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Banjo Morton: the untold story

In 1949, after many years of being paid only in rations, Banjo Morton and seven other Alyawarra men decided they wanted proper wages for their work as stockmen and station hands at the Lake Nash cattle station in the Northern Territory. They walked off in protest. This rich media site records the history of that protest ...

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The Navigators: Baudin arrives in New Holland

Imagine the excitement of Nicolas Baudin and his scientists when they reach 'New Holland'. After seven months at sea they can finally explore this strange new land. This clip describes the thrill and the tragedy of Baudin's first days in 'New Holland'.

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Stateline TAS: Aunty Ida West: Tasmanian Aboriginal Elder, 1995

Imagine being told not to speak your own language to your family and friends. Even worse, imagine being told that your whole culture had vanished, when you know it has not. These challenges were faced by Aboriginal people in the 20th century. In this clip, discover how Aunty Ida West's background and life experiences forged ...

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Life As a Female Convict: Cascades Female Factory

The Cascades Female Factory was both a prison and a factory for female convicts in early Hobart. It was a place where convict women were forced to undertake labour in slave-like conditions to support the fledgling colony. Learn what life at the Female Factory was like for the inmates. What sort of work did the women do? ...

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Meet the Fremantle Port Hostesses

In the 1960s, Marie Novak and Pauline Noble worked for the Fremantle Port Authority as hostesses, welcoming new migrants who arrived by ship. Why were hostesses needed? How do Marie and Pauline describe their time as hostesses? Compare the migration experiences of Marie's and Pauline's families. How did their backgrounds ...

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River Valley Civilisations: Ancient Chinese civilisation

The basin of Huang He, or the Yellow River, is considered the birthplace of Ancient China. What did this ancient civilisation have in common with other ancient civilisations? New advances in science and technology are traits of a civilisation. How did iron smelting revolutionise farming for the ancient Chinese?

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Four Corners: Margaret Valadian interviewed in 1967

What is the role of interviewers who explore social issues? In this 1967 clip from Four Corners, Margaret Valadian is recognised as the first Aboriginal Australian graduate of the University of Queensland. Here, in the middle of the panel discussion she is questioned by Robert Moore about her personal and professional life.

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The House In Session, Ep 3: The Westminster system and borrowed traditions

Annabel Crabb explains the interesting traditions that the Parliament of Australia has borrowed from the parliament of Westminster in the United Kingdom. Who is Black Rod, and what is a serjeant-at-arms? What is the Mace, and why is a hood placed over it when entering the presence of the Governor-General? And why would ...

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BTN: Young drovers: reviving a proud tradition

Did you know that Aboriginal pastoral workers were the backbone of the wealthy Australian cattle industry, but that until 1968 they were never paid an equal wage? Find out what it took for these stockworkers with valuable work skills to achieve equal pay. Watch, too, how some Aboriginal students in the Roper Gulf country ...

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How did the world become interconnected?

This 10 minute video in 3 parts offers an overview of the growth of information networks through developments in the technologies of communication and transportation. Part 1 discusses how writing, inventions of paper and printing improved communication between societies and the development of transport and courier systems ...

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Life in Medieval Europe: Good and bad medicine

How sophisticated was medical practice in Medieval Europe? In this clip, learn about common forms of diagnosis and cures for ailments in the 14th century. And brace yourself for a medieval-style amputation; it's not pretty. This clip is one in a series of five.

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The Navigators: Baudin sails north to Timor

Have you ever opened an exciting gift box to find nothing that you hoped for inside? French explorer Nicolas Baudin voyages to 'New Holland' to investigate the continent. This clip explains what he was expecting to see and why he was so disappointed with what he finds in Western Australia.

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Five Australians: Charles Perkins campaigns for Aboriginal rights

Why was 1967 a turning point in the struggle for legal equality and the civil rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples? In this clip, we encounter leading Aboriginal activist Charles Perkins as he addresses a range of public meetings held to raise awareness of racial discrimination and to bring about change ...

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Four Corners: Balancing opposing views on native title

The Mabo decision of 1992 created uncertainty for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, as well as for the mining and pastoral industries. Public and 'leasehold' land was subject to native title claims. Listen to the responses of Indigenous leaders and the mining industry as the effects of the High Court decision ...

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Four Corners: Native title begins with an act of recognition

Following the recognition of native title by the High Court of Australia in June 1992, the establishment of a process for ensuring that it was awarded fairly and responsibly was needed. This process came to be enshrined in the Native Title Act of 1993. Listen as key players in the development of the Act explain its importance. ...

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The Perth Mint Starts Making Currency: The gold rush era

The gold rush of the 1890s, which started in Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie, prompted a rush of hopeful prospectors to Western Australia. Perth Mint exhibition supervisor Greg Cooke talks about the reality of life in the harsh outback with little water and no roads. Would you have risked your life to try to find your fortune ...

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Australia's first Aboriginal member of parliament

Neville Bonner became Australia's first Aboriginal parliamentarian when he was appointed to represent Queensland in the Senate in 1971. In this clip, Senator Bonner outlines some of his priorities and his response to public expectations as he prepared to take office.

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The history of the Aboriginal Tent Embassy

The Aboriginal Tent Embassy was established on the lawns of the Old Parliament House in 1972 only to be forcibly removed a few months later. Why do you think the reporter compares the protest in Canberra to events in Louisiana and Mississippi in USA? What are the protesters chanting? See if you can find out what happened ...

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How did change accelerate?

This 12 minute video is divided into two parts and presents an overview of the rapid development of the modern world. Part 1 presents reasons for the exponential growth in the world's population over the last 500 years including the development of global networks and commerce and the discovery of fossil fuel energy, which ...

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Fair and reliable reporting on Medieval Angkor

What are the dangers of relying on one historical source for an understanding of an ancient society? How important is it for historians to verify information? In this animation of one of history's most significant documents, Zhou Dugaun's 'A Record of Cambodia: the land and its People', consider the reliability of Zhou's ...