Reflection Writing Assignment Help for Socio-cultural Factors that influence Views of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders

Question:

How have my preconceived notions about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders changed or evolved as a result of this assignment?

Answer

Shaping of personal views
Due mostly to globalisation, the modern Australian society has seen specific changes in terms of health and culture. I have been able to discover a variety of behaviours that are culturally competent independent of values, beliefs, and attitudes as a result of Australia's increased cultural diversity. The majority of these culturally sensitive procedures that I have identified are found in the ethnic groups that make up Australia's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population. I acknowledged that the Aboriginal Australians refer to their ancestral areas as "Country" and are quite particular about their identity, influenced by Clarke's (2015) point of view. These indigenous communities, who were Australia's first settlers, still have ties to the traditional and spiritual beliefs that were formerly widely held. Personally, I think that they deliberately chose to live in an excluded socioeconomic class because they are a minority group. The Torres Strait Islanders and Aboriginal people, on the other hand, have traditionally maintained a far stronger bond with their "country," or "family," in a much larger sense. This helped me understand the value and respect that these indigenous communities preserve for their culture, heritage, and ethnicity by taking part in as many aspects of modern life as they can. For instance, Aboriginal labour in Australia was the driving force behind the growth of the nation's pastoral economy (Thorpe, 2017). In light of this, I can see that, despite their historical and current contributions to Australia's economy, Aboriginal people have remained isolated from the rest of the population.

However, by maintaining their customs and ancient cultural practises, Torres Strait islanders, like the Aboriginal people, also carved out a unique niche in the environment. Instead, they hurriedly embraced a new cultural practise after abandoning the old ones. Thus, when I realised how crucial culture and ethnicity may be for a given community to extend a process of self-actualization, my personal perspective underwent a significant transformation. The situation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders is comparable to that of the Maori people of New Zealand, who also live in a similar environment. According to Harwood (2015), however, I agreed that the main distinction between the Maoris and the Australian indigenous population is that the former did not accept segregation and continued to struggle for their rights up until the Treaty of Waitangi was approved. The Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal people, on the other hand, have higher family values and a more selfless disposition. This assisted me in forming my own opinions about how one should respect their family, culture, legacy, and country.

Influence of one's own history on Aboriginal and Strait Islander people

The immoral battles that the Torres Strait Islanders and Aboriginal people had to endure in the past for the creation of their identity had a tremendous impact on my knowledge of and perspective toward these groups. According to Bach & Larson's (2017) point of view, I agreed that Aboriginal people were supposed to adopt Western lifestyles by renunciating their own customs and cultures. Additionally, the Government created an official policy in 1951 that emphasised the importance of the aforementioned assimilation approach (Aph.gov.au, 2017). I felt sympathy for indigenous people's families and was appalled to learn that some of the youngsters in those families had been subjected to heinous sinful behaviours. But what really struck me about these indigenous groups was that, despite their segregation, they never intended to give up hope for even a minute. Their active participation has helped me to understand that isolation is a problem that can be fixed in the coming years rather than a sin that has to be punished. According to Andersen, Edwards, and Wolfe (2017), Aboriginal notions were more centred on communal ownership and sharing, whereas the Torres Strait Islander people were more committed to European principles.

I find the Aboriginal people's "spirituality belief," which they refer to as "Dreaming," to be utterly fascinating. This also helped me to see that, despite being marginalised and persecuted, indigenous people have a deep regard for nature and their country. However, there is a significant discrepancy in health status between Australians and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. According to my opinion, improving the health status requires addressing the socioeconomic disparity that exists between indigenous and non-indigenous people. To maintain their place in the mainstream of society, the indigenous people in this situation must be strict in upholding their equality rights. Personally, I think that Australia's indigenous people are living more comfortably thanks to the rapidly evolving lifestyle styles and attitudes of the modern globalised globe.