In 1905 an Act was created to “make provisions for the better protection and care of the Aboriginal inhabitants of Western Australia”. Along with this act came the Aborigines Department and a Chief Protector of Aborigines these were implemented in order to; promote the welfare of aboriginals, provide them with food, clothing, medicine and medical attendance, education and the general preservation and well-being of aborigines.
Before the act was created, aborigines were ruled by a police state. Aboriginal people could be moved from the district or be confined and held in reserve. The chief Protector had control over the children and could separate them from there familes. The government colluded with the employers to keep the aborigines working for a very low pay, almost “slavery”.
1944 Aborigines were allowed to become citizens, not vote, this was the so called “dog licence”. However the aborigines could have their citizenships removed if they did not “adopt the manner and habits of civilized life”. This caused separations of families across Western Australia.
Aboriginal people did not receive pensions, and most of their wages were given to a government trust fund, and when a family wanted money they would write a letter the chief protector requesting access to their funds, for food, clothing etc. On May 1st 1946 Aborigines in Pilbara went on a strike to increase wages. The strike went on for several years, the efforts of “McLeod and groups like the seaman’s union and the communist party who supported the aboriginals, aided in the success of the strike”.
The Aborigines Act of 1905 was meant to ““make provision for the better protection and care of the Aboriginal inhabitants of Western Australia”, instead it created a huge cheap labor work force of aborigine people. “They were only paid a fraction of their efforts”.
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