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Contested Ground: Australian Aborigines under the British Crown
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Contested Ground: Australian Aborigines under the British Crown Paperback - 1995

by Ann McGrath (Editor)

From the publisher

Contested Ground provides a comprehensive and up to date account of the processes and experiences which shaped the lives of Aboriginal Australians from 1788 to the present.

It integrates eye-witness accounts, oral histories and historical research to present the first colony-by-colony, state by state history of Aboriginal-white relations. Contested Ground tells a story of dispossession and denial but it is also a positive account, revealing the persistent struggles of Aboriginal communities for a better future.

Clearly written and generously illustrated, this book demonstrates why Australian Aboriginal history, like the very land itself, remains contested ground.

'Both indigenous and non-indigenous Australians have a lot to learn about each other before reconciliation between the two peoples can be realised. This book will go a long way towards achieving that end.' - Paul Behrendt.

First line

TERRA nullius, or unoccupied land, was the legally endorsed premise of the British occupation of Australia.

From the rear cover

Through time he's been travelling to look for a planet to settle down as he makes the sky, the trees, the land and each different group of people - like the Chinese, the English, the Europeans and the Aborigines. Everybody has their own piece of land to live in. Then when he found his resting place he went into a very, very deep sleep. As he slept he started to dream into the future. It showed his people were very very happy living in peace, killing only what they need to live for their food. As they go along they start to use fire, to cook, to cut shapes out of trees, to carry their water and other objects. Then some of the men started to cut out big parts out of the trees to make boats to go and hunt and they were so in peace until the white people came out here. Destroying the land itself cause their land was over populated. So they sent a lot of the convicts out here to work, so they can start to build the land up, put buildings in, farming and stuff. Then they started to destroy the native people of this land. Then the Rainbow Serpent started to go into a type of nightmare dream. He sees in his dream how they destroyed a lot of animals we will never see again. As it gets closer to the 19th century they start to turn out cities, they called it the great country, the land of opportunity, for the whites, but not for the dark people of this land. We were thought of as the lowest class in this land of 'theirs'. As the spirit was still dreaming his nightmare he sees a lot of things that are going to happen soon, like drugs, alcohol, deaths in custody. He likes to see all different personalities living together as one, white going out with dark people, dark people living with whites inharmony and no racism. But the Rainbow Serpent can see this is not going to be because a lot of the people today are still destroying us in devious ways. When the spirit shall have woken you shall have a lot to answer for what you have done to us. Then you had better watch out because he is your judge and he will destroy you all in a very evil way.

Details

  • Title Contested Ground: Australian Aborigines under the British Crown
  • Author Ann McGrath (Editor)
  • Binding Paperback
  • Edition Second Impressio
  • Pages 448
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Routledge, Sydney
  • Date 1995-10-01
  • Features Bibliography
  • ISBN 9781863736466 / 1863736468
  • Weight 1.5 lbs (0.68 kg)
  • Dimensions 8.55 x 5.59 x 1.08 in (21.72 x 14.20 x 2.74 cm)
  • Themes
    • Cultural Region: Australian
    • Ethnic Orientation: Native American
  • Library of Congress Catalog Number 95228999
  • Dewey Decimal Code 994.004

About the author

Ann McGrath led the History Project of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody and is currently Director of the Centre for Community History at the University of New South Wales.

Contributors include Paul Behrendt, Peggy Brock, Richard Broome, Heather Goodall, Dawn May, Maykutenner (Vicki Matson-Green), Peter Read, Henry Reynolds and Sandy Toussaint.

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Contested Ground: Australian Aborigines under the British Crown
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Contested Ground: Australian Aborigines under the British Crown

by McGrath, Ann [Editor]

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Routledge, 1995-01-01. First Paperback Edition. Paperback. Good. 5x0x8. Minor shelf wear to binding with bumps, scuffs & creases. Light wear & soiling on edges of text block. Text and images unmarked.
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Contested Ground: Australian Aborigines under the British Crown
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

Contested Ground: Australian Aborigines under the British Crown

by Ann McGrath (Editor)

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Crows Nest, New South Wales: Allen & Unwin, 1995. Book. Very Good. Soft cover. First Edition. 140mm x 215mm. Minimal wear to covers. Spine not creased. Minor pencil impression and eraser rubbing to top corner of first page, otherwise internally clean. 415pp.
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Contested Ground.  Australian Aborigines Under the British Crown

Contested Ground. Australian Aborigines Under the British Crown

by McGrath, Ann

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Sydney: Allen & Unwin. 1995. Octavo Size [approx 14x22cm]. Very Good condition. Card covers. Illustrated with Black & White Photographs, Maps and Drawings. Robust, professional packaging and tracking provided for all parcels. 415 pages. . 1st Edition. Softcover.
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Contested Ground: Australian Aborigines Under the British Crown

Contested Ground: Australian Aborigines Under the British Crown

by Ann McGrath (ed)

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St Leonards, N.S.W., Australia: Allen & Unwin, 1995 415 pages. The cover has a little wear. The page edges are lightly marked. Books listed here are not stored at the shop. Please contact us if you want to pick up a book from Newtown.. Paperback. Very Good. Size E: 8"-9" Tall (203-228mm).
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by Ann McGrath

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Contested Ground: Australian Aborigines Under the British Crown

Contested Ground: Australian Aborigines Under the British Crown

by Ann McGrath

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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
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Paperback / softback. New. This comprehensive state-by-state history of the Aboriginal experience is made up of a series of regional Aboriginal histories. It emphasizes relations between Aborigines and the state, the impact of interventions by various governments on Aboriginal lives, crime and punishment and social control.
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Contested Ground: Australian Aborigines under the British Crown
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

Contested Ground: Australian Aborigines under the British Crown

by Ann McGrath

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ISBN 10 / ISBN 13
9781863736466 / 1863736468
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Allen & Unwin, 1996. Paperback. New. 448 pages. 8.75x5.75x1.25 inches.
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