Salvation Army Apology
The Salvation Army’s World Leader issued a public apology “to men and women who were children in the care of The Salvation Army in years past” who “suffered abuse and deprivation” as children while in the care of The Salvation Army in Australia. The apology was instigated by Care Leaver Jim Luthy, who wrote to the Salvation Army headquarters in London and led a campaign with the Care Leavers Australasia Network (CLAN).
"Took the Children Away"
Archie Roach’s classic album “Charcoal Lane” was a breakout hit, bringing his distinctive storytelling about experiences of child removal to a mainstream audience. Its centrepiece, “Took the Children Away,” was not the first song about the Stolen Generations, but it possibly had the biggest impact, making Archie Roach a household name. He won two ARIA Awards in 1991 – for Best New Talent, and Best Indigenous Release, and “Took the Children Away” was nominated for Best Breakthrough Single. “Took the Children Away” also won an International Human Rights Achievement Award.
"My Brown Skin Baby"
Bob Randall’s song “My Brown Skin Baby” has been described as “the first anthem of the Stolen Generations”. “Tjilpi” Bob Randall was a Yankunytjatjara musician, writer and leader. Aged seven he was removed from his mother and taken to Alice Springs and then Arnhem Land, far from his home. The song, which was based on his own family’s experiences, came to popular attention through the ABC’s documentary series Chequerboard, when it was featured in an episode called “My Brown Skin Baby, They Take ‘im Away.”
Women of the Sun
Women of the Sun is a four-part drama series that was aired on SBS, telling stories from Australian history from Aboriginal perspectives. In Episode 2, set in 1895, children are removed from their home by the Protector of Aborigines, separated from each other and sent to an institutional children’s home. It was one of the first dramatisations of what would come to be known as the Stolen Generations.
Link-Up Diary
This documentary film, directed by David McDougall and funded by the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies (later known as AIATSIS), follows the work of Link-Up in NSW as they reunited a family that had been separated. It tells the stories of Coral Edwards and Peter Read. It was the third in a trilogy of documentary features, following It's a Long Road Back (1981) and Lousy Little Sixpence (1983).
Lousy Little Sixpence
This was a documentary film narrated by Chicka Dixon, and made by Coral (Oomera) Edwards. It features interviews with Aboriginal people whose families were affected by separation. It was the second in a series of documentary features after It's a Long Road (1981) and before Link Up Diaries (1987).
It's a Long Road Back
Directed by Oomera (Coral) Edwards, this was the first in a series of documentary films telling the story of separation of Aboriginal children, funded by the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies (later known as AIATSIS). Others include Lousy Little Sixpence (1983) and Link-Up Diaries (1987).
SNAICC
In 1981, the first ever SNAICC Conference was held, at which a "Statement of Purpose" was formulated. Since then, through the provision of advice and activism, SNAICC has helped guide the development of policies and programs by government and non-government sector, for the achievement of better outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children.
Link-Up NSW
Link-Up NSW was the first of many Link-Up services established by and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who had been directly affected by past policies and practices of child removal. They focus particularly on family tracing and helping families to reunite. Link-Up organisations and programs have subsequently been established in each State and Territory around Australia, except the Australian Capital Territory and Tasmania. Coral Edwards and Peter Read were instrumental in Link-Up’s establishment.
Reference: Peter Read, 2020, “‘Like being born all over again’: the establishment of Link Up”, in A Rape of the Soul so Profound: The Return of the Stolen Generation, Routledge: Abingdon, Oxon.
CLAN
The Care Leavers' Australasia Network (CLAN) was founded in July 2000, to be a membership organisation for people who grew up in out-of-home care. It has led many campaigns and protests aimed at achieving justice for its members, and holds an enormous repository of documents relating to out-of-home care at its museum based in Geelong, Victoria.