The importance of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander history for social work students and graduates

To know where we are going, we must know where we have been. In particular, we need to focus on how colonisation has affected our families and communities and continues to impact on our lives. We have to ask how the profession of social work has interacted and been involved with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and how our community has responded, and will continue to respond, to these interactions.
I do not discuss in detail, every historical event that has impacted Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. My intention is to provide an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social work perspective about the history and policies that have impacted Aboriginal people and, in so doing, highlight a number of important events and developments.
In order to respect Aboriginal protocols I am not in a position to write about the unique Torres Strait Islander history and culture, as I have not been raised in or near a Torres Strait Islander community. Noritta Morseu-Diop, who is a Torres Strait Islander woman, will address, in chapter 6, issues on the culture, history and social work perspectives of Torres Strait Islander people.