Colonization: Australia's Story of Black and White

Narrator: Historians argue about the exact date of their arrival, but most believe Aborigines came to Australia from Asia, sometime between 50,000 and 120,000 years ago. Aboriginals: What a beautiful land! Our people will have no problems here. Narrator: The Aboriginals set up camps. By night and day, they dreamed; and their dreams revealed to them the truths and rules of how to live peacefully. Aboriginal 1: The Dreamtime ancestors have told me that this is my land on which to hunt. Aboriginal 2: They have told me to whom it is appropriate to marry. Aboriginal 3: And the Spirits have told me that all of this--the human world, the animal world, and the natural world--are part of one, unied Being. Aboriginal 2: Lately, I've been having a bad dream: that white men will come and take our land and destroy our people. This cannot be true. Narrator: Indeed, 1770 marked the year of the arrival of Lt. James Cook, the rst British white man in Australia, who claimed its East coast for Great Britain, renaming it to New South Wales. In 1778 colonization began. Settlers brought with them chicken pox, small pox, inuenza and measles. British 1: British 2: British 3: British 2: British 1: British 3: Another victory for our beautiful homeland and His Majesty, the King! Now as these people appear primitive and that no law rules here, we will happily settle and bring our law. Yet one more of the world's oldest human culture that will adapt to our way of life, or become lost. Still, we must be careful not to cause any undue harm Yes, yes only what we see best for the people Or really, for our people

Narrator: So the two peoples came to many misunderstandings and for a long time, it was the British who, with their culture of dominance, took advantage. Aboriginal 1: Our people are not warriors. We have no reason to ght. Aboriginal 3: We solve disputes with our elders. Aboriginal 1: These British are a ridiculous people who bring hardship where none is wanted! British 1: Our people have traveled all over this world. We know how to acquire land and expand. British 3: We must compete with the European powers. British 1: These Aboriginals are a ridiculous people who don't even know how to defend their land! Mediator 1: I smell trouble a-brew. Mediator 2: Certainly, with two different viewpoints and one with such great pride Mediator 3: we've got our work cut out for us! Aboriginal 2: We know our land and we know our boundaries. British 2: Then why not defend it? Aboriginal 3: Here, when someone comes from another group, they have to make a signal rst, kind of like knocking on the door before entering someone's home. You come with respect and you leave with respect. Aborignal 1: This is our way. British 3: I fear if it remains your way, you may have little of it that passes on down to your children. Narrator: Through the 19th century, the two groups came to many disputes and the British law of the land was unfair in writing and racist in execution. As the years went on, the British population multiplied and the native population made up only 2% of the continent, some pushed off the land of their Dreaming and relegated to government reserves. Cruelly, the Aborigines Protection Act of 1909 gave the power to remove Aboriginal children from their families, creating a "lost generation". In 1920, the Aboriginal population was estimated to be 60,000 and widely believed to be a "dying race". Mediator 1: We of the Australian Aboriginal Progress Association are here to defend the human rights of the indigenous peoples. Mediator 2: We call for an end to kidnapping Aboriginal children. Mediator 3: It is time we give them equal footing, the possibility of becoming political leaders. British 1: I smell change in the air. Aboriginals are protesting for fair wages and better conditions everywhere. British 2: Yes, even the Protection Board was abolishednow its the Aborigines Welfare Board. British 3: And did you hear? The government has actually given them citizenship? Mediator 1: And next will be the right to vote! Mediator 2: There may still be discrimination, but I tell you that is a dying culture. Mediator 3: After all, the nature of life is to grow!

Aboriginal 1: I believe I can make a difference in this country; I can maybe enter the Parliament and pass laws that treat my people fairly. Aboriginal 2: Pretty soon, White man won't be able to deny me something just based on my color. Aboriginal 3: We will be seen as equals. Mediator 1: Let us all celebrate Aboriginal culture; let us mourn their sufferings and enjoy their triumphs. Mediator 2: After all, it is like they say: We all come into this world the same, and we appear to leave it the same Mediator 3: If this is true, then the whole world is my family. Narrator: The end of the 20th century brought many victories for the rights of the Aborigines and indeed for people across the world. In 1997, a holiday called "National Sorry Day" is created to give homage to the many hardships of the Aborigines people brought about by the British colonizers. Mediator 1: I hope this Sorry Day fosters a culture of forgiveness and gives all people a chance to become better neighbors. Mediator 2: May equality bless this land and harmony follow diversity. Mediator 3: And may the judges too of this country be fair. Aboriginals: Now some court cases fall in our favor British: And some still fall in ours. Mediator 2: There are still challenges that are the vestiges of colonization Mediator 3: But more and more people are willing to put in effort to make it right. Narrator: Now with Global recognition of one world and one human family, the way towards equality is clear; through time, the stories passed down from generation to generation will change from those of separateness to those of wholeness. Petty differences will dissolve and all will take their place as brothers and sisters united by Mother Earth. The Golden Age is just beginning.