How Do We Close the Aboriginal Gap?

It’s no secret that Aboriginal people are well behind in things such as health and education, but well ahead in things like crime and imprisonment. The outback town of Alice Springs is currently facing a surge of violence. I’ve always said that the Government are doing a disservice by providing endless welfare and payments, essentially infantilising Aboriginal people, treating them like eternal victims. Senator Jacinta Price recently said, “The Government want to maintain Aboriginal people on welfare, on dependence, instead of allowing them to stand on their own two feet. The Territory is a haven for service providers. They siphon off the Government just as much as everyone else. This whole structure needs to be changed. The kids that are on our street committing these crimes are kids that have been allowed to live in dysfunction, confronted with alcohol, substance abuse, highest rates of DV, and sexual abuse. These are children who need to be protected from the dysfunction. We need to stop the separatism and treat every kid like an Australian child.” Hear, hear.

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