Foxy,

You have to keep in mind that the people asking you such a question do not have your background and do not understand that the way we learn is by reading. That's why books are so important: that is the way we learn.

Mr O,

They do read what suits them. - Mainly histories
(ones that haven't been shredded to protect themselves)
written by the so called white "protectors", and self-
promoting so called "historians" who've made careers
in promoting white myths - like Windshuttle - who should
have been blown away a long time ago.

When presented with actual histories and facts - they ignore
them and certainly don't read them. No matter what link you
may give to Joe - he'll never read it unless he knows it
backs his viewpoint.

Also he doesn't like you presenting historical facts -
notice the moment I do that - he'll stop with the
"Dearest Foxy" addresses and revert back to just "Foxy,"
(gotta laugh). He's obviously pissed off.

Dearest Foxy,

I'm sorry for getting up your nose. Well, yes, I do read, and have done for more than sixty years now. I have two book-cases of books relating to Indigenous people, you name it. Berndt & Berndt of course, Elkin, Karberry, early accounts like Tench's and Threlkeld's and Taplin's. I think my first book might have been "Aranda Boy" by the wonderful Rex Ingamells, maybe around 1959. Donald Stuart's "Yandy" opened my eyes and I talked to him later about it, in 1973 I think, in Perth. I loved Rowley's brilliant three-volume coverage in the early seventies. I was a bit sceptical about some of Reynolds' conclusions. That brings us up to the last forty years :)

But there's been so much over the years, tens of thousands of pages of reports and royal commissions and diaries as well as books and articles. Of course, you've read them all :). And of course, your friend Misopinionated has also actually read something so he knows it all by now, such a brilliant learner, so young but so wise.

Keep learning !

Love notwithstanding,

Joe

Individual,

There's so many sources available now for anyone
really interested in this country's full history and
also on the topic of the quality of life for our
Indigenous Australians in the 21st century - and the
reasons behind the problems that still exist.
State libraries are great places to go to if you're
interested.

To quote:

You'll find out that "the legacy of more than 200 years
of dispossession, social injustice, and discriminatory
government policies that brought about the near
annihilation of the country's First Peoples continues
to contribute to the social and economic inequality that
has persisted for Indigenous Australians today".

"They still make up the largest proportion of socially
and economically disadvantaged people in Australia".

"For the 24% of Indigenous people living in remote areas
of Australia in the early 21st century this disparity
is even more pronounced".

"They are less healthy, have fewer educational and
employment opportunities than other Australians".

"Although extensive government funding and programs were
dedicated to improving Indigenous well being at the end
of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century,
many Australians and Indigenous people and leaders
believed that this imbalance would not be remedied until
governments worked with Indigenous leaders and local
communities to address inequalities and implement
CULTURALLY appropriate policies".

This information was obtained from the following link
which has much more on the subject:

http://www.britannica.com/topic/The-quality-of-life-for-Indigenous-Australians-in-the-21st-century-2109242

Enjoy.

LOUDmouth,

If you like reading you would just love doing an Arts degree where you could read all of those fascinating Arts things like history, archaeology, anthropology, philosophy, sociology, etc.

Dear Foxy,

You mentioned somewhere the herding of Aboriginal people onto missions. I don't know of that happening anywhere, but I don't know everywhere of course. I don't know about the Brethren Mission at Cundeelee in WA, or Doomadgee in Qld. But the missions that I do know about tended to be poorly funded, so had few staff, often just the missionary, and no means nor reason to do anything like herding people.

I suspect that people were herded OUT OF the area across the western part of SA where atomic tests were carried out in the 1950s, perhaps people were 'caught' or rounded up, and trucked to Ernabella in the north and Yalata in the south. Perhaps people were rounded up and moved against their will to Woorabinda in Qld. Elsewhere i don't know about.

I'm wracking my brains, what's left of them, about the possibilities of herding in SA: at Pt McLeay on Lake Alexandrina and at other missions here in SA, the missionaries (and then the secular superintendents after the state government took the missions over around 1917) were often on their own, or had maybe one or two other staff members who had other duties - schoolteachers, farm managers, etc. And certainly, Aboriginal people came and went as they pleased in the early days, often to the annoyance of missionaries who had to feed them while they were there.

Maybe all of the missionaries fabricated their accounts. Maybe everything happened in ways different from in their reports. Maybe someone will turn up other versions of reality. But mission populations often exceeded hundreds, so I'm puzzled how missionaries could take off the time from so many other duties to go out and somehow round people up, at the same time that they were desperately trying to find funds and cajole governments, to provide more rations.

[TBC]