This is a vote that is too important to be let fail. Yet you would be an optimist – despite the good support it is getting in the opinion polls – if you rated its prospects at 50-50
The ten-year National Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children is proposing to align with Closing the Gap to address First Nations violence. This could work, but there are limitations.
There has been a global shift to declare racism a public health crisis. But we need to drill deeper to understand racism, rethink health data and listen to lived experience.
The Morrison government has claimed it has delivered on its commitment to co-design an Indigenous Voice, but the parliamentary term will end without any such Voice being legislated or in place.
There have been many barriers for Aboriginal communities to access the vaccine during the pandemic. Despite this, communities are taking the lead in ensuring everyone gets vaccinated.
There is a contradiction between the New South Wales government’s plan for Closing the Gap and its persecution of Aboriginal people who want to maintain their saltwater culture.
Mass unemployment is not a result of people choosing to remain on welfare. Attempts to close the “employment gap” ignore the real cause: unemployment is structural, not behavioural.
The Morrison government will provide $378.6 million for a new redress scheme for Stolen Generation survivors as part of more than $1 billion for its Closing the Gap implementation plan.
The Closing the Gap dashboard includes data on the 17 socioeconomic targets in the national agreement. But this information isn’t enough on its own to bring real change.
The recently announced $250 million NSW budget boost for housing for Aboriginal people, is much-needed. It’s critical this well-intentioned investment does not repeat the mistakes of the past.
Despite the disproportionate numbers of Aboriginal people in prisons, there are near to no cultural protocols in place, and chronic illness is often not addressed.
A large study shows preschool benefits Aboriginal children’s development more than childcare or being taken care of at home. But the benefits of preschool are not as large as for non-Aboriginal kids.
The tertiary qualifications target requires higher education providers, schools and communities to work together. But higher education can also help close the gap in the other target areas.
Strong language and culture is listed among the fresh Closing the Gap targets. But, as the latest research on speakers and learners shows, language is fundamental to well-being across the board.
The latest Closing the Gap agreement has been billed as ‘historic’ and ‘practical’. But the fine print is vague and the targets lack ambition. Meanwhile, one key word is missing completely.
The new closing the gap targets are ambitious, especially in the area of early childhood education. But this doesn’t mean they can’t be met, with the right approach.
Director Monash Indigenous Studies Centre, CI ARC Centre of Excellence for the Elimination of Violence against Women (CEVAW), School of Philosophical, Historical & International Studies (SOPHIS), School of Social Sciences (SOSS), Faculty of Arts, Monash University