Indiginous Australians

Mary Alp
WEEK ONE - Introduction
Course outline
The 11 week course is basically in 2 parts. The first four weeks we look at the DVD series ‘First Footprints’ which takes us through a reconstruction of Australian prehistory – from approx. 60,000 years ago to the arrival of the British in 1788. The next 7 weeks we look at the DVD series ‘First Australians- the untold story’ which highlights specific episodes of our contact history from 1788 until the Mabo Land claim of 1992.
Aim
Is to create a better understanding of our history by including the Indigenous Australian voice in the narrative. By looking at the past through the lenses of the Indigenous people’s world view we are given an interpretation that is a more balanced & a truer picture of our shared past. I think that from this fuller perspective, we can more readily appreciate & understand what it has meant & still means to be an Indigenous Australian. I think it is fair to say that from this brief look at our history, our future words & actions on important issues such as Land Rights, Treaty, & the ‘Uluru Statement From The Heart’ will be more empathetic & more balanced. (It will also give us an opportunity to look at the many myths that surround our First People & a chance to debunk them. (Myths list)
Indigenous Australian definition
When looking at history from an Indigenous Australian perspective we need to ask who indeed are Aboriginal Australians? According to the -‘Australian Law Reform commission, Legal Definition of Aboriginality’- a person is an Indigenous Australian if they conform to 3 criteria – firstly, that they are of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander descent. Secondly, that they identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander and thirdly that they are accepted by the Indigenous
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