From Colonization to Exploitation

People colonize other countries to spread their beliefs, religion, power, empire and to gain access to new resources. Every nation has its own culture, therefore when countries are colonized, cultures are shared. When the British colonized Australia they wanted to expand their empire, giving the British Government more power. When a country colonizes or 'takes over' another country, they gain access to everything that is on the land. When the British people colonized Australia, they gained access to all the natural resources that were available in Australia.

King Leopold II became the king of Belgium in 1865. Leopold loved and abused his power. In 1860 Leopold said he believed "that the moment is come for us to extend our territories. I think that we must lose no time, under penalty of seeing the few remaining good positions seized upon by more enterprising nations than our own.” During his reign, Leopold bought large areas of land in Africa, now known as the Congo. Leopold's reasons for colonization was to extend his empire and gain more power.

Often colonization leads to the exploitation of the people who already inhabit the land. When the British colonized Australia, they took advantage of the Aboriginals by; raping the women and forcing them off their land. 'Half Caste' children (half British, half Aboriginal) were taken away from their Aboriginal mothers to a place called Moore River. At Moore River the British Government said they would 'educate the children' so they could be 'absorbed into the general community'. The British encouraged the 'Half Caste' children to believe that the Aboriginal Race was insignificant and worthless. When the Aboriginals were 'Absorbed into the general community', they were employed in low paying, high risk jobs. Employment was of no use to the Aboriginals, as they would have lived happily in their villages, learning their culture, in a healthy way. The British however, gained from the Aboriginals 'low-cost' employment.

Another example where colonization lead to exploitation was when King Leopold II colonized Africa. A cartoon, published by Linley Sambourne in 1906, depicts the Congolese being strangled and crushed by a white snake. The white snake represented King Leopold II. The Congolese were forced into labour. The abuse was particularly bad in the rubber industry and included the enslavement and mutilation of the Congolese. Missionary John Harris of Baringa was so shocked by the treatment of the Congolese that he wrote a letter to Leopold's chief agent in the Congo. The letter said that he had "just returned from a journey inland to the village of Insongo Mboyo. The abject misery and utter abandon is positively indescribable. I was so moved, Your Excellency, by the people's stories that I took the liberty of promising them that in future you will only kill them for crimes they commit." Harris' letter showed how much the people of Congo had been exploited and that Leopold had used the people's work for his own gain.

Aplogies

I think that apologies are important because sometimes people say things and don't realize the effect it actually has on a person. When there has been hurt or mistreatment, it will often harden the heart of people and a simple apology will break that down and open up communication. This can stop fights and rebuild relationships.

The stolen generation refers to Aboriginal people who were taken away from their families by the Australian Government between the years 1869-1969, continuing in some areas of Australia in the 1970s. At that time the Australian Government believed that placing Aboriginal children in the care of non Aboriginal Australians would result in the children being more civilized and give them a better start in life.

Archie Roach was three years old when welfare workers came and took him from his Aboriginal family. The Australian Government welfare workers lied to Roach's family and told them that they were escorting him to a picnic. Roach was also lied to and told that his Aboriginal family had died in a fire. Roach, who is now 45, has shared his experiences. In an attempt to make Roach more like his non Aboriginal guardians, his guardians tried to force his hair straight by combing out the curls and frizz. Roach's third set of guardians treated him as their own child, but he was devastated when he got a letter from his Aboriginal sister, at age 14, telling him the truth about his family. Roach found out that his family hadn't died in a fire. Past Australian Prime Ministers had refused to apologize to the Aboriginal people because they were concerned more Aboriginal people would demand compensation for their mistreatment and suffering and felt that they were not responsible for the decisions of past Australian Governments. "The Government can't even say the word s-o-r-r-y", Roach said. "Most Aborigines I talk to just want a simple statement from the heart. If you hit someone, you don't say, 'I regret what I did.'".

When Kevin Rudd became Australian Prime Minister in 2008, he decided to build a bridge based on respect between the indigenous and non-indigenous Australians. On the 13th February 2008, Rudd put his plan into Action. Rudd made an apology on behalf of past Australian Governments to the "Stolen Generation". This had a positive impact on the Aboriginal people because it showed that they are respected as Australians and that the colonizers have realised their mistakes and are willing to apologise for the actions of their ancestors.

As an non-indigenous Australian, I am appalled by what happened to the Indigenous Australians, particularly concerning the "Stolen Generation". I believe that most non-indigenous Australians agree that not apologizing to the Aboriginal people makes us look bad and uncaring towards the original inhabitants of our nation. Rudd's apology, on behalf of the Australian Government, shows that non-indigenous Australian people care about the Aboriginal people and consider them as our own people. During Rudd's apology, he called the Aboriginal people "Fellow Australians" showing his belief that the Aboriginal people are the same as other Australian Citizens. Rudd also emphasized that the events of the "Stolen Generation" was wrong using repetition, he kept saying "To the Stolen Generations, we say sorry".

The Australian Government of 1869 thought they were doing the right thing for the nation by taking the Aboriginal children away. They thought the Aboriginal people would become more civilized and would have a better life. The Aboriginal Protection Act of 1869 states "There shall be in and for Victoria a Board to be styled the “Board for the protection of aborigines” that shows an intent to protect the Aboriginal people. Although the Australian Government thought they were doing the right thing, the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Inquiry found that Aboriginal children removed from their families were disadvantaged in the following ways:

• They were more likely to come to the attention of the police as they grew into adolescence;

• They were more likely to suffer low self-esteem, depression and mental illness;

• They were more vulnerable to physical, emotional and sexual abuse;

• They had been almost always taught to reject their Aboriginality and Aboriginal culture;

• They were unable to retain links with their land;

• They could not take a role in the cultural and spiritual life of their former communities;

• They were unlikely to be able to establish their right to native title;

When Rudd said sorry, it showed that the thinking of the Australian Government has changed and what had happened to the "Stolen Generation" was wrong. Hopefully now, future generations of Aboriginal people will be taught to practice and love their culture. When this occurs, history will show that the impact of Rudd's apology on indigenous Australians was positive because Aboriginal culture is now acknowledged and respected. "To the Stolen Generations, we say sorry"

If You Want To Make Beautiful Music, You Must Play the Black and the White Notes Together.

-Richard M Nixon
This quote is a metaphor, it relates music to life and the different coloured keys to people. The quote is basically saying that for life to be good, people have to work together no matter what colour they are. I love this quote because I love music. I play the piano and it is true that music sounds better with black and white keys involved. I can also relate to the metaphor, I have lived in countries where the people have different coloured skin to me but they are no different. I believe that people should be treated with respect no matter what their race or religion. People in the world don't think more of people who are racist, they look down on them. If nobody in the world was racist, the world would be a better place.


This image shows a piano made up of many different colours. In some ways this piano represents me. I have lived in many different places each with different cultures. I have made many different friends and had many different experiences. I am a person whose personality is very colourful, reflecting all of my colourful experiences. I have learned a lot from my experiences and each one is marked with a different coloured key. I am unique, just like this piano!