Edward Mabo Case Study

The Dreaming gives the Aboriginal people a way to explain on how the world came to be.

For Ben Hall a young man, the evolving and progressive society of Australia presented an opportunity for the adventurous to have ago and to build a solid foundation for the future without the social judgments that long been a handicap for those of limited means and wherein some sections of Australian society there still retained the structured aristocracy of the old country where title and inherited wealth determined a path of diversity for those that were termed privileged, this, of course, excluded Ben Hall. It was for those in Australia with courage and determination that the land could offer them that same opportunity of position in the new aristocracy of the colony which was being forged out of the criminals of England who had been bound down by iron chains and where the land for those ex-convicts presented a new wealth for men marked long ago and sent to this penal land for crimes that were so petty that in a modern Australia or England would not ever see the courthouse let alone seven to fourteen years incarcerated with severe physical punishment.

In the 1971 Gove land rights case, Justice Blackburn ruled that Australia was terra nullius prior European settlement. This judgement was challenged for a total of 3 years but all attempts failed. However, on the 20th May 1982, Eddie Koiki Mabo and 4 other Indigenous people began their legal claim for ownership of their traditional lands on the island of Mer in the Torres Strait. The case was later taken to supreme court and after ten years, the case was closed and the government granted the indigenous people of australia their rightful land. Before this, Eddie had been helping his community from a young age. Eddie became a spokesperson for the Torres Strait Islander community. He was involved with the trade union movement and the Aboriginal

Eddie had a strong passion for his hometown that drove the proud Torres Strait Islander to then undertake a 10-year legal battle, which rewrote Australians history for the better. During 1982 Eddie Mabo led the Indigenous people of Mer Island. As a troop, their main argument was to clarify that many generation of the Meriam people had lived on the island, when then was even prior to the arrival of all Europeans. They all believed that they were the first and traditional owners of the land. Terra Nullius was another one of there arguments even though the Europeans had taken charge and claimed it in 1770. Eddie had died just a few months after the High Court decided to hand down the decision, which he had spent 10 years fighting for. "For two centuries, the British and then white Australians operated under a fallacy, that somehow Aboriginal people did not exist or have land rights before the first settlers arrived in 1788." Struggling for a say, when Eddie came along the Indigenous Australians were able to have a say and take back what they felt was originally

Eddie Mabo was the man who initiated the land rights argument for indigenous people. He found out that where he was born and lived, at a place called Mer Island was not legally his or his peoples land. This news angered and upset Eddie Mabo and he began speaking out and telling people about his story. It was while Eddie Mabo was working as a gardener at James Cook University that he crossed paths with land rights advocates and some legal minds who would become influential in his later argument to have the indigenous right to land recognised by the courts. He received a great amount of support especially from fellow Indigenous people. In the early 1980s a lawyer suggested he take their challenge against the Queensland government on the issue of land ownership to the court of law. Eddie Mabo followed this advice and proceeded with taking his case to the courts.

Deadly Unna by Phillip Gwynne explores racial issues directed at the Indigenous Australians. Gwynne’s story is based on events that occurred in the Yorke Peninsula, South Australia. This book clearly shows that Australia is not the land of the fair go for certain demographics, while other demographics do experience Australia as the land of the fair go. People who have money will experience Australia as the land of the fair go, but the people who do not will not be able to experience Australia as a land of equal opportunity. Indigenous Australians are also included in the demographic of people who cannot experience Australia as the land of the fair go.

Ever since the first settlers arrived in Australia right up to the end of the 20th century indigenous Australians had limited rights compared to whit Australians. One of the biggest problems was that there were different laws and treatment of aboriginals depending on what state they resided in. The year of 1967 was a big year for indigenous rights as a referendum was held to give the federal government the power to make laws for all aboriginals. Many factors and events influenced the overwhelming success of 1967 Referendum but the Freedom Rides of 1965 was the most important of these events in making the referendum the most successful in Australia’s history.

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 article discusses the speech given by an Indigenous journalist, Stan Grant who participated in a debate where he spoke for the motion “Racism is destroying the Australian Dream’’. Hence, the main points of this article are mostly evidence given by Grant in his debate to support his idea that the Australian Dream is indeed rooted in racism.

Australia became known as a workingman’s paradise at the turn of the twentieth century, however, for a large majority of the population Australia was far from a paradise. Due to their rejection of the British class system, and the instalment of the eight hour working day and a basic wage Australians believed themselves to be an egalitarian society with equal opportunities. And this much was true, for the working class, white male. For the rest of the population, the women, children and non-Europeans life was a different story. For them, Australia was not the workingman’s paradise it claimed to be.

The Ngunnawal People have been living within the borders and surrounding mountains of the Australian Capital Territory for over 25,000 years. The way the Indigenous people used the land to live off was extremely efficient and sustainable. They had a bounty of knowledge about the land surrounding them, and over generations, devised resourced management skills to ensure maintenance of the animals and plants, and most importantly, the land in which provided these things. Aboriginal culture existed long before Captain Cook arrived in Australia in 1770. He claimed the land to be "Terra-Nullius", meaning that the land did not belong to any person. This claim obviously seemed ludicrous and crazy to the Indigenous people whom already lived on the land.

Eddie Mabo was a Torres Strait Islander who believed Australian laws and land ownership were wrong and fought to change them. On 20 May 1982, Eddie Mabo, Sam Passi, David Passi, Celuia Mapo Salee and James Rice began their legal claim for ownership of their lands against the Queensland Government. In 1985, while the Mabo case was proceeding, the Queensland Government tried to avoid the issue of whether rights of Indigenous peoples survived colonisation. Due to this the leader of the Queensland Government Joh Bjelke-Petersen decided to introduce the Queensland Coast Islands Declaratory Act 1985. This Act had claimed to extinguish any rights and interests that the Meriam people may have had before its enactment. However in 1998, the High Court decided by a majority that the Queensland Declatory Act was inconsistent with the Racial Discrimination Act and therefore was

Oodgeroo Noonuccal’s non-traditional view of Australia in ‘An Appeal’ shows how stereotypes of Australia are not always correct. The poem shows how camaraderie and mateship are not always expressed in Australian lifestyle. It is evident in the poem that not all Australians help each other to get through tough times and Australia is divided into different groups of people and is not equal. ‘An appeal’ shows how the nation stands up for themselves and fight for what is right against the power of the ‘not really’ authoritative people of Australia.

The high court was allowed to do this as it within their rights and power. The Mabo case had many effects on the legal system in Australia. Some of these affects are; frantic legislative activity, intense political debate and a vast amount of media and academic attention. The case completely changed the legal, political and social relations between indigenous and non-indigenous people. It also recognised the land rights of the Murray islanders and changed Australia

Throughout human history, racial discrimination has been a persistent and prevalent issue. Australia has had a particularly violent and dark history of mistreatment against its indigenous population, which was often overlooked and ignored until recent times. However, increased awareness and education have slowly led to the acknowledgement of these issues and attempts to address the inequality that indigenous people face. In a multicultural first world country, it seems ludicrous that people are still judged for their skin colour and appearance.