Aboriginal history of Western Australia facts for kids

The Aboriginal people of Western Australia have a very long history, going back 50,000 to 70,000 years before Europeans arrived. This article will focus on the history that has been written down since European settlers came to Perth.

Aboriginal History in Western Australia

Before Europeans arrived, Aboriginal people in Western Australia shared their history through spoken stories, not written words. Their history since European contact can be divided into different time periods, from the first settlements to today's recognition of Aboriginal people.

Early European Settlement (1829–1881)

When Europeans began settling Western Australia in the early 1840s, led by James Stirling, it caused many problems. Land was taken from Aboriginal people, and they were often forced to work for very little pay. There was also a lot of fighting and Aboriginal people were sometimes put in prison.

Changing Laws and Policies (1881–1943)

In 1886, a group called the Aboriginal Protection Board was set up. Its job was to look after Aboriginal people, but it had very little money. People called "Protectors of Aborigines" were appointed, often local police or magistrates. They were supposed to help Aboriginal people in legal matters.

A sad part of this time was the 1893 Education Act. This law allowed white parents to stop Aboriginal children from going to the same schools as their children. Because of this, Aboriginal children were slowly kept out of the state school system.

Later, in 1897, the Aborigines Department was created to take over from the Protection Board. This department also had very little money and was eventually combined with the Fisheries Department in 1909.

The years from 1881 to the 1940s were very hard. A new law in 1905, the Aboriginal Act, made things even worse. It led to unfair rules and policies that forced Aboriginal people into special settlements. Children were often taken away from their families because the government believed Aboriginal parents were not "socially capable" of raising them. This terrible practice, known as the Stolen Generations, continued for many years, even into the 1970s. During this time, Aboriginal people worked hard to keep their cultures alive.

Towards Recognition (1943 to Today)

This period began with important events like the Great Stockman's Strike of 1946. A major turning point was in 1967, when Aboriginal people were finally recognized as Australian citizens. Then, in 1975, the 1975 Racial Discrimination Act was passed. This law made Aboriginal people equal under Australian law for the first time since 1829.

Later, important court decisions like Mabo and Wik recognized that Aboriginal people owned their land when Europeans first settled. In 2015, the Recognition Bill 2015 was introduced in Western Australia. It officially recognized the Noongar people as the traditional owners of the southwest region, including Perth.

However, challenges remain. In 2014, the Australian government stopped funding many remote Aboriginal communities in Western Australia. This led to some communities losing basic services like power and water, and some people became homeless.

Government Policies and Their Impact

Before 1886, the British government was in charge of dealings with Aboriginal people in Western Australia.

In 1904, a special investigation looked into how Aboriginal people were being treated. It led to a new law in 1905 that made all Aboriginal people, including children of mixed heritage, "wards of the state." This meant the Chief Protector of Aborigines became their legal guardian, not their parents. This person had the power to remove children from their families and place them in special homes or settlements.

The Aborigines Act Amendment Act of 1911 gave the Chief Protector even more power to take Aboriginal children away. For example, in 1914, white parents in Katanning demanded that Aboriginal children be removed from their school. By 1915, local police moved Aboriginal families living near Katanning to a settlement called Carrolup.

In 1915, A. O. Neville became the Chief Protector. He had a very harsh policy. He believed that Aboriginal people of full descent should be kept separate from society until they died out. He also thought that Aboriginal people of mixed heritage should be encouraged to marry white people to become part of the white community as quickly as possible.

The Carrolup settlement was closed in 1922, and its residents were moved to the Moore River Native Settlement near Moora. In 1934, another investigation found that the Moore River settlement was in terrible condition. It was overcrowded, dirty, and the people living there were not getting enough healthy food or proper training.

Despite these problems, Neville continued to push for more power. In 1936, a new law, the Native Administration Act, gave the Chief Protector even more control over all Aboriginal people in Western Australia. This included any child with any Aboriginal background.

A new law in 1954, the Native Welfare Act, did not stop these removals. However, changes to this act in 1963 finally ended the Chief Protector's power to remove children from their parents based on their Aboriginal heritage. But even after this, Aboriginal children were still removed from their families under other laws, like the Child Welfare Act of 1947.

In 1972, the government changed how it managed Aboriginal affairs. New departments were created, and for the first time, policies allowed Aboriginal children at risk to be fostered by other family members first. This helped to end the era of the Stolen Generations.

In 1974, the government also set up the Aboriginal Land Fund to help Aboriginal people buy back their land.

Learning About Western Australian Aboriginal Society

It can be tricky to learn about Aboriginal history because, for a long time, Aboriginal people shared their stories by speaking, not by writing.

Studying Aboriginal Culture

For many years, the study of Aboriginal people was not done in a very organized way. In the 20th century, important collections were made by Ronald and Catherine Berndt at the University of Western Australia. More recently, historians like Neville Green have helped us learn more.

Today, Aboriginal people are also becoming anthropologists and historians, sharing their own perspectives and knowledge. Universities like Edith Cowan University, Curtin University, and the University of Western Australia are important places for this work.

Important Records

Studying Aboriginal history in Western Australia has improved thanks to people like Lois Tilbrook, who collect information about Aboriginal families. Because the old Department of Native Affairs kept detailed records, we sometimes know more about Aboriginal families from that time than about many European families. Anna Haebich has written about the Moore River Native Settlement and the "Stolen Generations," explaining how Aboriginal children were systematically taken from their families for almost a century.

Archaeological Discoveries

Since the 1950s, scientists like Sylvia Hallam and Charles Dortch have used archaeology to uncover more about the history of Aboriginal people in Western Australia. Archaeology helps us understand how people lived long ago by studying the things they left behind.

The Power of Oral Tradition

Aboriginal history is also kept alive through spoken stories and traditions. For example, Aboriginal people living along the coast in Western Australia have stories not only about ancient animals that are now extinct but also about rising sea levels that happened thousands of years ago, at the end of the last Ice Age. These stories show how important oral history is.

Aboriginal oral history includes cultural information, legends, and personal life stories. Sally Morgan's "My Place" was one of the first life stories written by an Aboriginal person in Western Australia. Many other Aboriginal people have since shared their family stories, like the internationally famous "Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence".

Aboriginal Groupings

Aboriginal people in Western Australia identify themselves as belonging to one of five main groups, or "peoples," based on their culture, shared history, and connection to their traditional lands.

These groups are as different from each other as European countries are. Before Europeans arrived, they had distinct cultures. While European contact has caused some of these differences to blend, these groupings are still a very strong part of Aboriginal identity in Western Australia today.