The Flipside of Sixpence: Aboriginal Stories of Hope and Reconciliation

This is Colleen Brown's last interview before her untimely death in 2002. The interview continues and extends Colleen's project to educate family therapists about Aboriginal experience and culture. In presenting Cecily's life narrative and painting, Colleen surprises us with a creative message of hope and reconciliation about the stolen generation, because Cecily expresses gratitude to the white family who brought her up. In her own words, Cecily ‘did that painting for me like the others so I could show family therapists what the other side of the coin is, the flipside’. This three‐way conversation between Colleen, Cecily and Glenn provides a contribution to the reconciliation process.     

Earnings Inequality Among Aboriginal Groups in Canada

Data from the 2006 master file of the Canadian census is used to estimate the earnings differentials between non-Aboriginal persons and various groups of Aboriginal persons both on-reserve and off-reserve and throughout the earnings distribution. Generalizations that emerge include: an earnings disadvantage prevails across all Aboriginal groups; it is larger the greater the degree of “Aboriginal identity” (and where discrimination is most likely); more than half of the gap is “explained” by Aboriginal persons having lower endowments of pay determining characteristics (especially the younger age of the Aboriginal workforce, their lower levels of education and their working in lower-paying occupations); these patterns tend to prevail throughout the earnings distribution; the relative importance of endowments tends to increase as one moves up the earnings distribution; reductions in the earnings gap over time are more prominent at the higher ends of the earnings distribution and increases at the bottom especially for the on-reserve population. Policy implications are discussed, with an emphasis on the role of education.     

‘Aboriginal mass culture’: a critical history

In Australia, some Aboriginal art objects are celebrated as fine art of great cultural, aesthetic and economic value, while the vast majority are judged to be stylistically derivative and intrinsically compromised by overtly mercenary market forces. This article introduces the concept ‘Aboriginal mass culture’ as a means for understanding the significance of the often maligned forms of the Aboriginal art and culture industry in Australia and to address the problem of why it continues to be difficult to demarcate the space of Aboriginal fine art. While a canonical and connoisseurial art history approach must disavow the vast majority of ‘Aboriginal art’, this article embraces a sociological perspective and turns an analytical eye upon the Aboriginal art and culture industry in its entirety, treating it as a phenomenon of visual culture that mediates Indigenous/non-indigenous relations within national public culture. It offers a critical history of ‘Aboriginal mass culture’ from the market for ‘Aboriginalia’ in the post-Second World War era through to the unruly Aboriginal art market of the present day. In so doing, it illuminates some of the drivers of these cultural forms across commercial, governmental and civil society domains. Its analysis reveals the way in which ‘Aboriginal mass culture’ manifests the unique social and economic circumstances that underpin Aboriginal art practices and the ways in which Aboriginal art is entangled with a redemptive political and civic project in Australia that has sought to affirm a resilient Indigenous presence and stimulate new visions of nationhood, heritage and intercultural fellowship.     

Teaching cultural humility for social workers serving LGBTQI Aboriginal communities in Australia

ABSTRACT

It is well documented that colonization and subsequent repressive policies have wrought devastating changes in the lives of Aboriginal people in Australia. Social workers are an essential group for improving social justice and self-determination for Australian Aboriginal people. The Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW) acknowledges that Aboriginal people make a unique contribution to the life of the nation and mandates that social work educational programs provide culturally responsive content that acknowledges the value and contributions of Aboriginal people. Social work educators need to embed this content without reinforcing stereotypes or being tokenistic. This is a challenge when teaching about intersecting identities, such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, and intersex (LGBTQI) Aboriginal people. We outline the terms used in this space and propose that cultural humility is an acceptable framework to consider. We introduce key conceptual terms used in LGBTQI Aboriginal communities. Finally, we provide recommendations for engaging with LGBTQI Aboriginal peoples.     

Interrogating and interpreting the mediation of an emerging Australian Aboriginal social movement between 1923 and 1940

The founding of the Australian Aboriginal Progressive Association (AAPA) in 1923 heralded the rise of an organized, motivated Australian Aboriginal rights movement that has continued to fight for improvements to Aboriginal people’s lives. This paper investigates the media framing of this emerging movement through an analysis of print media (mainstream and alternative) coverage relating to the AAPA (1923–1930) and the Aborigines Progressive Association (1937–1940). Key questions consider how media framed each organization, their leaders and activity, who was allowed to speak, and what led to the emergence of the movement in the first place. In addition, this discussion includes an examination of how social movement and journalistic theory connect. It is argued that changes in Australia’s political environment, heightened levels of oppression of Australia’s Aboriginal peoples and the availability of charismatic Aboriginal leadership provided ideal conditions for the successful emergence of the Aboriginal rights movement in Australia.     

Context,Diversity and Engagement: Early Intervention with Australian Aboriginal Families in Urban and Remote Contexts

This article describes challenges met implementing an early intervention programme for Aboriginal parents and their children in the NT (Northern Territory) of Australia in the context of efforts to remediate Aboriginal disadvantage. The intervention is an adaptation of an 8‐ to 10‐week, manualised parenting programme designed for four‐ to six‐year‐old children with behavioural difficulties. It was implemented for both Aboriginal and non‐Aboriginal children in urban Darwin and for Aboriginal children in three communities of the Tiwi Islands, near Darwin. Measured outcomes of the programme were positive overall with different outcomes by gender and Indigenous status. There were marked differences in retention of families from different socio‐cultural backgrounds in the programme, with a significant loss of participants from referral through commencement to six‐month follow‐up. This drop‐out was most marked for urban Aboriginal participants, despite highly flexible strategies of engagement and cultural adaptation of the approach pursued in each setting. The research provides lessons for the contextualisation of preventive interventions in diverse community settings and shows that systematic attention to cultural ‘fit’ of the intervention logic and cultural competence in engagement of disadvantaged families with multiple problems are fundamental to sustainability.     

Racial Discrimination, Post Traumatic Stress, and Gambling Problems among Urban Aboriginal Adults in Canada

Little is known about risk factors for problem gambling (PG) within the rapidly growing urban Aboriginal population in North America. Racial discrimination may be an important risk factor for PG given documented associations between racism and other forms of addictive behaviour. This study examined associations between racial discrimination and problem gambling among urban Aboriginal adults, and the extent to which this link was mediated by post traumatic stress. Data were collected via in-person surveys with a community-based sample of Aboriginal adults living in a mid-sized city in western Canada (N = 381) in 2010. Results indicate more than 80 % of respondents experienced discrimination due to Aboriginal race in the past year, with the majority reporting high levels of racism in that time period. Past year racial discrimination was a risk factor for 12-month problem gambling, gambling to escape, and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in bootstrapped regression models adjusted for confounders and other forms of social trauma. Elevated PTSD symptoms among those experiencing high levels of racism partially explained the association between racism and the use of gambling to escape in statistical models. These findings are the first to suggest racial discrimination may be an important social determinant of problem gambling for Aboriginal peoples. Gambling may be a coping response that some Aboriginal adults use to escape the negative emotions associated with racist experiences. Results support the development of policies to reduce racism directed at Aboriginal peoples in urban areas, and enhanced services to help Aboriginal peoples cope with racist events.     

Understanding the role of Australian Aboriginal maternal infant care workers: bringing a cultural dimension to a critique of the ideal worker concept

Models of care that include a prominent role for Aboriginal workers are fundamental to improving the health of Aboriginal Australians. However, tension arises when these models co-exist with mainstream models, contributing to difficulties sustaining an Aboriginal workforce. The ‘ideal worker’ theory is drawn on to explore whether historical workplace norms undermine the roles of Aboriginal workers in an Australian hospital setting. In-depth interviews were conducted with 30 staff and clients of an innovative maternity service, featuring Aboriginal Maternal Infant Care (AMIC) workers caring for Aboriginal women in partnership with midwives. A phenomenological methodology highlighted that unrealistic and inappropriate assumptions embedded in the ideal worker notion underpin many challenges facing AMIC workers. These workers have deep ties to their communities, with extensive responsibilities beyond the workplace. Although the hospital system relies on these ties to engage clients, this time commitment and the unbounded ways in which AMIC workers provide care are not acknowledged. Findings illustrate how the ideal worker concept has a cultural and gender dimension, which undermines AMIC workers and does not value culturally relevant care. This work has implications for ingraining cultural competence into health care, suggesting the wide-ranging contributions of Aboriginal workers must be recognised to achieve sustainable reform.     

Reviews

This paper presents the findings of a study of Aboriginal children whom the South Australian Department of Aboriginal Affairs placed in foster homes between 1954 and 1966. It is an attempt to follow up one of the many problems expressed by social workers in Adelaide during a study of Aborigines and their use of social agencies.     

Developing Culturally Responsive Supervision Through Yarn Up Time and the CASE Supervision Model

ABSTRACT

This article explores a culturally focused supervision training program supporting Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal supervisors to provide cross-cultural supervision for Aboriginal staff within mainstream and Aboriginal community and human service organisations. The key features of the training program, Yarn Up Time and the CASE supervision model are a culturally respectful approach to cross-cultural professional supervision practice with the purpose of contributing to the development of culturally responsive supervision with Aboriginal staff and their clients. The article concludes with feedback from participants who attended the training and supports the future advancement of cross-cultural supervision practice and models in Australia.

IMPLICATIONS

• There continues to be a need for more culturally responsive supervision for Aboriginal staff and for non-Aboriginal social work practice with Aboriginal people.

• Yarn Up Time and the CASE model is a culturally appropriate approach for supervising Aboriginal staff and non-Aboriginal social workers’ supervision of social workers’ practice with Aboriginal communities.

• Social work supervisors need to be able to use an effective cultural supervision model to support Aboriginal staff in Yarn Up Time.

     

Creating Cultural Safety as an Aboriginal Teacher in a Class of Non-Aboriginal University Students

ABSTRACT

Creating a culturally safe learning environment is critical for Aboriginal teachers in universities. This paper explores my experience as a new lecturer convening an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social work course at an Australian university. As an Aboriginal woman teaching to a large class of non-Aboriginal students, establishing cultural safety became a priority early on. Through reflecting on my journey from feeling vulnerable at the beginning of the course, to developing a safe and collaborative learning and teaching experience, this paper presents the rare perspective of an Aboriginal academic in the teaching space, and offers practical ways to develop cultural safety in university classrooms.

IMPLICATIONS

• Aboriginal social work teaching academics need to feel culturally safe in the classroom setting to sustain them in their role.

• Engaging non-Aboriginal students to feel safe through collaborative learning enhances the learning and teaching experience for everyone and contributes to cultural safety for Aboriginal academics.

• Aboriginal academics teaching Aboriginal-specific content risk being traumatised through intensive and consistent exposure to traumatic content that may be personal to them.

• Universities need to provide practical support to new teaching academics to best equip and prepare them for the role.

     

The Gudaga Research Program: A Case Study in Undertaking Research with an Urban Aboriginal Community

This paper presents the Gudaga Research Program as a case study describing the practice principles used to implement a successful research partnership with an urban Aboriginal community in south-western Sydney. This is one of few papers that address research issues unique to working with urban Aboriginal communities, in which the Aboriginal culture of the community is not homogenous. The authors argue that the relationships between the researchers and key community members and research participants underpin the research success. Throughout, the authors show that ongoing processes to nurture and reaffirm these relationships are important and require ongoing investment. A proposed practice framework demonstrates the relationship between knowledge and understanding of Aboriginal history and culture, the underpinning values including trust, respect, and reciprocity, and shared skills and communication. Examples of how these were built into the research are provided. These are important skills that have application beyond the research process.     

Bonding and attachment of Australian Aboriginal children

In New South Wales, Australia, there is an increasing emphasis in the children's court on bonding and attachment assessments to determine whether or not a child remains with their carers. Aboriginal children and young people are over nine times more likely than other children and young people to be in out‐of‐home care. There is a paucity of information on culturally appropriate assessments of Aboriginal children in relation to bonding and attachment. Most assessments on the Australian indigenous families are based on the dominant Australian community's perception of what constitutes competent parenting. The question arises as to whether we are making psychologically and ethically sound decisions about whether or not a child remains with their Aboriginal carers based on evidence that is culturally appropriate for Western families but culturally inappropriate for the indigenous families. It is argued that the core hypotheses of attachment theory such as caregiver sensitivity, competence and secure base have to be based on the Australian Aboriginal people's cultural values. The aims of this paper are to explore the current practice on the bonding and attachment assessment of Aboriginal children using a dynamic eco‐systemic approach in the assessment of bonding and attachment of the indigenous people, with an emphasis on the historical, cultural and spiritual contexts. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Maboo wirriya,be healthy: Community-directed development of an evidence-based diabetes prevention program for young Aboriginal people in a remote Australian town

Supporting healthy lifestyle behaviours is a key aspect of preventing type 2 diabetes which disproportionately affects disadvantaged groups from a younger age. Formative participatory research was undertaken to design a program for young Aboriginal people in a remote town in North West Australia with a high level of health needs and relatively few prevention initiatives. Focus groups and advisory discussions with Aboriginal community members were used to determine the nature of the program. The need for a comprehensive program was consistently expressed and limited healthy lifestyle knowledge and difficulties with healthy eating influenced by food environments were noted to be important. With guidance from the Derby Aboriginal Health Service, findings were integrated with previous international research evidence to develop a program tailored to local Aboriginal people aged 15–25 years and refine it after piloting. This 8-session program, ‘Maboo wirriya, be healthy’ involved an education component consistent with the US Diabetes Prevention Program and practical activities including group exercise. Changes to program structure and documentation were made after piloting for future use. The community-directed approach used in this study is vital to ensure relevance of localised chronic disease prevention programs in a range of settings.     

Agency and structure in the life-world of Aboriginal children in Central Australia

This paper offers ethnographic observations on the place of “agency” in the lives of Aboriginal children in Central Australia. The focus is on children's play and adult-child interaction in the remote community of Ernabella, the oldest settlement in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands, northern South Australia. The circumstance of Aboriginal children in remote areas is introduced as a contrasting picture: on the one hand, the life of Aboriginal families is shaped by their marginalised socio-economic position and dependency on the state, which has become especially evident in the recently intensified efforts by the government to “mainstream” Aboriginal communities deemed in “social chaos” in order to regulate and thereby improve children's lives; on the other there is the social fact that children enjoy a comparatively high level of autonomy within the Aboriginal domain. The much-observed “freedom” from parental discipline, however, does not simply mean that children assert their will without regard for certain social rules. Rather, it is suggested that it is precisely the relatively low level of direct instruction and reprimand by adults that fosters children's ability to pattern their behaviour in relation to one another and to structure their social world and understandings according to the meanings that they co-create. Agency of this kind often occurs through imaginative play and spontaneously. This paper does not address policy issues directly. However, it is relevant as a background paper on Aboriginal children's lives that contributes to the understanding and recognition of existing social capacities outside institutional settings.     

A Child Welfare Course for Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal Students: Pedagogical and Technical Challenges

SUMMARY

This chapter describes the development of a Web-based undergraduate child welfare course for Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal learners. Rather than simply incorporate an Aboriginal perspective into Eurocentric pedagogies and course structures, the authors disrupt the dominance of Western ways of knowing in education by designing the course to situate Western knowledge as a way of knowing rather than the way of knowing and the frame from which all other perspectives are understood. In this research the authors describe the differences between Aboriginal and European thought and reveal how Web-based courses can be designed in ways that do not perpetuate Eurocentrism.     

Urban Aboriginal and First Nations perspectives on casinos and the First Nations gaming industry in Alberta,Canada

There is a surprising paucity of information about urban Aboriginal gambling behaviours and practices, considering that the urban Aboriginal community is the fastest-growing demographic group in Canada and that indigenous people have some of the highest rates of gambling and problem gambling. Interpreting the focus group findings from First Nations and urban Aboriginal participants in Alberta, this study provides insights into urban Aboriginal and rural First Nations attitudes to gambling and the perceived value of the provincial First Nations gaming industry. Although the First Nations focus groups were aware of gambling's associated positive and negative outcomes, they were generally supportive of their communities' decision to pursue casinos. The urban Aboriginal focus group, however, identified little positive about the casinos, even if its participants supported the First Nations' capacity to pursue casino development. These tensions demand policymakers' attention.     

A Black and White Model for Teaching Family Therapy: Empowerment by Degree

In this article, I describe and reflect on the rationale, development and teaching of the first university‐based post‐graduate course in family therapy delivered to Aboriginal child, family and health workers. Alongside my Cultural Consultant, Shaun Coade, and with support from key staff at the Bouverie Centre in Melbourne, I developed and delivered the first four iterations of the La Trobe University Graduate Certificate in Family Therapy to Aboriginal students and a relatively small number of non‐Aboriginal students. Since 2008, the course has been successfully completed in six Victorian locations and is currently being delivered at Shepparton and in Cooktown, Queensland. The term, ‘Black and White’ was coined by Shaun and by the Aboriginal family therapy students to describe the delivery of a family therapy curriculum that meets mainstream University requirements while being embedded in Aboriginal culture and Aboriginal wisdom. A largely unanticipated bonus was the realisation that the model of teaching also has important implications for the mainstream teaching of family therapy. After providing a brief summary of enrolment and graduation rates, the article picks up on elements of the teaching and learning that proved to be central to the successful delivery of the course.