Review of Official Unit 3 Texts

11/03/2024 11:12 AM

Title of text and publisher

name/author's name
The website article "Share Our Pride" 1. In your own words, explain the concept of 'country' in the context of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders'
published by Reconciliation Australia communities:
https://www.shareourpride.org.au/sections/first- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are connected to "Country" through ancestry and their origin of clans
australians/index.html
and language groups. They have a powerful sense of belonging to their country that they have no desire of owning
https://www.shareourpride.org.au/sections/our- other countries. Country is not just a place, it means homeland to them. Their Country is linked to the people both
culture/index.html
spiritually and physically, as they contain deep meaning and involves art, stories, songs and dance of the Indigenous
people.

2. How does the concept of 'Dreaming' or 'Dreamtime' contribute to the understanding of Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander identity, and how is it passed down through generations?
Dreaming is more than a mythical past; it prescribes our connection as Aboriginal people with the spiritual essence
of everything around us and beyond us. The Dreaming tells about the creation of the world by ancestor spirits that
came from the earth and sky to create landforms for all life. ‘Dreaming’ or ‘Dreamtime’ are English words that
describe a rich Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander concept. They pass it on to each new generation through stories,
songs, dances, and art.

3. What is the significance of preserving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages, and how does
language contribute to cultural identity?
Language identifies who they are and where they come from. They use the languages they speak to express all their
feelings and knowledge. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages hold a unique and rich part of Australian
heritage. Language contribute to cultural identity as their history pass down orally.

The document "Reconciliation In your own words, explain what happened on 27 May 1967.
Efforts: 27 May 1967 Referendum" On 27th May, the Australian Government held a referendum on whether to include the Aboriginal and Torres Strait
published by Reconciliation Australia Islander people in the census and more than 90% of Australian voters chose ‘Yes’.
W6L2- Reconciliation Efforts 27 May Referendum
Student's Worksheet Why do you think the 1967 Referendum was considered "a momentous turning point in Australian history"?
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait people have their own law made by Australian government and have the right as other
Australians.

When the First Fleet arrived in January 1788, what did Great Britain do?
The British Government declared the continent was terra nullius - empty land or land that belongs to nobody.

Under the Australian Constitution which took effect on 1 January 1901, how were the Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander peoples treated?
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples were treated as foreigners in their own land.

List three aspects of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders' lives that were controlled by state governments
before 1967:
• Vote in state elections
• Marry whomever they want
• Be the legal guardian of their own children

Following the 1967 Referendum, state any three changes that benefit the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders'
communities:
A) The introduction of "positive discrimination"

The introduction of “positive discrimination” is a method of making things right with the
disadvantages and discrimination that was experienced by the Aboriginals in the past. Through W.C.
Wentworth’s programs, the needs of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were achieved.
A) The Council for Aboriginal Affairs was established and the enactment of a number of legislation,
Aboriginal and Torres Strait islanders act 1975

C) The gradual development of a new administrative and practical definition of "Aboriginality"

A slow and steady change of a fresh administrative and functional interpretation of “aboriginality”
which helps with self-identification not just mainly based on someone’s DNA or genetic

Explain, in your own words, the most significant outcome of the 1967 referendum.
The most significant outcome of the 1967 referendum was that it provided the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
people a symbol of recognition.

The document "Reconciliation The Mabo decision was a legal case held in 3 June 1992. The Mabo decision was named after Eddie Mabo, the
Efforts: The Mabo Decision" man who challenged the Australian legal system and fought for recognition for the rights of the Aboriginal and
published by Reconciliation Australia Torres Straits Islander people as the traditional owners of the land. (Mabo case ran for 10 years)
W6L2- Reconciliation Efforts Mabo Decision Student's
Worksheet

The memoir "Dear Australia" written

by Don Bemrose
"Please forgive me" section:
How does Bemrose address the concept of reconciliation in Australia?
Dear
Australia b…

"Thank you" section:

How does the author express his gratitude in the excerpt?

"Australia I love you" section:

What aspects of Australia does the author express love for in the excerpt?

What message does Bemrose convey about his Aboriginal identity?

The memoir "Cronulla to Papuya" 1. Compare and contrast the narrator's experiences in Papunya with their experiences growing up in Cronulla.
written by Marlee Silva
[Reading] W7L2: Growing Up Aboriginal in Australia:
‘Cronulla to Papunya’ by Marlee Silva (2018)
2. Consider the impact of the narrator's volunteering experience in Papunya on their understanding of identity.
How does this experience challenge their previous beliefs and assumptions?

The newspaper article "We Make Lan Vo, 1981, Ho Chi Minh City
Australia, We Are All Australians" I grew up in Vietnam and came to Australia on a boat with 47 people. I was on a boat for four days and [because I was
written by Neha Kale/published by pregnant] it was very scary. I was in Thailand for eight and a half months and then we flew to Sydney. We lived in
The Guardian Guilford, then in Auburn and I cooked for three men and looked after three boys for $20 each. Back then, rent was only
https://www.theguardian.com/australia- $65 a week. I learned how to use a sewing machine and worked day and night. The government gave us blankets and a
news/2019/aug/05/stories-of-home-and-homeland-
we-make-australia-we-are-all-australian
bed, and we were happy.

After I bought my first house, I bought 12 machines, then 18 machines and after that I had machines [all around my]
living room and my business grew and grew. I started my business in 1983 under my name, Lan Vo. Then I rented the
factory, although my ex-husband said, “if you rent a factory I’ll leave you and go to America.” So, I did everything by
myself. I bought this business [Mimosa Fashions, a wholesaler and retailer of watches and custom jewellery] in 1987.

First it was clothing that I designed myself, although I couldn’t draw. When I started selling wedding dresses, I did well.
Sometimes, I worked 23 hours and slept only one hour. But that is why I have money right now. I also had to send
money back to my country, to my parents. Then, when my sister and brother came from Vietnam and Singapore, I
[supported them].

Thanks to God, I’ve had a beautiful life. I go back to Vietnam every year, but I love Australia, it accepts me. I [had to]
come here for my children. My country is hard, because it is new but [in Australia] it doesn’t matter who you are.
When we lived in Thailand, it was very difficult because I was pregnant and didn’t have enough food. But it made me
more determined. [In the future] I hope my son and daughter and my grandchildren do well. And right now, business is
good — I have customers who’ve come back to me for 32 years.

Hazem Sedda, 2003, Jeet

I’m from a village [Jeet near the city of Nablus] in Palestine. Since we were young, my dad has always done all the hard
work for us. I promised him that when I came to Australia, I wasn’t going to let him work. From the first day I arrived, I
went to his shop [Redfern Convenience Store on Redfern Street] and learned how to do things. He realised that I could
run the shop myself. I told him he could retire when he was 43.

From the age of 17, I was sitting in the shop for 18 hours a day for seven years straight. Redfern between 2000 and
2003 was tough. Seeing people being bashed and shops being robbed was normal, but Palestine was worse. Customers
that would come in and want me [to go out] and coming to a new country, I wanted to discover it. [I felt like] I wasn’t
living the life that I was supposed to be living in Australia. I also studied aviation but quit because didn’t want to be far
away from my family. Middle Eastern countries don’t have Centrelink – when parents grow old, they are dependent on
their kids. My sisters and I grew up believing that Mum and Dad are number one. In Australia, the government looks
after parents but [my parents] are mine. Making the business successful was about looking after them.

In Australia, Dad started waving to people from across the road. They looked at him strangely, but now, customers
come in to see me and say hello. I think immigrants are a big part of the community and, for the hard work we do, we
don’t get the respect we deserve. But even if we work two times harder [in Palestine], we wouldn’t get the quality of
life we have here.

My dad always told me, you are from Palestine but [coming to this country] you are Australian. Now, I work from six to
midnight, but spend all my time in Redfern, even on days off. I have known people there for a long time. Some were
kids, now they are grown-ups. They tell me stories about their trips, their future. I know them more than my friends
back home.

The website article "What's It Like 1. What is one challenge that was faced by migrants as highlighted by Yong and Yai?
Moving to Australia" written by • Culture not liked or accepted by Australians.
Margaret Burin and Matt • Leaving behind part of their culture.
Liddy/published by ABC News • Stereotyped people that often gets into trouble with the law.
'What’s it like moving to Australia?' by ABC News

2. What is one benefit migrants get to enjoy in Australia as highlighted by Yong and Yai?
• They get to meet different people and make new Australian friends
• Australia offers better education
• Australia provides a lot of new opportunities

3. According to the text, what are the solutions that Yong and Yai proposed that would have helped migrants
integrate into Australia society better?
• They should leave part of their culture behind.
• Education is one of the key factors to help young migrants fit in. Their parents should also be involved in this
process even if they haven’t been educated themselves.

Not long after Yong first moved to Australia, he saw a 14-year-old boy on the side of the road. It was raining heavily
and the boy had just missed his bus. Yong didn’t know the boy, but out of kindness he pulled over and offered him a
lift to school. Two days later, the boy’s father angrily confronted Yong, asking what he was thinking. In trying to be
kind, Yong found he was breaking the norms of Australian culture.

Yai: “In our culture, not having eye contact is seen as being respectful and here in the Australian society is seen as
either being disrespectful, shifty or you’re hiding something.”

Yai: “I think it’s the responsibility of both the newly arrived people to try and understand the Australian way of life …
and it’s also the responsibility of the Australian community to try and understand the newly arrived community’s
culture … and to try to find a positive way to find a middle ground.”

Yong: “[Dowry] used to be security and it’s also a sense of appreciation — to pay thanks to the family. Women are
considered as the heart of the house, the heart of the family ... She would leave her family, it was once a way of
paying for that void, paying dowry in place of her.
“Now that has a problem — when someone pays dowry it … subconsciously will make you feel like you own
somebody. Because you’ve paid. You look more like a commodity than a companion.

“I think we need to understand each individual as an individual and not as a community. Because I am not South
Sudanese community, I am Yai, part of South Sudanese community.”

Yai: “I feel that I’m constantly having to wear two different hats, like I have to be one person when I’m around my
Australian friends and then I have to be somebody else when I’m around my South Sudanese friends. So we’re
constantly having to juggle things because the two cultures contradict themselves … We just have to assess it
because we know that culture changes and evolves.”

Texts with comprehension questions that would be

assigned as homework for WEEK 11

The booklet "Life in Australia" 1. What are the 7 Australian values listed in the document?
published by Australian Department •
of Home Affairs
•
•
•
•
•
•

2. Explain the concept of a 'fair go' by listing the four aspects it embraces:
•
•
•
•

3. Do you think it is fair for Australia to make English as the official language of the country given its diverse
population? Explain your stance.

The memoir "Beat to a Different 1. What were the challenges that the author had to deal with?
Drum"

2. How does Simon Tong's narrative in "The Beat of A Different Drum" explore the intersection of cultural heritage
and personal identity?