Apr 17 2018
Servant or Slave
The documentary, Servant or Slave, is directed by Steven McGregor as it discusses the unacknowledged past of Aboriginal people in Australia. When the Australian Constitution came into effect on January 1, 1901, the original people of Australia, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, were excluded from the protection the Constitution provided and were discriminated against. In this movie the heartbreaking experiences of the Wenberg sisters- Adelaide, Valerie (Linow) and Rita, as well as Rita Wright and Violet West, are portrayed as they celebrate their pursue for justice for the crimes that were committed against them during their childhoods. This film looks at the past issues of indentured servitude that was prevalent in Australia from the late 1800s to the mid 1970s. Taken from their families as young children thousands of Indigenous girls were forced into slavery to become domesticized by the Australian government, and then soon employed as servants but denied proper wages. The picture below depicts two girls playing in a field with a car driving towards them. Little did they know that these men in this car would take them away from their families forever. It is hard to imagine that taking children away from their families was so casual to the Australian government. This documentary is a cry for justice from these Indigenous women as they hope the abusive actions against their Stolen Generation will be heard so people will never repeat the awful crimes again.
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