Bringing Them Home in Australian Life

In 1997, the Bringing Them Home report into Aboriginal child separation was released. Shocking many Australians, the “truth” of its history was soon engulfed in a heated public controversy. Yet for all its impact, the report contained no new historical findings. This thesis suggests that to understand that impact, and the controversy, we need to look beyond the report’s findings to consider how its story was told. Given the current emphasis on “truth telling” as a means to address difficult pasts, Bringing Them Home offers a case study in the consequences of choices made about how to represent the past.