Re the judicial system being skewed toward leniency when dealing with Aboriginal youths.

Aboriginal people represent only 2.3% of the total population, yet over 30% of Australia’s prison population are Aboriginal.

Indigenous people make up 40 per cent of those imprisoned for common assault offences.

A 10-17 year old Indigenous person is 24 times more likely to be in detention than a non-Indigenous person of the same age.

Who would want to be an Aboriginal in Australia? A while back one of my kids commented that on some admin school forms he had to complete, each one asked if he was Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander. I told him that if he was he would get extra resources. Immediately he started with how unfair and discriminatory it was.

I asked him to imagine that he lived in Australia, but was another ethnicity. I gave him the option of Asian Australian, Arab Australian, European Australian, or Aboriginal. He answered European………I asked him to list the rest in order…….Arab, Asian, Aboriginal he answered. I asked him why Aboriginal last…….because they are all poor, he answered.

That is why Aboriginals need all the help we can give, they were here first and now they are last……He understood....

Dear Individual,

As Henry Reynolds points out:

"It is now possible to explore the past by
means of a large number of books, articles, films,
novels, songs and paintings. Many voices have
filled out the space once claimed to be the
"Great Australian Silence."

"We can now know a great deal about the history of Indigenous-
Settler relations. But knowing brings burdens which
can be shirked by those living in ignorance. With
knowledge the question is no longer what we know but
what we are to do, and that is a much harder matter to
deal with. This will continue to perplex us for many years
to come."

Henry Reynolds would be the first to encourage you to search
for the truth about our past. The book I cited was his personal
search and he spoke about what he and his wife (a senator for
Queensland) had personally experienced. I quoted from his
one particular experience simply to point out that we do need
to understand the past in order to understand today's
Indigenous Youth -
who have to deal with a system that is not equipped
to handle or understand the problems they have and the reasons
why these problems occur. Selective perception and labeling
plays a vital part in any judicial system as we all know - where
some are more noticed and arrested than others.

Dear SOG,

Thank You.

Lexi,
You're reading about injustices of many, many decades ago which by the way have been experienced by all other societies. I suggest you start looking at the present i.e. in our generation & hopefully the veil will lift from your eyes regarding the feigned indignations all around. I have copped more discrimination than any indigenous I know & still do on a daily basis.

Come to think of it, why not volunteer to live & try to work in one of the communities for a few years & then still say what you say now.

Hi there LEXI, BELLY, INDIVIDUAL and SONOFGLOIN...

Wow, there's some very powerful thoughts been added here ! Firstly, the comment made about the usefulness of our modern, and enlightened Magistrate, perched up on their bench, with an abundance of insight and knowledge.

Their contribution in maintaining law and order in our community amounts to...lets see ? In an attempt, not to be seen as being disingenuous, they do play their part. Professionally, my opinion of these subordinate members of the judiciary is poor. Often, they'll not seek advice, nor will the listen, and often overrule, veto, even rescind everything a police witness will say, or even recommend.

There's a female Magistrate presently sitting in Sydney, who's caused no end of trouble. Instead of dispensing justice without fear or favour, she openly rejects much evidence offered by police, even though the value of this evidence is regarded as 'best evidence'. I've no idea what her problems are, but police per se, are not at the top of her Christmas Card list ?

Hi there LEXI...

Sounds an interesting book. What troubles me, as stated earlier, you can't simply lockup a couple of kids for swearing at a teacher. Only a Justice has that power. Police can only hold someone until they can bring that person before a Justice and that must happen ASAP.

As always BELLY, you do introduce a clear perspective and level thinking into any Topic discussed herein ! I would've thought in your days as a Union Delegate you would've been charged with exacting 'Site agreement discipline' within your group(s) ?

Eyes are tired, so I should go. Thanks everybody for your tremendous contributions to this Topic, I do appreciate them very much indeed.