wayneL said:
Well tribal law, and therefore two separate laws would probably cause more problems than it solved. Can that idea then. There is an inherent problem in the way blackfella is regarded and treated, even by bleeding heart do-gooders, that does no good at all.
This point of rederobs, is the crux of it:
We don't understand that. We try to say we do, particularly farmers (and farmers do have a connection to the land) but not in the same way as tribal peoples such as our indiginous folk. It is the same situation in "the evil empire" with the indians.
Ironically, Australians empathise remarkably well with the american indian, yet has zero sympathy with our own indiginous peoples. Why is that? The situation is so similar!
Here in Geraldton, 7% of the population is aboriginal, so I get to see 1st hand their behaviour, as well as our own behaviour towards them. As a white anglo-saxon, I cannot condone the antisocial behaviour of the blackfellas here. BUT, the way they are treated, even when not doing anything wrong, by whitefella, is repulsive. It is unquestionably racist. Would whitefella be any different if we were subjected to the same rubbish?
On Australia day, missus and I took the dogs for a walk around Geraldton at around 6:00 PM. What an experience. There were drunkards everywhere, passed out bodies, threatening behaviour, fights, broken bottles, someone threw a firecracker at us out of a passing car....we were sh!tting ourselves....couldn't get home quickly enough....
...and not a blackfella in sight, this was all whitefella.
My point here is that they are the way they are, not because of what they are, but because of the situation they're in. They act like bums because we treat them like bums. I would not trade places.
Cheers
Wayne:
You make a really essential point in your post above: i.e. that most people behave pretty much as we expect them to behave. If a group of people is labelled as being anti-social, welfare dependent and no good parasites on society, then it's a pretty good bet they will behave that way.
Over the years I've proved the reverse of this point by telling people I've trained that they are capable of achieving much, and that by believing in their capacity to achieve their goals, those goals will become easy for them.
Renowned psychologist Martin Seligman has written extensively on how we can change our lives as a result of changing our thinking. If anyone is interested, his book "Learned Optimism" is a great introduction to the subject of altered thought patterns. The same idea is carried through in the commonly used Behaviour Modification Therapy by psychologists throughout the community.
Rederob, you may know this: is it Noel Pearson who has for some years now been advocating a change of attitude towards indigenous communities?
(Sorry: I sometimes forget names). He has railed against the welfare dependent mentality and has suggested it is time for indigenous communities to essentially "stop feeling sorry for themselves" and take advantage of some of the opportunities which are truly available to them as much as to the rest of us.
This brings me back to Seligman's approach once more: if we continue to tell indigenous people that they are disadvantaged, cannot possibly expect to enjoy better health, educational opportunities et al, then they will continue to accept that. There are some immensely successful indigenous role models, (Lois O'Donoghue, Marcia Langton, etc etc.) and others who are not so well known. If we and indigenous communities focused more on these people and stopped accepting they were for ever doomed to live a second class existence, then perhaps we would see their naturally great characteristics such as pride and spirituality overcome their feelings of disadvantage.
Many may disagree with me, but just think: if you tell a little kid of say five or six that he has done really well at something, don't you think he will be so proud that he will be inspired to be even better at whatever it was the next time he tries?
I just think as human beings we are motivated to an extraordinary extent by reinforcement. Whether this reinforcement of our behaviour is positive or negative can determine our future behaviour.
So, perhaps if we stop telling indigenous people they are disadvantaged, cannot possibly be expected to ever overcome their difficulties, and instead reinforce all their positive attributes, isn't it just possible they will respond in a positive manner?
Perhaps I'm being idealistic? If so, then that's OK. It's better than not trying to come up with any remotely possible solution.
Julia