Introduction and Context

Introduction and Context

Indigenous Aboriginals population in Australia has a history of being subjected to discrimination. This discrimination varies across the parts of the Australia resulting in severe adverse effects on a community as a whole with respect to their identity, future development and progress. Over representation of Indigenous aboriginals has been the long-standing issue. This is evident by the Report of Australian Bureau of Statistics (2020) which reveal stark figures that Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islander people comprise 3% of the Australian population but constitute 29% of the adult prison population. Similarly, young aboriginals comprise 6% of the Australian population but form 48% of Youth prison Population. These disproportionate figure reveals the shortcomings of the criminal justice system in bringing reforms to the Aboriginals community and establish their trust and confidence in the system. The issue is graver than it appears as it is representing the state of continued inequality, failure of international obligation relating to fairness, oppression and empowerment. The problem is multi-faceted, the over-representation is prisons of which is just the intermediate aspect. It begins with apprehension of the peoples, their engagement in illegal activities induced by systematic inequality, racial profiling, bias, under-representation in courts, and difficulty in fusing the prisoners back to the society with social-stigma and systems apathy permanently attached to the stature of such persons. With young population it brings uncertainty and even more opportunities to be subjected to systematic oppression regarding their career, getting back to normal life and not being held in the systems loop.

Part 2

Even if the overrepresentation of Indigenous people in jail does not currently garner the same amount of political or public attention as it formerly did, it is nevertheless tragic. The manner inthat Indigenous Australians is caught in an unending cycle of crime, arrest, and incarceration throughoutseveral generations is very unsettling (Biles, 1992). Following causes can be attributed as the significant contributors of the over-representation.

Systematic Racism

Systemic racism refers to the unequal effects of laws, policies, or practices rather than whether or not specific individuals have racist beliefs. Alternatively, rather than focusing on intentions, systemic racism maybe judged by outcomes and results to some extent (Blagg et. al 2005, p.12). Numerous studies have found correlations between Aboriginal people's socioeconomic status and the severity of their criminal activity.The significance of consideringthe relationships between offending levels (as shown by jail data) and employment and educational disadvantage has also been emphasized inresearch by the Australian Institute of Criminology (Walker & McDonald 1995).It is stated that the primary cause of why crime is such an issue in Aboriginal communities is the absence of jobs, education, and other possibilities, which is linked to social problems like crime, unemployment, and income inequality.According to the authors, socialinitiatives targeted at enhancing these circumstancesare expected to have a major impact on lowering theimprisonment rate (Morgan et. al 2005). The disadvantage of Aboriginal people is sustained through systematic discrimination and institutional racism. According to the Reconciliation Australia Barometer poll, 46% of Aboriginal Australiansencountered racial prejudicesix months before the survey. (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2016). 37 percent of Aboriginal Victorians believed they had received unjust treatmentthe previous year simply because they were Aboriginal (Aboriginals Affairs Report, 2017)

Racial Bias

According to research, racialprejudice may be a major factor in theoverrepresentation of Aboriginal people in the Australian criminal justice system. Even after adjusting for criteria including past criminal history, age, and gender, a 2018 study indicated that Aboriginal individuals were more likely than non-Aboriginal persons to be denied bail and get jail terms (Weatherburn & Ramsey 2018). According to research, evenwhen they have identical traits and crimes, non-Aboriginal persons have a greater probability of beingaccused, detained, and sentenced to jail (Larsen & Bartels, 2019).

Hostile policing: The police show overtly discriminative, hostile, and aggression which increases the likelihood of arrest even when no offence is manifest (Broadhurst, 1997).

Racial profiling is one element of this excessive policing. According to research, police in Australia are more prone to view Indigenous people as threats and use force against them (Cunneen 2016b).

Underlying issues

Unemployment: Attheir arrest, 50% of first-time offenders were jobless. The unemployment rate for Aboriginal people is 14%, which is higher than the rate for non-Aboriginal people and considerably higher for the population of Aboriginal young (Australian Bureau of Statistics 2017).

Cultural and language Barriers Many Aboriginal speak English as their second language. According to Australian Institute of Criminology (2019) aboriginal community are less likely to represent themselves in court than non-aboriginals leading to sentence, non-understanding of procedure, under-representation and lack of legal assistance. Legal experts may misinterpret Aboriginal people's behavior ifunfamiliar with their cultural practices and beliefs, which might harmthe criminal justice system. Aboriginal people, for instance, might not necessarily adhere to common Western norms orhave a distinct interpretation of the law which may lead to misconceptions thataffect the case outcome, such as being viewed as rude or uncooperative (Memmott et al 2015).

Substance abuse: Substance abuse is prevalent among Aboriginal offenders, according to reports. Compared to non-Aboriginal offenders, Aboriginal offenders are far more likely to admit to using alcohol or illicit substances at the time of the incident and to blame substance abuse for their wrongdoing (Putt, Payne and Milner 2005).

Socially Disadvantaged Background: The majority of young people who are under supervision have been discovered to live in poor socioeconomic regions. According to studies, 1 in 1,000 adolescents in higher SES regions is under supervision, compared to roughly 6 in 1,000 youth in regions with the lowest socioeconomic status (SES) (Doolan et al 2012, p. 304).

Lack of Diversion program access and referrals: According to one research, althoughAboriginal criminals in Western Australia were more likely to have substance misuse problems than non-Aboriginal offenders, they were less likely to be sent to alcohol and drug rehab programs (Cunnen 2006).

REFERENCES

Australian Bureau of Statistics 2020, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, ABS, viewed 17 April 2023, https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-peoples.

Australian Bureau of Statistics 2016, National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey, 2014-15, cat.no.4714.0 viewed 17 Apr. 23 http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4714.0

Biles, D. 1992. Aboriginal Imprisonment: A Statistical Analysis. edited by David Biles and David McDonald, p.93.

Blagg, H., Morgan, N., Cunneen, C. & Ferrante, A 2005, Systemic racism as a factor in the overrepresentation of Aboriginal people in the Victorian criminal justice system, Report to the Equal Opportunity Commission of Victoria.

Broadhurst, R 1997, Aborigines and crime in Australia Crime and Justice, vol. 21, pp. 407-468.

Cunneen, C 2006, Racism, discrimination and the over-representation of Indigenous people in the criminal justice system: Some conceptual and explanatory issues. Current issues in criminal justice, vol. 17 no. 3, pp.329-346.

Cunneen, C 2016, Racial profiling and Indigenous people, Race & Class, vol. 57 no. 2, pp. 39-55.

Cunneen, C. 2016. The Colonial Problem: An Indigenous Perspective on Crime and Injustice in Australia. New South Publishing.

Department of Premier and Cabinet 2017, Victorian Government Aboriginal Affairs Report, Victoria State Government.

Doolan, I., Najman, J.M., Mills, R., Cherney, A. and Strathearn, L 2013, Does child abuse and neglect explain the overrepresentation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people in youth detention? Findings from a birth cohort study Child abuse & neglect, vol. 37 no.5 , pp.303-309.

Joudo Larsen, J., & Bartels, L 2019, Indigenous overrepresentation in the Australian criminal justice system: Causes, consequences, and solutions Australian & New Zealand Journal of Criminology, vol. 52 no. 3, pp. 237-251.

Memmott, P., Stacy, R., Chambers, C., Keys, C., & Hudson, J. N 2015, Indigenous cultural awareness training for legal professionals in Western Australia: Challenges and lessons learned Australian Indigenous Law Review, vol.19, no. 1, pp. 88-101.

Phelan, M 2019, Crime & justice research 2019. Special reports . Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology. viewed on 17 Apr. 23 https://www.aic.gov.au/publications/special/special-0Putt, J., Payne, J. and Milner, L 2005, Indigenous male offending and substance abuse. Drugs, vol. 1 no. 9, p.3.

Walker, J. and McDonald, D.N 1995. The over-representation of Indigenous people in custody in Australia Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology. p. 2

Weatherburn, D.J. and Ramsey, S 2018, Offending over the life course: Contact with the NSW criminal justice system between age 10 and age 33 Sydney, Australia: NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research.

CULT1024 Introduction to Criminal Justice Assessment 3 Project

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Introduction and Context

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