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Heidi Gabrys S00135390

Written Task 5: Critical Response

a) What do you understand by the term social racism?


Social racism as Dennis Foley describes is the sense of not belonging, and/or not being totally
accepted to be part of particular social groupings, as a result of misidentification. The example
Foley used was of a fair-skinned Aboriginal man seeking refuge, experiencing rejection by both
Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Australians, because of how he identified himself, was
mismatched to what was acceptable to these groups. Social racism is an appalling notion and
incredibly callous particularly to those who fall victim to it, this form of racism not only
promotes an awareness of not belonging, but also could foster self-loathing and displacement
in individuals.
b) According to Dennis Foley, why is physical appearance not a reasonable way of
determining whether or not somebody is Aboriginal?
Determining the decent of a person is not a simple matter of looking at their appearance and
making a judgement call. Denis Foley examines what it is that makes an Aboriginal person
identifiable as an Aboriginal person, one of the issues Indigenous Australians have faced is
misidentification of those who are of shared decent with Non-Indigenous people, because they
were and are mistaken as being a Non-Indigenous Australians by their appearance. Foley
surmised that identifying as being an Aboriginal person has more to do with a feeling and
sense of connection to the land, a spiritual feeling and knowing they belong, that NonIndigenous people dont necessarily feel.

c) Why is it important for people to understand the negative impacts of


stereotyping and out-dated ideas about Aboriginal identity?
Stereotyping has the connotation of making fun of or ridiculing a certain race or type of
people often not painting them in a good light. This can be very damaging to individuals and
produce the feelings of self-hatred and low self-worth. Dennis Foley discusses the results of a
study into fair-skinned Indigenous Australian children and how they were received within their
school environments. The study showed that a large majority of students were often
questioned to prove their identity as an Aboriginal person, often in humiliating situations, and
in front of their peers. This encouraged students to not identify themselves as being of
Aboriginal decent, thus losing part of who they are within their school environments. For
example five students who held ASSPA sports passes made the conscious decision of not
claiming this benefit, just to avoid the ritual humiliation they had received from their teachers,
just because they didnt fit the typical stereotype of how an Aboriginal person should look.
This type of discrimination also roots from the out-dated ideas about Aboriginal people, when
they were either classified as being White or Black and there wasnt an acceptable in1 | Page

Heidi Gabrys S00135390

Written Task 5: Critical Response

between. When in reality it is very difficult to identify an Aboriginal person based on common
stereotypes.

d) Now look back at how you answered these questions in Written Task 1. Have
your ideas changed since you answered these questions in week 2? Why do you
think this may be?
When I reflect upon how I answered these questions originally in Written Task 1, I had
answered them in a very broad and vague way because I believe that I had not really
connected with the material in a way that was meaningful to me. I was lacking the knowledge
and struggled to sympathise with how these issues effect people, because I have been
fortunate not to have experienced discrimination of any kind. Yes the article was disturbing
and still is disturbing that these kinds of things happened at all. Now that I have a better
understanding of the history behind the plights of Indigenous Australians, I felt that I was
better equipped to answer these questions the second time with more depth, knowledge,
understanding and empathy.

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