The Stolen Generations

What is ”The Stolen Generations”? The Stolen Generations is a term used to describe the children of Australian Aborigines and Torres Strait Islander descent removed from their families by The Australian Federal and State government agencies and church missions. This occurred in 1869-1969, but there were still children being removed in the 1970’s.

Why were Aboriginal children stolen? The Aboriginal children were stolen from their families, because the white people wanted to get rid of the ”Aboriginal problem”. The Aborigines’ culture: language, traditions, and knowledge were passed on through generations, and that would be destroyed if the children were removed. In the early 20th century white Australians thought Aboriginal people would die out. In three generations, they thought, Aboriginal genes would have been 'bred out' when Aboriginal people had children with white people. The children were taken away because they were easier to control than adults, and easier to change.

Which children were taken away? Mainly children of mixed descent were taken, also called ”half-caste”-children. (Mixed black/white children) Authorities thought that they were easier to make “white”.

What happened to the stolen children? The stolen children were raised on missions or by foster parents. They were totally cut off from their Aboriginality. They were punished when caught talking their Aboriginal language. The girls were trained to be servants, the boys to be stockmen. Many of the stolen girls and boys were physically and sexually abused. Many babies born to girls raped by white men were in turn taken away from them, sometimes as soon as they were born. Boys and girls were brought into separate institutions which they (and some experts) would later compare with German concentration camps and the holocaust. Many tried to run away but with limited success. Many never saw their parents again or were told they were orphans.

”I grew up feeling alone, a black girl in a white world, and I resented them for trying to make me white but they couldn't wash away thousands of years of dreaming”.—Aunty Rhonda Collard, member of the Stolen Generations. ”There is no black or white, we are both of those. I am black and I am white. We were the product of white men raping our traditional women. We were an embarrassment. No-one wanted us. They just wanted us out of the way.” —Zita Wallace, taken aged eight years. ”We were each handed a pair of pyjamas with a number Mr Borland, the manager, had given us earlier printed on the pocket, and a shirt and pair of shorts also. I was number 33. Not Bill. Not even Simon. Just number 33.” — Bill Simon, taken away aged 10.

How many children were stolen? Few records of stolen children were kept, some were deliberately destroyed or just lost. One source estimates that more than 6,200 children were stolen in NSW between 1883 and 1969.

When were the children stolen? In the end of the 19th century authorities started to take children away without a legal framework. A framework was established in 1909 with the Aboriginal Protection Act. The Aboriginal Protection Act – Australia gave extensive powers over the lives of Aboriginal People to the government's Board for the Protection of Aborigines, including regulation of residence, employment and marriage. In 1960’s the removal of Aboriginal children slowed down. In the 1980’s there were still school and missions with the Stolen Generation’s children.