Aboriginals represent 3% of the population but 27% of the nation’s jail population. This is outrageous as it shows that race plays a major role in people being incarcerated.
This problem stems from the racial divide which is embedded in our society still today. Although we believe that we have gotten past the discrimination that the indigenous Australians face it is still a major problem facing Australian society. Imagine, being treated differently and given unfair punishments based on your race or background. Imagine being defined by something you cannot control.
The problem of indigenous incarceration emanates from the marginalisation which aboriginals receive as they often have no chance of breaking out of the crime circle as they are …show more content…
Jails have become an unsafe place and many people are mistreated. This is just an embarrassment because as a supposably fortunate country people are still being mistreated when in jail. Race plays a major part in this abuse as indigenous Australians are often bullied by not just other inmates but by guards as well based on their heritage. In 1987 the Royal Commission looked into the Indigenous mortality rate in Australia, they did 99 case studies and found that in general morality rates were very high and it was a big problem facing Australia as a whole. An example of the violence experienced in jail is in 2004 Sergeant Chris Hurly beat an indigenous man to death on the floor of a prison cell. Shortly after another police officers kick him to see if he was awake, he had died due to the brutal attacks by the sergeant. A video captured the indigenous man on the floor dying but it did not film the actually beating so Hurly went on to have a successful career in the police force. He was only put in jail after his victims became that of a not indigenous background. This show the injustice and horrible treatment that indigenous people face in prisons at the hands of supposedly professional police officers. Do we really want people like this protecting us from harm and deciding what is …show more content…
Aboriginal youth make up more than half of the population in these centres which means they would have been subjected to this violent and inhumane treatment. Although this was not directed specifically at indigenous youth it is a major problem which still affects these young people and their community. The Saturday Paper made the comment that “Aboriginal Australians have learnt to fear for the lives of family members who end up in police cells or jail.” This shows the real terror which is now associated with people going to
This problem stems from the racial divide which is embedded in our society still today. Although we believe that we have gotten past the discrimination that the indigenous Australians face it is still a major problem facing Australian society. Imagine, being treated differently and given unfair punishments based on your race or background. Imagine being defined by something you cannot control.
The problem of indigenous incarceration emanates from the marginalisation which aboriginals receive as they often have no chance of breaking out of the crime circle as they are …show more content…
Jails have become an unsafe place and many people are mistreated. This is just an embarrassment because as a supposably fortunate country people are still being mistreated when in jail. Race plays a major part in this abuse as indigenous Australians are often bullied by not just other inmates but by guards as well based on their heritage. In 1987 the Royal Commission looked into the Indigenous mortality rate in Australia, they did 99 case studies and found that in general morality rates were very high and it was a big problem facing Australia as a whole. An example of the violence experienced in jail is in 2004 Sergeant Chris Hurly beat an indigenous man to death on the floor of a prison cell. Shortly after another police officers kick him to see if he was awake, he had died due to the brutal attacks by the sergeant. A video captured the indigenous man on the floor dying but it did not film the actually beating so Hurly went on to have a successful career in the police force. He was only put in jail after his victims became that of a not indigenous background. This show the injustice and horrible treatment that indigenous people face in prisons at the hands of supposedly professional police officers. Do we really want people like this protecting us from harm and deciding what is …show more content…
Aboriginal youth make up more than half of the population in these centres which means they would have been subjected to this violent and inhumane treatment. Although this was not directed specifically at indigenous youth it is a major problem which still affects these young people and their community. The Saturday Paper made the comment that “Aboriginal Australians have learnt to fear for the lives of family members who end up in police cells or jail.” This shows the real terror which is now associated with people going to