Aborigines take to the streets to demand justice (Melbourne)

[struggle4progress]

By Ed Johnson Sydney, Australia

COMMONWEALTH Games officials in Melbourne are bracing themselves for protests today as Aboriginal campaigners take to the streets demanding justice for Australia’s indigenous population.

Activists have dubbed the sporting event the Stolenwealth Games to draw attention to the land, language, culture and even children forcibly taken from Aborigines since Britain settled the continent in 1788.

Under the banner Walk for Justice, more than 1,000 campaigners are expected to march past Government House, where Queen Elizabeth II is staying during the games, calling on her to recognise the sovereignty of Aborigines who have populated Australia for at least 40,000 years. <snip>

http://www.irishexaminer.com/pport/web/world/Full_Story/did-sgef74G09q1Jg.asp

[Djinn]

1. Stolenwealth protests

are also intended to highlight not just the dispossesion of Australia's indigenous people but those across the "commonwealth".

to point out that the "common" wealth was actually wealth belonging to original inhabitants that was stolen to benefit the British empire - every single nation in the commonwealth was looted, their inhabitants slaughtered and dispossesed, but somehow we're supposed to proud of the remaining vestiges of that empire???

[rodeodance]

2. I wish them well,

[Cults4Bush]

3. I stand in solidarity with the Originals. Brits hunted them as sport like

foxes, amongst other things.

Our natives here in the US have it bad.. really bad in some places, but in Australia their natives are nearly totally decimated on every level imaginable. Yep, it was all stolen and let us not forget the genocidal madness that overtook the colonies.

[closeupready]

4. "Hunted like foxes" - is that true, or hyperbole?

Just curious if you have a link or something. Thanks.

[Cults4Bush]

5. Nope very true, no link handy as this was a field of personal study

of mine many years ago... back when it was only books.

The area Im thinking of is Tasmania .. wiki gives pre settlement population at 8000 Ive heard much larger. I can't find the direct quote for hunted like foxes but I know I read it a while back... maybe in Voices Of The First Day by Robert Lawlor.

Heres the first link I found on a google search witg "Aborigine Tasmania".
http://www.africawithin.com/rashidi/destruction_aborigines.htm its a quick overview and doesn't do real serious detail. Though really its hard to get details since they were completely wiped out.

Though really all of the Originals were culturally genocided. The level of racism in Australia regrading them is every bit as bad in the rural areas as ours was in the 20s. One of the most cruel things the Brits did )with the happy accomplicing of missionaries) was to out and out steal as many of the Originals children as they could for "re-education" and Christianizing them into the modern world. They stole them from their moities and clans sent them everywhere throughout the commonwealth. Almost all never returned. Many of them were hired into mines and labor including many who were "adopted". There were/are endless allegations of rape and abuse at the hands of their new "parents".

There is a wealth of info out there and it is hard to use hyperbole in describing what happened as it was about as bad as it gets.

[closeupready]

9. Horrific and sad.

Thanks for posting it. :hi:

[Cults4Bush]

10. No problem.. wish I could have found that quote for you.

Take care

[noonwitch]

6. At least we have given our natives some bootstraps, recently

Casino gambling. The better-organized tribes have made good money, put it to use, and some of the reservations are looking better than they ever had-new homes, new schools, better health care. It's not perfect, and some tribes have become corrupt (no more than Vegas casino owners), but recently, we've felt guilty enough to give them something, which is more than we've done for african-americans.

[classysassy]

7. Given

you mean returned some of the loot that was stolen.You should go take a look at some of the reservation here in Arizona,the founders were thieves and their offsprings are the keepers of the stolen goods,SHAME,SHAME,on you America.

[Cults4Bush]

8. True but at the same time we are constantly breaking (or seeking to )

our treaties with them. Honoring treaties means very little to many officials.

Then you also have Abramhoff types playing them against eachother.

I think there are still lots of mineral/mining rights issues as yet unsettled as well.

Its a lil better but still not good. As far as African Americans goes... the obvious is well spoken and apparent to all with a lick of compassion and empathy.