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The White fella denial of Australia’s Black History by Joyce Capewell 1 January 2014
I
am rather amused by the defensive mode of non–Aboriginal people when confronted by the gruesome, cruel and evil Black History of the land they live in and call home.
Sadly it also appears a minority of our own people, who have not come to terms with the uncomfortable ugly side of our shared Black History, also gain the defensive mode mentality. Thereby, our own can become a hindrance and menace for the betterment of all of us. I have noticed many times the
non-Aboriginal becomes very defensive when confronted with the gruesome and evil Black History of Australia. In their defensive mode they automatically assume they are blamed – by authors like me who write on this topic - for the vile brutality projected towards our Aboriginal ancestors by their forebears.
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Common sense tells me no white person can be blamed today for the brutal and gruesome acts committed on our ancestors during the invasion days. However, the denial of the white Australia’s gruesome and evil Black History by government and society today will not bring reconciliation and healing that is required for the betterment of the nation. We cannot work on making right all that is bad in race relations in this country if we do not understand what is wrong in the first instant; history must be told and learnt from, and justice for Aboriginals must not be denied! No matter how much the Government and white Australian deny the Aboriginal people are the traditional landowners and the nation’s first people, it will not change the truth! No matter how much they deny the country they live in was stolen from Aboriginal people by their forebears it will not change the truth. Many white Australians do not like the terminology ‘invasion days’ and ‘invaders’; well guess what, that also is the truth! My non-Aboriginal forebears and many other Aboriginal people’s ancestors were amongst these invaders. Many of us Aboriginals also have mixed backgrounds, however instilled in the very core of our heart and souls are our Aboriginality and always will be! Nothing can take our Aboriginality away from us, which has been proven time and time again in the past. No matter how hard white people tried to strip and deny us of our Aboriginality it could never be done and never will be. Many of those non-Aboriginals who take on the defensive mode are so filled with fear of the truth; they become blinded to the fact we Aboriginals also have many white ancestors and currently have many white family members who are part of us. Many white people in society also deny and turn a blind eye to the ongoing destructive repercussions
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Joyce Capewell
of the cruel and evil Black History of Aboriginal people; this, I believe, being a coping mechanism to ease the guilt they feel, and have no right to feel. Sadly too, the white’s invasion racism mentality towards Aboriginals is many times instilled within them and passed from one generation to the next, and remains alive and well in society today. This generational invasion mentality consists of Aboriginal people needing to stay in their place, and be suppressed, oppressed, under white authority and must remember who their superiors are. They do say that old habits die hard. We Aboriginals have accepted this unfair and racist treatment for many years by whites and especially those within government, however I feel this acceptance is beginning to rapidly wane for many Aboriginals, and rightly so. Many times the government and white people see the uprising of Aboriginals as a threat, because they believe they are the rightful land owners of this country, of which they are not and never will be! Aboriginal people have every right to stand up, be heard and treated equally in a country that
rightfully belongs to them! If whites and non-Aboriginals in Australia, including those in government feel uncomfortable with being confronted with the gruesome and evil Black History of this country, I and others say too bad! We Aboriginals know we cannot live in the past - but the past is in us, and we want changes for the betterment of our future generations. The government and mainstream Australia must acknowledge the truth of their nation’s gruesome and evil Black History, and by recognizing who are the First People of this nation and the traditional land owners. After all, the Government operates on stolen Aboriginal land and gains all its wealth from this stolen land. Our future generations do not need to live with the unrelenting deploring racism practices that continue to be perpetrated against them because they happen to be an inconvenience to this country, for the government and non-Aboriginal society! Unfortunately for the government and white Australia - we certainly are not going away for their convenience.