Doug PollardCompensating for error
April 8th 2009 01:03
This government is allergic to the idea of compensation for past wrongs. It thinks saying ‘Sorry’ is enough to repay the Aboriginal nations for the usurpation of their lands, the destruction of their culture, and the theft of their children.
It has made no substantive move to restoring Aboriginal control over their own lives and lands, instead continuing the Howard governments quasi-military ‘intervention,’ which subjects remote black communities to social control far in excess of anything we comfortable white folks would accept. They may as well appoint a new Great White Protector and abandon the pretence.
The government is incapable of understanding and working with the traditional Aboriginal kinship system, which is far more inclusive than the traditional white family. Instead, they try to shoehorn blackfellas into whitey houses designed for whitey families of Mum, Dad and 2.4 children, and restrict responsibility for children to their biological parents.
But that’s not the way black culture works. Until any ‘intervention’ is designed and run by blacks themselves, nothing will change.
You can imagine Canberras reaction to that idea, can’t you? “What? Give them control over the money? Don’t be ridiculous - they’ll only spend it on grog!!”
The government has the same ‘nanny knows best’ attitude to us. We are perfectly capable of defining, deciding and managing our own domestic arrangements, thank you very much. And while some of us are happy to couple up for life, and produce and support children, that’s not the appropriate model for everyone.
It doesn’t even work for most heterosexuals, who often fall into it through accidental pregnancy and a more or less well-meaning but misguided attempt to ‘do the right thing’, so it’s no surprise it’s not popular with a lot of us, either.
The government makes the excuse that they can’t support same-sex marriage because ‘the gay community is divided on the issue.’ Well in that case they should immediately withdraw support for heterosexual marriage, because the straight community is far from unified on the subject, too.
Some want the full white-dress and priest package, others are happy with a civil celebrant and a deity-free ceremony of their own devising, still others just sign the paperwork, and some just live together. Exactly as we will do once we can marry.
Meanwhile the government trumpets our newly-minted ‘equality’ at Centrelink, where our elderly can now have bureaucrats trample through their private lives and hound them into poverty, exactly as they have done to our straight counterparts for years. Equality? As the old saw goes, be careful what you wish for: because now you’ve got it.
Forget the years in which our seniors were imprisoned, medically tortured, socially persecuted and marginalised. Forget the years in which they paid more taxes and got fewer benefits. Forget the years they couldn’t live with the ones they loved, because that would have invited rocks through the windows and bashings in the streets.
The government would like us to shut up and be grateful for what we’ve been given. Instead we should be reminding them of the price that’s been paid by our seniors, and demanding compensation for their sufferings, not standing idly by while their already meagre income is cut still further in the name of this false ‘equality.’
And when it comes to relationship recognition, remind them that this ‘equality’ they’re so keen to give us means we should have the same choices as everyone else, including the choice to marry – or not – as we see fit.
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