The term 'Aboriginal problem' is common in Australia. It refers to the squalor, alcoholism, lack of education and crime associated with the original inhabitants of this, the world's oldest continent.
Of course, there weren't any 'problems' until murderous white people showed up for good in 1788.
Today, the new Prime Minister of Australia said sorry to the Aboriginal people of Australia for over 200 years of wrongs. This may seem a trifle to outsiders, as a 5-letter word does nothing to erase generations decimated by sanctioned neglect. For Aboriginal elders, however, it is a word they've longed to hear and a day of healing for the tattered remnants of the Stolen Generations.
Sadly, many Australians view an apology as a personal affront, their beer-soaked brains unable to separate accountability for 200 years of governmental indifference from the individual actions of citizens. "But I haven't done anything to those lazy, drunken Aboriginals!" pollutes online comment sections and letters to the editor. The former Prime Minister John 'Cheney Lite' Howard cemented his appeal among Queensland rednecks and denyers of history by NOT using the word 'sorry' over the course of his 11-year reign. Australians are a decent lot, however, and Howard has already been shunted to a darkened drawer of history most Aussies hope never sees light again.
Today, Kevin Rudd drove in a sharp, shiny nail to keep it shut.
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