Which children were taken away? Authorities targeted mainly children of mixed descent, i.e. what they called 'half-caste' Aboriginal children (caution, this is a derogative term!). It was thought these Aboriginal children could be assimilated more easily into white society.
Why were Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children taken from their families? The forcible removal of First Nations children from their families was based on assimilation policies, which claimed that the lives of First Nations people would be improved if they became part of white society.
The Girls experienced systematic racial discrimination to remove their Aboriginal identity and alienate them from their families. At the age of 15yrs and 18yrs the children were sent out as servants to “white” households under arrangements that did not meet child welfare in those days.
This figure was estimated by multiplying the Aboriginal population in 1994 (303,000), by the report's maximum estimate of "one in three" Aboriginal persons separated from their families. The report stated that "between one in three and one in ten" children were separated from their families.
These children were taken by the police; from their homes; on their way to or from school. They were placed in over 480 institutions, adopted or fostered by non-Indigenous people and often subjected to abuse.
In 1969, New South Wales abolished the Aborigines Welfare Board, and this effectively resulted in all States and Territories having repealed legislation that allowed for the removal of Aboriginal children under a policy of 'protection'.
By 1969, all states had repealed the legislation allowing for the removal of Aboriginal children under the policy of 'protection'.
Rates of admission to out-of-home care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. In 2020–21, about 4,500 Indigenous children were admitted to out-of-home care at a rate of 13 per 1,000 Indigenous children.
These children were forcibly removed from their families and communities through race-based policies set up by both State and Federal Governments. They were either put in to homes, adopted or fostered out to non-Indigenous families.
As described in the Bringing Them Home report (HREOC 1997:31): '… between one in three and one in ten Indigenous children were forcibly removed from their families and communities in the period from approximately 1910 until 1970. '
Three more people have been charged with murder over the bashing death of Aboriginal schoolboy Cassius Turvey. Police allege Cassius was chased by strangers and beaten with a metal pole while walking home in his school uniform in October. The 15 year old died in a Perth hospital from head injuries 10 days later.
Women generally looked after children, cooked, and took on the role of gatherers, collecting vegetables, eggs, shellfish, and small animals. In many cases, they were the primary providers of food, since chances were great that men who went hunting would be unsuccessful.
'Stolen generations', a term coined by Peter Read, refers to the assimilation practice of the Australian Government throughout history designed to remove the physical and cultural presence of Indigenous peoples from Australian society and cultural consciousness, and was informed by sciences such as eugenics, which the ...
In addition to being 'neglected', children could also be found to be 'uncontrollable': an Aboriginal child who refused to go to school, for instance, could be considered 'uncontrollable', and in fact as many children were removed under the new legislation as had been under the Aborigines Protection Act.
In Victoria, the term 'Forgotten Australians' refers to people who spent time as children in institutions, orphanages and other forms of out-of-home 'care', prior to 1990, many of whom had physical, emotional and/or sexual abuse perpetrated against them.
In an analysis by Guardian Australia based on the data, Aboriginal deaths were estimated to be 27 to 33 times higher than coloniser deaths. Between 11,000 and 14,000 Aboriginal people died, compared with only 399 to 440 colonisers.
Today, Stolen Generations survivors live right across Australia. Most (73%) live in New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia.
Under the laws of the Australian Government, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples were not included as citizens. Instead, in many cases they were treated as foreigners in their own land.
Almost 70% of Australians accept that Aboriginal people were subject to mass killings, incarceration and forced removal from land, and their movement was restricted.
Real action needed on Aboriginal deaths in custody
Of the 516 recorded Indigenous people who died in custody since 1991, 335 were in prison, 177 were in police custody and four were in youth detention.
While First Nations young people make up less than 6% of the Australian population under the age of 18, they comprise around 20% of missing children. In reality, this rate is likely higher, with information on cultural identity often missing in national missing persons data.
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander imprisonment rate decreased by 3% from 2,412 to 2,330 prisoners per 100,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adult population. At 30 June 2022: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners accounted for 32% of all prisoners.
The Inquiry found that between one in three and one in ten Indigenous children were removed from their families under past government policies, but could not be more precise due to the poor state of records.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children represent 37% of the total population of all children that have been removed from their parents – a staggering 20,077 children – but represent only 6% of the total population of children in Australia.