Spiritual Reflection
17th Anniversary of the National Apology to Australia's Stolen Generations
On 13 February 2008, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd offered a formal apology to Australia’s Stolen Generations, those Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who had been removed as children from their families and their culture.
On this date each year we remember the apology that was made to all those whose lives continue to be impacted and deeply traumatised by past government policies of forced child removal and assimilation. Although the apology could not take away the pain of the past, many felt it was a necessary first step in the healing process.
Many Elders did not believe this apology would ever happen in their lifetime and so for those who witnessed this historical event it was a moment of truth telling—official acknowledgement of what had happened to them and their stories of pain and suffering that have continued to be passed down from generation to generation. It was the recognition of what had happened to them and their families as part of the history of Australia.
‘We apologise for the laws and policies of successive Parliaments and governments that have inflicted profound grief, suffering and loss on these our fellow Australians. We apologise especially for the removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families, their communities and their country.’
— Prime Minister Kevin Rudd 2008
The journey to a national apology to the Stolen Generations began in 1995, with an inquiry into the forced separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families by past governments. The inquiry’s final report was released in 1997, it was called Bringing Them Home. It included 54 recommendations. Two of the recommendations called on all Australian governments, police forces, churches, and non-government agencies to make an apology to members of the Stolen Generations.
Dr Tom Calma, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner at the time, spoke for many when he said:
"Through one direct act, the parliament has acknowledged the existence and the impacts of past policies and practices of forcibly removing Indigenous children from their families, and by doing so has paid respect to the Stolen Generations for their suffering and their loss, and for their resilience, and ultimately, for their dignity."
As stated in the 2023-2024 Social Justice Statement, Listen, Learn, Love: The way we in the Church and society address these painful matters must change if there is to be an end to centuries of injustice. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples need to be welcomed from the margins into the centre so that they can lead the discussions about change and implementation of actions to bring about healing and justice.
We are all invited to join in walking with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people on this journey of healing. Let us as the people of God, Bishops and people together, listen with humility and love to what they have to say to us.
“The story of the Stolen Generations cannot be told without recognising the strength and resilience of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals, families and communities.”
— Bringing Them Home report
As 2025 has been declared a Year of Jubilee by Pope Francis, with the theme, “Pilgrims of Hope”, let us all join in walking alongside our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Sisters and Brothers with HOPE in our hearts. We pray for healing and reconciliation for all Australians as we journey together as pilgrims of Hope.
As Pope Francis reminds us:
“Everyone knows what it is to hope. In the heart of each person, hope dwells as the desire and expectation of good things to come, despite our not knowing what the future may bring."
Resources:
Bringing Them Home – Stories of the Stolen Generations
National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholic Council (ATSICC) Website