MEDIA RELEASE: National Aboriginal Social Survey shows things not as bad as vested interest groups make out - The Centre for Independent Studies
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MEDIA RELEASE: National Aboriginal Social Survey shows things not as bad as vested interest groups make out

cis logo 640x360The latest National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey released today indicates most Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are satisfied with their life, with more than half rating their life satisfaction as 8 out of 10 or better.

“This is a different picture of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders than the one generally portrayed in the media and by special interest groups,” says Centre for Independent Studies Research Fellow and Indigenous Research Program Manager Sara Hudson.

Recent articles in the media have played on the disadvantage experienced by remote Indigenous Australians, but the survey shows living conditions are slowly improving for Indigenous Australians. For instance, the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living overcrowded dwellings has decreased from 25% in 2008 to 18% in 2014.

“Rather than things getting worse for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in remote areas as some commentators proclaim, 31% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people felt their community was a better place to live compared to the previous 12 months, 49% said it was the same and only 16% felt it was worse.

“Education levels are also increasing, with the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people completing year 12 or equivalent rising from 20% in 2008 to 26% in 2014.

“The proportion of Indigenous people with non-school qualifications also increased from 32% in 2008 to 47% in 2014.

“The stereotyping of all Indigenous people as disadvantaged, does no one any favours.

“Many Indigenous people have unfortunately internalised negative perceptions of what it means to be Indigenous, and see successful, well-educated and Indigenous as mutually exclusive terms. “

“Rather than schools being places where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are forced to assimilate and ‘give up their culture’ as some people argue, the survey found that the majority of Indigenous students (63%) were now learning about their culture in schools.”

“One has to question why certain interest groups and people are so determined to promulgate the myth that things are getting worse for Indigenous Australians, when they are actually getting better,” Ms Hudson says.

Sara Hudson is a Research Fellow and Manager of the Indigenous Research Program at the Centre for Independent Studies