Early Intervention

When European settlers came to Canada they colonized Canada by taking away land, water, rights, spiritual practice, as well as put children into residential school and put an unprecedented amount of children in the child welfare system (Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, 2015). This is a key example of how trauma can be passed down from one generation to the next until someone deals with it. Right now the youth of Attawapiskat are dealing with the intergenerational trauma as well as creating more trauma for generations to come, this creates an ongoing chain of risks that will continue to develop if not helped.

Racism and discrimination for Aboriginal people is a very real existence. It exists in many various forms - overrepresentation, over-policing, and under-policing. It occurs in every aspect of life where one group has more authority than the other. The main area where inequality and discrimination is widely apparent in Australia is the relationship between the criminal justice system and Aboriginal people. An extensive explanation may be found in the obvious imbalance between the various groups in our society.

Some organisations comment that whilst the intention to protect the Aboriginal communities is sound, there are outstanding concerns about its application and lack of consultation the process applied throughout (ATSIC SJC, 2008).

Although many view these schools as events that occurred a long time ago, in truth the last residential school closed only two decades ago. (Hanson, 2016, para. #18) Residential school syndrome is a term created by a psychologist called Charles Brasfield and it refers to a disorder experienced by survivors of the residential school system. This disorder is similar to post-traumatic stress disorder, but with a much more cultural focus that can completely change the behaviour of those affected. (Brasfield, 2016, para. # 2) The effects of what transpired in that system are still being felt generations later from descendants of those who were in residential schools or even residential school survivors themselves. (Hanson, 2016, para. #19) Generations of aboriginal youth had to grow up in situations with no stable and nurturing family to take care of them, and many therefore lack the skills needed to parent their own children. (Hanson, 2016, para. #19) The trauma sustained in residential schools has caused a serious increase in domestic abuse and violence that results in broken homes. The cycle of abuse has continued years and years later, still causing disruption in Aboriginal families. (Hanson, 2016, para. #20) It was found that among indigenous people aged 10 to 44, the primary cause of death that is responsible for almost 40% of the mortalities is suicide and self-inflicted injury. There are also seriously high rates of alcoholism and substance abuse found on reserves. (Hanson, 2016, para. #20) Though the residential schools may not be the only cause of this, it is certainly the root of many problems for Aboriginal individuals and the healing process will be a long

In a recovery-focused mental health system, challenging pre-conceived notions that underpin these these calls for a widespread change in society’s understanding of Indigenous mental health, and the bridging of the gap that structural discrimination creates based on cultural identity. Addressing both social and economic barriers that exist for Aboriginal people that can be the result of stigma and discrimination is consequently a step towards social inclusion, which Closing the Gap (Department of the Prime Minister and the Cabinet, 2015; 2017) reports have consistently targeted as a key area by underlining the importance of higher education and employment rates of Aboriginal people. This can be considered first-order change, however, because the proposal to bridge these gaps and the action that will be taken to do so still occurs within the current disadvantaging system, and does not fully act on the ways current systems are inappropriately equipped to provide Aboriginal people with culturally-competent pathways to success. Adding to that, the aim of targeting education and employment outcomes is mainly to utilise the possible contribution that the Aboriginal workforce can provide for the Australian economy (Department of the Prime Minister and the Cabinet, 2015). It is important to note that throughout the years, as well, that in the reports

However, there is still hope. While the injustices of the Stolen generation, massacres and centuries of mistreatment against Indigenous Australians can never be erased, we can create future in which these atrocities never occur again. These atrocities emerge from ignorance and fear, so working to understand Indigenous culture must surely be the only path to removing the racism that plagues Australia. We have so must to learn from the rich cultural history of Indigenous Australians, particularly in their spiritual relationship with the land they have lived on for thousands of years. If we embrace this incredible knowledge, not only will we eliminate the barriers preventing equality in our society, we will also be stronger as a nation in both environmental and social relations. Ultimately, we have the potential to become an example to the world of the way a nation’s people can overcome their past mistakes and pave a future of cultural sharing for the benefit of all

This sudden change still has an enormous effect on today’s Indigenous population. How is it fair that the oldest population of people die a decade younger than non-Indigenous Australians? The perpetuation of racism which is manifested in our society has left many Indigenous Australians in a disadvantaged position. Including through, limited access to education with adult literacy rates of just 30 percent and literacy rates of children under 15 more than 48 percent lower than non-Indigenous Australians, consequently means lower educational achievement rates and higher unemployment rates of 17.2 percent compared to 5.5 percent for non-Indigenous Australians (Australian Bureau of Statistics , 2013 ). These facts must be recognised to ensure real equality and a fair-go for Indigenous people.

The township of Woorabinda is in Central Queensland, approximately 180km west of Gladstone. Woorabinda was established in the late 1920’s because Aboriginal peoples were being forcefully removed from their traditional lands at Taroom so early settlers could develop these lands. Woorabinda is situated on the traditional lands of the Wadja Wadja/Wadjigu and Gangula Aboriginal peoples according to the anthropologist Norman Tindale. Tindale documented in 1938 the residents of Woorabinda represented 47 clans, which included people from all over Queensland, New South Wales and the Northern Territory. (N, Tindale, 1974)

Some women are afraid for their lives, that if they leave their partner, they or their family will be harmed. In Heavenfire’s case, she truly loved and cared for Falardeau and did not want to see him go to jail for his crimes. Falardeau financially supported Heavenfire and she did not want to involve her family for support if she were to leave Falardeau. Heavenfire’s was an exceptional case as she was the first aboriginal to be cleared of all charges in her husband’s killings. Inequality in the criminal justice system is evident. Indigenous people are incarcerated at much higher rates than non-Indigenous in Canada and are incarcerated for longer periods of time (Cook & Roesh, 2012, p.222). Canadians have put Indigenous communities through much heartache and pain. With the colonization of Indigenous people to residential schools, Canadians continue to stigmatize and treat Indigenous people poorly. Indigenous people are more likely to suffer from drug abuse using needles because of the intergenerational trauma suffered through their parents attending residential schools in Canada (Bombay, Matheson, & Anisman, 2014, p. 327). This puts them at a higher criminal risk than others because of what they have been subjected to. Reasons et al., (2016) found that, “offending and victimization are a consequence of multiple risk factors,

Indigenous peoples of Canada have been considered inferior to all other citizens, and have been abused and neglected through European history, and can be seen as a form of genocide. In Canadian residential schools, children were removed from the home, sexually assaulted, beaten, deprived of basic human necessities, and over 3 500 women and girls were sterilized, and this went on well into the 1980 's (Nicoll 2015). The dehumanization of Indigenous peoples over the generations has left a significant impact on society today; the generational trauma has left many Indigenous peoples heavily dependent of drugs and alcohol, and the vulnerability of Indigenous women has led to extremely high rates of violent crime towards these women. A report that

Historically the highest risk factor of domestic violence followed colonization (Brownridge 2008, p. 355). The loss of history and way of life has caused violence against the Aboriginal women to become normalized through the pathway of poverty, lack of education, substance abuse, and the european worldview. When comparing the violence ratio of Aboriginal woman and non-Aboriginal women the Aboriginal female has an eight time greater chance to be a target of violence such as spousal homicide and severe abuse (Brownridge, 2003, p.66). Aboriginal women were noted to have a significantly higher rate of violent victimization in comparison to a non-aboriginal females. Statistics showed that one quarter of aboriginal women will have experienced partner violence in comparison to only 8% of non-Aboriginal women (Brownridge, 2008, p. 355). Aboriginal women and domestic violence has a strong correlation. When comparing the extent and severity of violence against Aboriginal women and non-Aboriginal women there is evidence proving that the Aboriginal women have a great chance of facing domestic violence during the duration of their lifespan in comparison to the non-Aboriginal

A 2011 survey showed that Indigenous Australians aged 15-64 were less likely to be participating in the labour force than non-Indigenous Australians aged 15-64 (55.9% versus 76.4%). The same survey showed that Indigenous Australians aged 15-64 were three times as likely to be unemployed when compared to non-Indigenous Australians (17.2% compared to 5.5%) (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2014). When comparing these rates to the occurrence rates of family violence in Indigenous Australians versus non-Indigenous Australians mentioned previously, we can see that they support the statement that a stable economy and abundant resources greatly decreases the risk of family violence.

This chapter begins by examining the history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) culture in education. Next discussed in this chapter is the gaps and issues that are presented in ATSI culture and the importance of improving ATSI culture in literacy. Following on from this are the intervention strategies teachers can adopt in the classroom to support ATSI students in literacy.

The impact of the forcible removal is still affecting current generations in various ways, including poor parenting skills. Children were not the only ones affected by the Stolen Generation, the parents of the children suffered greatly. Parents that had their children taken away never recovered from their loss, and turned to suicide or alcohol to cope. Several generations were removed from the Indigenous community where cultural history and knowledge vanished on future generations. Future indigenous families suffer mental illnesses, behavioural problems and unsettled emotional grief (McIntyre and McKeich, 2009). A loss of identity when the stolen child was taken due to lies on who they were transitioned in part of their heritage becoming lost. Indigenous people rely on their culture, land and heritage to establish their identity. Siblings were separated when

The way that society sees you should not depend on the colour of your skin. Even today, in the 21st century, people in our society judge other human beings by their colour or race. One of the main racism issues is the discrimination towards our Indigenous people. National data from the Challenging Racism Project reveals that 27% of Aboriginal people over the age of 15 experience racism more than once in their life. Racism towards Indigenous Australians includes mostly verbal abuse such as name-calling and insulting language. Exclusion from workplaces and social events also plays a major part in the racial discrimination. Do we really want Australia to be seen as such a racist and prejudiced nation? What can we as individuals do to stop this racial hate from going on? All of this is happening because we stole the Aboriginal people’s land. If we had