Moving Forward Together in Aboriginal Women's Health: - Theses ...

Moving Forward TogetherJanet Kellythe car and drove all day and all night. We went interstate where they couldn’tfind us, so they couldn’t take my baby away (Community consultations 2005)..Most Aboriginal women I have spoken with have a personal or family story ofbeing refused service in a shop, being abused by strangers as they walk down thestreet, watching their parents being demeaned by government officials, being takenaway from their families, or watching siblings being taken away. Over time webegan to question;How did it come to be like this? Why are these issues still so bad in Australiacompared to other countries like New Zealand? And what about in SouthAustralia, are Aboriginal experiences the same or different to those ofAboriginal people living interstate? (FG 1- 4 discussions)To begin addressing these questions, I have explored the different concepts ofknowledge, culture and society held by Aboriginal Traditional people and Europeanpeople and what happened when they came together. When the two groups cametogether, they had such different ways of experiencing and knowing the world, thatunderstanding, knowledge sharing and collaborative action rarely occurred. Add tothis the incoming European intention to take over other people and their land wasassured. What particularly concerns me and the women I work with, is the extent towhich this history (consciously or unconsciously) continues to permeate health careaccess, provision and experiences today.Two vastly different cultures on opposite sides of the worldAustralian Aboriginal cultureAustralian Aboriginal peoples are believed to be one of the oldest civilisations inthe world, having lived in Australia for between 40, 000 to 70, 000 years or sincethe beginning of the Dreaming (Morrissey & Fricke 2001). Across the continentAboriginal groups lived in a diverse range of locations, from lush tropicalrainforests, to mountain ranges, coastal areas, river systems, deserts and grasslands.Each Nation had varied tribal groups and each had their own unique culture andlanguage as well as general similarities with other Aboriginal peoples. Tribalboundaries were clearly identified by land forms and Dreaming stories. Trade,29