"Nothing is achieved by reliving the past, nor by empty words, treaties & apologies.". ....... I wholly agree with you. which is why such affirmative action was and remains necessary.
Also true that Rudd's apology did nothing in terms of bringing tangible change. Yet it did provide a symbolic affirmation of the status of First Nations ppl. The statement said that ppl have the right to be treated with dignity and respect - something that John Howard couldn't understand. It provided first Australians with a degree of comfort knowing that they were no longer being ignored, disrespected and had no future - they gained hop from this apology.
its about recognising the past conditions under which these ppl lived and changing those conditions - to give them a break from the bleak conditions they were forced to manage under.
Eventually, after a period of anti-discrimination (I too argued that there should be no positive discrimination when this first was announced), once first Australians are more capable and more accustomed to working, once white ppl and businesses are less disposed to be discriminating in favour of non-indigenous ppl, that the anti-discrimination policies can then be removed.
Its remedial action within the Closing the Gap framework.
Right now though there is clear evidence that first Australians are being treated under laws that discriminate against first Australians. They are being locked up for crimes that no white Australian would be condemned under. Some States/Territories now have an incarceration rate of first Australians at 30%!!!
This worsens and deepens the sense of discrimination and is and encouragement to see themselves as worthless. Hence suicidal thoughts develop as there seems no hope left for a positive future and breaking the cycle of punitive treatment by white ppl (as they see it). \ @Tarvold this really is a massive problem and there are many contradictory messages being sent to first Australians. Its important to look at the bigger picture.
