Ethnocentrically-Induced Conflict (Brits vs. Natives)

The altercations that occurred between the British and the Aboriginals of Australia were fundamentally caused by the ethnocentrism and bias supported by the colonists. As much as it is said that the first encounter between both populations was devoid of violence, (and full of dancing and excitement) : the culture of the natives was still viewed as primitive and savage. The first impression is that they were a passive and unsophisticated race. The British, proud of their empire, and ready to acquire more land, were focalized on their ethos and quite judgmental when it came to viewing aboriginal culture. Often, in diaries and reports written by British government officials, ‘savage’ and ‘wild’ were a recurring theme when describing the mannerisms of Australia’s indigenous people, and showed the British’s revulsion when referring to another culture. This feeling of supremacy over Australia’s ethnic population led to many struggles, like when the colonists overtook the aboriginal farming grounds and devastated the yam crops in order to grow corn, a more cherished food source in their culture. A more substantial conflict stemming from the British’s ethnocentricity was the one who’s bias spurred the Stolen Generation. Haft-cast children were taken from their homes and sent to hands to be trained to be servants and to be bred like animals, with whiter races, so as to eradicate their aborigine genes. The British could not understand the Aboriginal ethos, as it was a philosophy that greatly differed from their own, and so they labeled it as subhuman and ‘primitive’ and gained this air of superiority. The aboriginals were established as ‘uncivilized’ and ‘destructive’ individuals that needed to be ‘saved from themselves’ and ultimately eliminated. Various wars were commenced, several tribes were massacred, and the Australian natives were losing both their civilization and their presence. Ethnocentricity causes a blind spot were one can neither comprehend nor appreciate another society with varying convictions, appearance or comportment. The British referred to the Aborigines as “natives”, but not as people: they were labeled, as they weren’t considered equals to the Englishmen. The British perception alienated the native culture and chastened it, and the next epochs of hostilities and violence all ensued due to the initial actions taken by the British, who refused to acknowledge variations and were blinded by their indifference.