Couldn’t Be Fairer
Encyclopedia
Couldn't Be Fairer is a 1984 Australia
n documentary film
directed by Dennis O'Rourke
, which paints a disturbing portrait of aboriginal
life in Queensland
, Australia
in the 1980s. The title is from a 1983 statement regarding aboriginal people by then Premier of Queensland, Joh Bjelke-Petersen
: "We treat them the same as everyone else – couldn't be fairer."
Aboriginal activist Mick Miller
narrates and features in the film, which reveals how native Australian people are still suffering from social oppression and alcoholism. Aboriginal land rights are a central theme: Miller clearly demonstrates the contrast between modern civilization, which values land only as a resource to mined, grazed and developed, and traditional people who regard their land as sacred. Archival footage compares the original lifestyle of Australian aborigines to their current pitiful condition, and shows how European settlers attempted to "civilize" mixed blood children by taking them away from their parents and enrolling them in boarding schools.
The film ends on an optimistic note, with Miller introducing the audience to a cattle station in northern Queensland called Delta Downs, which is owned and successfully run by aboriginal people. Miller asserts that if the government would give sovereignty of the reserves back to the aboriginal people, they would be able to show the world what they are capable of achieving.
Mick Miller died in 1998.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
directed by Dennis O'Rourke
Dennis O'Rourke
Dennis O'Rourke is an Australian documentary filmmaker.- Biography :For most of his childhood, Dennis O'Rourke lived in a small country town, where his parents ran a failing business, until he was sent to a Catholic boarding school for his secondary education...
, which paints a disturbing portrait of aboriginal
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
life in Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in the 1980s. The title is from a 1983 statement regarding aboriginal people by then Premier of Queensland, Joh Bjelke-Petersen
Joh Bjelke-Petersen
Sir Johannes "Joh" Bjelke-Petersen, KCMG , was an Australian politician. He was the longest-serving and longest-lived Premier of Queensland, holding office from 1968 to 1987, a period that saw considerable economic development in the state...
: "We treat them the same as everyone else – couldn't be fairer."
Aboriginal activist Mick Miller
Mick Miller (Aboriginal statesman)
Mick Miller was a notable Aboriginal Australian activist, politician, and statesman who campaigned for most of his life seeking greater social justice, land rights, and improved life opportunities for Aboriginal Australians in North Queensland and Australia.In 1998 Queensland's Land Rights...
narrates and features in the film, which reveals how native Australian people are still suffering from social oppression and alcoholism. Aboriginal land rights are a central theme: Miller clearly demonstrates the contrast between modern civilization, which values land only as a resource to mined, grazed and developed, and traditional people who regard their land as sacred. Archival footage compares the original lifestyle of Australian aborigines to their current pitiful condition, and shows how European settlers attempted to "civilize" mixed blood children by taking them away from their parents and enrolling them in boarding schools.
The film ends on an optimistic note, with Miller introducing the audience to a cattle station in northern Queensland called Delta Downs, which is owned and successfully run by aboriginal people. Miller asserts that if the government would give sovereignty of the reserves back to the aboriginal people, they would be able to show the world what they are capable of achieving.
Mick Miller died in 1998.
External links
- Couldn't Be Fairer at CameraWork, Dennis O'Rourke's production company
- Clip 1 from Australian Screen
- Clip 2 from Australian Screen
- Clip 3 from Australian Screen