Bringing-Them-Home-Report-Web

25 Underlying IssuesState and Territory legislation, programs and policies in the areas of child welfare,adoption and juvenile justice are intended to provide a non-discriminatory framework forthe administration of services. In many cases, programs are designed with the objectiveof reducing the extent of contemporary removals of Indigenous children and youngpeople. In spite of this, the over-representation of Indigenous children among childrenliving separately from their families and communities, temporarily or permanently,remains high. It must be acknowledged that there are broad social, economic and culturalcauses for continuing removals.Many submissions to the Inquiry drew attention to the need for a broad approach tounderstanding the reasons behind contemporary removals of Indigenous children andyoung people (for example, ALSWA submission 127, SNAICC submission 309, NSWAboriginal Education Consultative Group (AECG) submission 362). ‘A broad anddetailed approach is necessary because some current laws, policies and practices whichinitially may not appear relevant to the terms of reference of the National Inquiry, onclose examination, are very relevant (submission 127 page 11). These include ‘health,housing, education, employment, the legacy of historical abuse, denigration and loss ofidentity, substance abuse and despair’ (submission 127 page 337).Law, policy and practice are affected by poor socio-economic conditions whichmake Indigenous children and young people more vulnerable to removal. For example,stress factors arising from socio-economic position and demography arise in welfaredepartment interventions in all families. These factors are particularly prevalent inIndigenous families. In Queensland 12% of the population receives government benefits,51% of protective services’ clients receive benefits and 62% of Aboriginal and TorresStrait Islander protective services’ clients are in receipt of benefits. In a study of stressfactors experienced by client families in Queensland a higher percentage of Indigenousclients faced stress factors in every category. The categories with the greatest disparitybetween Indigenous and non-Indigenous clients’ experiences of stress factors aresubstance abuse (68% compared with 37%), cultural dislocation (38% compared with15%), accommodation problems (40% compared with 33%) and geographical isolation(30% compared with 20%). These stress factors also affect contact with juvenile justicesystems (Queensland Government final submission page 35).It is facile and dishonest to pretend that many of our kids don’t get into trouble … Given thecircumstances they are born into, the stack of disadvantages against them, they are not doing toobadly. Any group of young people growing up in our world, with our socio-economic profile,would act up and get into strife. Lay the veneer of history, prejudice and cultural disjuncture overtheir starting point and the problem deepens (Dodson 1995 page 26).The frustration felt by Indigenous young people can be expressed in behaviours thatare destructive to the individual and the community. To understand that behaviour it isnecessary to consider the nature of the socio-economic conditions in which Indigenouspeople live. Some factors arise from cultural difference. Others are the results of