Circumstances

The Stolen Generations

Kevin Rudd delivered his apology speech on 13th of February, 2008, in the House of Representatives chamber at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia. Rudd uses the speech to deliver an official apology to the indigenous people of Australia for the mistreatment they suffered at the hands of successive governments and parliaments. The Prime Minister especially addresses the Stolen Generations, their families, and their communities.

The term “Stolen Generations” is used to refer to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children who were forcibly removed from their families, as a result of various Australian government policies, between 1910 and 1970. Rudd also references this in his speech, giving statistical data on the impact that the removal polices had on the indigenous population (ll. 124-126). The policies of separation focused mainly on children of mixed heritage (the offspring of white colonists and indigenous individuals), because it was easier for them to integrate into white society due to their lighter skin colour.

The idea behind this policy of assimilation of indigenous children into white society was fostered by the belief that the indigenous people would soon be extinct. Many of them had already died from contracting deadly viruses and from violent encounters with white settlers. The idea of indigenous extinction is also illustrated in the speech, as Rudd quotes the Northern Territory Protector of Natives (ll. 133-136). However, the quote, which includes th...