The Road to Reconciliation The Sorry Speech

Learning Intention To define Reconciliation and to explore key events leading up to it. Particularly Paul Keating’s 1992 Redfern Speech The Bringing Them Home Report The Coalition’s refusal to say sorry and The 2007 Apology

What is Reconciliation?

Reconciliation Reconciliation - The coming together of parties divided by difference. Reconciliation is rarely a single event; rather, it is based on the sum of many special moments that together heal the hurt. This is particularly so when the reconciliation involves two groups of citizens separated by a long history of injustice, misunderstanding and resentment, as has been the case for Australia's Indigenous people and those who came here after 1788.

How does this relate to what we are studying?

When did Reconciliation begin?

The Redfern Speech Some say this is the start of Reconciliation Labor Prime Minister Paul Keating was known for his skill as a public speaker. In 1992, at the Australian launch of the International Year of the World's Indigenous People in Redfern, a Sydney suburb that was home to a large Indigenous community, he made one of the greatest speeches of his career. Some say this is the start of Reconciliation

The Redfern Speech In this speech, he spoke of the need for the nation to acknowledge the harm caused to Indigenous peoples through the policies of previous governments. He said that there was nothing to fear or lose by recognising ‘historical truth’, and that social democracy should be extended to Indigenous Australians. The Redfern Speech, as it was known, would be — for many — the first step in the long road to reconciliation between Australia's Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples

But First… Let’s look at The 6 C’s of Primary Source Analysis to help us with this speech and Kevin Rudd’s speech. This will also be beneficial for your SAC on Thursday (SEE HAND OUT)

What is the main idea? For documents, list important points/phrases/words/sentences. For images, describe what you see. It is clear as to who created this source, when it was written, and what type of source it is. Accurate /thoughtful connections made between source and what was happening at that time and place in history. Interesting and thoughtful connections made between the source and what the students already know, or what they can relate it to. Bias and point of view are clearly identified. Students support their claims with specific examples from source. Student provides a thoughtful conclusion that closely connects to source

The Six 6 C’s of Primary Source Analysis Content: What is the main idea? For documents, list important points/phrases/words/sentences. For images, describe what you see. What are the major arguments made?

Citation Citation: Who created this and when? What type of source is it?

Communication Communication: What is the author’s bias or point of view? Who is the intended audience? Why was the source created? What is the tone of the document or image? [Citation and Communication together help discern the source’s bias.] Are some point skimmed over or ignored? If so, why might this be?

Context Context: What is going on in the world, country, region, or locality when this was created? OR, What other sources (primary or secondary) might help provide answers to this question? What else do we need to know to better understand the evidence in this source?

Connections Connections: How does this connect to what you already know?

Conclusions Conclusions: What contributions does this make to our understanding of history? How did you come to these conclusions? How does this document help answer our essential (or research) question: "How can we learn & understand about Reconciliation with Indigenous Australians?."

The Redfern Speech Activity Students work in cooperative groups (3 members). Each student within the group is responsible for completing two sections of the 6 C’s. They then share their responses with the other group members. Groups are then selected to share their responses with the class

Insert Video Redfern Speech https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRNG3srP6zY

Time to Share

Bringing them home In 1995 Prime Minister Keating commissioned a report into Australia's ‘Stolen Generations’. Titled Bringing Them Home, the ‘Report of the National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from Their Families’ (1997) outlined the process by which Indigenous children were taken from their families in the name of protection.

Sorry Day On the first anniversary of the day the report was tabled, 26 May was declared National Sorry Day (1998)

Refusing to say Sorry While all state and territory governments and the churches publicly apologised to the Stolen Generations following the release of the Bringing Them Home report, the federal government — then led by Prime Minister John Howard — refused to apologise. This could, in part, be explained by the government's fear that admitting culpability would lead to a landslide of claims for compensation

John Howard Refusing to say Sorry https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pn4I-NhhR1w

Black Arm Band v Three Cheers One key difference between those who were prepared to say sorry to Australia's Indigenous people and those who were not was the way in which they viewed Australia's past. Some people believed that the arrival of white people in Australia symbolised the beginning of civilisation and progress in Australia (known as the ‘three cheers’ view of history), while others viewed it as the start of a brutal invasion (the ‘black armband’ view of history). In relation to the Stolen Generations, the former believed that the government had removed Indigenous children from their homes for their own good, while the latter often claimed that this was another attempt to eradicate Indigenous Australians.

Australia offers an Apology In 2007 the federal Labor Party gained power under the leadership of Kevin Rudd. In his acceptance speech, he vowed to be a ‘Prime Minister for all Australians’. Immediately, plans were made to offer the nation's Indigenous peoples a formal apology.

Offering an apology The parliamentary year began with politicians being treated to a ‘Welcome to Country’ ceremony, the first ever held at Parliament As the sounds of a didgeridoo echoed through the halls of Parliament, Matilda House-Williams, a Ngambri elder, welcomed both the prime minister and the Opposition leader to her traditional lands.

The 6 C’s – Sorry Speech Students work in cooperative groups (3 members). Each student within the group is responsible for completing two sections of the 6 C’s. They then share their responses with the other group members. Groups are then selected to share their responses with the class

Insert Vid of Sorry Speech Quicktime

Time to Share

3-2-1 Three thing you’ve learnt Two things you’ve still got questions about 1 thing you want to tell me