Bringing-Them-Home-Report-Web

assimilation. State schools were opened to Aboriginal children and Aboriginal parentswere urged to send their children to secondary schools. In many cases the children had tolive away from home to attend secondary school, often in children’s homes in Adelaide.In 1954 the Aborigines’ Protection Board began placing Indigenous children in non-Indigenous foster homes in preference to institutional care. Some of these children camefrom reserves such as Point McLeay and Point Pearce, others from the ‘shanty towns’ incountry areas and the remaining few were from traditional communities in the far northor west of the State (Gale 1968 page 8).‘The welfare’The Board’s guardianship of all Indigenous children was repealed by the AboriginalAffairs Act 1962. However, the numbers of Indigenous children being removed forreasons of lifestyle and poverty under the general child welfare law did not decrease (SAGovernment interim submission page 18).The new Department of Aboriginal Affairs favoured placement of removed childrenin hostels and institutions ‘for the development of a positive Aboriginal identity’ (SAGovernment interim submission on page 12). It was not until 1967 that Indigenouschildren were fostered with Indigenous families. In that year 157 Indigenous childrenwere in non-Indigenous foster homes, 123 in hostels or institutions, 29 with Indigenousfamilies and 6 in ‘medical facilities’ (SA Government interim submission page 18).Many were adopted by non-Aboriginal people.In 1972 the Community Welfare Act established the Department of CommunityWelfare and the separate legislation relating to Indigenous people was repealed. Despitethe policy emphasis of the department on promoting the family relationship, adisproportionate number of Indigenous children continued to be removed from theirfamilies as ‘neglected’.Professional and organisational attitudes were at times slow to change. It was still possible for anAboriginal child to be removed from his or her home because there was insufficient food in thehouse. Prevailing attitudes did not allow the provision of food, money and other materialassistance as a family support measure to help prevent the removal of children (SA Governmentinterim submission page 14).After the Federal Government took responsibility for Aboriginal affairs in 1973, theState welfare department functioned as the regional office of the federal Department ofAboriginal Affairs while retaining responsibility for providing welfare services toAboriginal people.Role of AICCAsIn 1978 the South Australian Aboriginal Child Care Agency (‘ACCA’) wasestablished ‘to have an input into issues surrounding Aboriginal child welfare and toattempt to redress the injustices that were occurring within the government welfare field’(ACCA submission 347 page 10). Of particular concern was the provision of culturallyappropriate (and preferably Indigenous) alternative care. At the same time the department