normally when we talk about discrimination and prejudice, we’re often talking about it in a situation of different racial groups or different ethnic groups. And by racial group, I mean a group that has been set apart because of some physical characteristics that have taken on social implication.…

    • 950 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Discrimination has affected the lives of various communities for thousands of years, and for a significant portion of this time, the many groups discriminated against, whether it be for race, behaviour or gender, simply accepted the inequity and continued their daily lives. However, eventually, most of these minorities decided there was no real reason why they were inferior, other than the other, larger group thought they were, and so, particularly in the 1950s and 1960s, there were many movements for “civil rights”, in an effort to achieve equity, and cease the discrimination. While there are many countries around the globe that have been involved with such discrimination, two fascinating examples to compare and contrast are Australia and the Aboriginal Australians, and New…

    • 1094 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Canada is an inherently diverse country. With Canada having recently received 25,000 Syrian refugees and is committed to welcoming over 300,000 more immigrants by the end of 2016. There are bound to be some social psychological challenges with the introduction of people of varying races, and ethnic backgrounds when brought together. In this report I will highlight some of the possible ways that social psychological theories and concepts can be applied to help all people living in Canada coexist in a peaceful and mutually beneficial way.…

    • 1671 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The country of Australia was built on racism. This land was taken and those who first came here, such as Matthew Flinders and James Cook. They took the land away from the indigenous people of Australia and killed them off with no remorse. They looked at them as if they weren’t even human, as if they weren’t even worth keeping alive, and yet those same very people end up being revolutionary names in Australian History and even having universities named after them. Even after the complete settlement of Australia, we saw immense amounts of racism coming from the government. We lived on aboriginal land yet we had a white prime minister and a white Australia policy. A policy that meant aboriginal children were taken away from their homes, and no non-white immigrants were let into the country. Even the very few that were able…

    • 1127 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays

Related Topics