By Thomas English @thomasjenglish7
On Sorry Day and during Reconciliation Week Australians say sorry for the policies that led to the Stolen Generations.
For more than 100 years the government had an official policy of removing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families. The majority of children were taken between 1869 and 1969, but some youths were taken before and after this time.
Sorry Day has been recognised on May 26 every year since 1998. while National Reconciliation week takes place between 27 May and June 3.
Two years after 1997’s Bringing Them Home report told harrowing stories of the anguish felt by people whose families had been torn apart, PM John Howard made the ‘Motion of Reconciliation’ to the Aboriginal people. Howard called the policy and its effects “the most blemished chapter” in Australian history.
It wasn’t until ten years later that then PM Kevin Rudd made the first official apology on February 13, 2008.
Reconciliation Week is based on five key dimensions: Race Relations, Equality and Equity, Institutional Integrity, Historical Acceptance and Unity.
Welcome to Country is an Indigenous tradition where tribes would ask permission from the hosting group to enter their land. Today the ceremony can take many various forms, such as singing, dancing, smoking, ceremonies or a speech.
At Sydney TAFE Media we acknowledge this land as belonging to the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, and we pay our respects to them.
Learn more about National Reconciliation Week 2018 on the official website.