ABSTRACT

This chapter considers the idea of ‘unintended consequences’ as they relate to the removal of children and young people from their homes and their placement in welfare and education institutions. It discusses the apologist view that the abuse and neglect of young people while in care was an unfortunate and unintended consequence of policies directed towards securing the health and well-being of certain groups of young people. The removal of indigenous children from their families was a clear and deliberate strategy directed towards achieving cultural genocide, assimilation and land tenure. For ‘poor white’ children the national hygiene objective ensured special attention was given to problems associated with the working class — namely, low intelligence, immorality, inherent criminality and comparable pathologies. The idea of policy as rational action ignores the creative or generative role of experts in discovering the problem, and it neglects the contingency of policy.