ABSTRACT
The policy of assimilation, which set out to deal with the Aboriginal problem in 1940, was grounded in a secular discourse. The forms of control exercised by the Aborigines Welfare Board, which superseded the Aborigines Protection Board, closely approximated those of a total institution or carceral. According to the Public Service Board report, 'the necessity for close supervision of all such Aborigines' was crucial in overcoming the Aboriginal problem. Racist discourse became increasingly embedded in notions of environmental deprivation and attempts were made to 'civilise' Aborigines into a superior culture and society. Most discourse in the 1950s and 1960s emphasised the socio-cultural dimensions of the New South Wales Aborigines' 'plight'. Aboriginally was assessed in relation to traditional culture and, implicitly, it was assumed that detribalisation constituted a one-way process of cultural assimilation. The Struggle for Social Meaning The immediate effects of the assimilation policy on the Dhan-gadi were to intensify the experience of racism, to heighten their awareness of inequality and discrimination.
