Aboriginal Protection Act 1869
Well sweetheart, a long long time ago in 1869, there was a law called the Aboriginal Protection Act. This law said that the government needed to "protect" Aboriginal people in Australia. But what "protection" meant back then was not very good for the Aboriginal people.
Under this law, Aboriginal people had to ask the government for permission to travel, marry, or even work. They were not allowed to speak their own language or practice their own culture. Aboriginal children were taken away from their families and put into schools where they were punished for doing anything that was seen as "too Aboriginal".
This law made it very hard for Aboriginal people to live their lives the way they wanted to. Many were hurt and felt like they were being treated unfairly. It wasn't until many years later that the government realized how wrong this law was and started to change it to give more rights and respect to Aboriginal people.
Under this law, Aboriginal people had to ask the government for permission to travel, marry, or even work. They were not allowed to speak their own language or practice their own culture. Aboriginal children were taken away from their families and put into schools where they were punished for doing anything that was seen as "too Aboriginal".
This law made it very hard for Aboriginal people to live their lives the way they wanted to. Many were hurt and felt like they were being treated unfairly. It wasn't until many years later that the government realized how wrong this law was and started to change it to give more rights and respect to Aboriginal people.