It is good to see that most voices on the debate about the welfare of Aboriginal children are all in good agreement on the need to prioritise safety. For example, the authors of a recent story on an ABC webpage stated “All children have the right to a safe, happy and emotionally supported childhood where they are nurtured and loved. This is beyond debate.” That’s great, but the article quickly progressed to mention ‘cultural needs’ (whatever that means) and went on to boldly state “Aboriginal children should be placed with Aboriginal families.” Of course no justification was given for this claim, which in some sectors has taken on the status of being self-evident and an unquestionable truth.
While many Aboriginal people in this country are doing well, there are still too many who suffer from problems that disproportionately affect the Aboriginal population as a whole. These problems need to be discussed openly, but often there is a strong censorship preventing any open discussion. This was most evident when three ‘white’ people spoke about the care of Aboriginal children on Channel 7’s Sunrise. This Sunrise segment was in response to the alleged recent rape of a two year old Aboriginal girl in Tennant Creek. I used to think that the censorship arose because it was asserted that only Aboriginal people have the necessary experience and qualifications for speaking about Aboriginal
