industry & reform
The
forgotten
Australians
Caring for the forgotten children
of Australia in later life.
Diana O’Neil interviewed by Conor Burke
I
’m not afraid to die, ‘cause I reckon hell
is here on Earth,” says one forgotten
Australian, her large dark eyes shining
and wet as she remembers her time
in ‘care’.
From 1947 until 1972, up to 10,000
children were forcibly sent to Australia
from the UK and Malta. This is on top of the
generations of stolen Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander children removed from their
families and put in group care homes.
It is estimated that in the 20th century
alone, 500,000 children were denied their
childhoods and put into institutions here
in Australia.
Now, as old age beckons and the
prospect of later life in an aged care
facility looms, memories of a scarred
childhood return for these forgotten
Australians, forced child migrants and
stolen generations.
As one forgotten Australian put it:
“Things happen and you’re suddenly back
at that time. I had to go to hospital a couple
of years ago and they put me in a ward
and it was like a dormitory. I freaked out
and I refused to be there. I really put on a
performance. I was instantly back in that
dormitory situation – beds and cupboards.
It was just awful.”
20 agedcareinsite.com.au
This is a common theme for those
care leavers, the mental anguish that still
lingers after years of forced feeding, poor
nutrition, forced labour and little access to
education, on top of abuse, both physical
and sexual.
“I don’t know. I’d kill myself, I think, if
I had to go in a home, because I don’t think
I could. I wouldn’t handle it,” says another
forgotten Australian.
Helping Hand is seeking solutions
to these issues, and project officer for
forgotten Australians Diana O’Neil spoke to
Aged Care Insite to discuss what providers
can do to ease transitions.
ACI: What exactly is a ‘forgotten
Australian’?
DO: Forgotten Australians are individuals
who were placed in institutional or
out-of-home care, and they categorised it
from 1901 to 1989. They were individuals
who, for a variety of reasons, were placed
in care. In addition to that, under the
category of care, you’ll also have stolen
generations and former child migrants.
But forgotten Australians were the group,
the largely Anglo group, who weren’t
placed in care as a result of race or were
forced child migrants.
Many of these Australians are now
approaching the age where they’re
potentially going into aged care or
they’re already there. How many are
we looking at?
Well, the calculation was approximately
500,000, and it was by far the most
significant group numerically. As terrible as
the experiences of the stolen generation
and child migrants were, numerically by far
the largest group is forgotten Australians,
and they are indeed an ageing cohort, so
that’s a reality.
When did aged care professionals start
to recognise that this was a group with
a specific set of issues that needed to
be addressed?
Well, to be honest, I don’t think the aged
care sector particularly picked up on this
issue, and it’s really been the advocacy
of these care leavers’ groups that have
raised it. What’s really important about
this project is that it’s a recognition that
the aged care sector does need to start
responding. It’s really been as a result
of the advocacy of these groups that
an apology has been offered by the
Commonwealth government, and that
there is recognition of the emerging needs
of this cohort.
So how did your group, Helping Hand,
get involved in this area?
Well, Helping Hand as an organisation
would have received the Commonwealth
information package that was sent out