Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002)

Rabbit Proof Fence - A must see
This movie illustrated what so many people with different beliefs have had to suffer through at the hands of those who thought they knew what was best for someone they perceive as different (and wrong) and who abused the power they were given. Mr. Neville was given the task of "protecting" the Aboriginal people but in essence what he was doing was hoping to extract the Aborigine from the "half-castes", as they were called, the children of mixed parentage to make their descendants "white" again. The three girls were taken forcibly from their mother simply because they had a white father. In watching the movie, I wondered why the children had white fathers and in one telling scene, it appears that these women were treated as whores by white men and left to raise these children. In many ways it makes me ashamed and disgusted to be white when I see injustices such as these being played out.
This was a religious battle, as the girls were sent to a Catholic internment camp. Some of the girls had given up but in some scenes you see the joy in knowing that those three girls got away. They wish it had been them. They still held fast to their own heritage in spite of it and you could see the pride they felt when in reading an article, it was said that the only trace they found of the three girls was a rabbit skin. They giggled over this and you just knew that they were feeling the pride of their own heritage and background, having been raised to be hunters themselves. My favorite scene was the one where the mother, grandmother and other women of the tribe were chanting and praying to the spirits to watch over the girls.
This was an incredible movie, it touched me as a mother and as a person.

Rabbit Proof Fence
Rabbit proof fence tells the story of three half-caste girls from an Aboriginal settlement in Western Australia. In 1931 the girls were seized from their families by police who were acting according to state policy and were taken to a government compound far to the south. The three girls escaped and made a miracles journey one thousand miles through the dessert to get back home. Along this journey they followed a fence built north to south to keep the rabbits out of the fields. The girls did receive food and help from some they encountered along the way. The movie shows us about the horrible Aboriginal child removal policies in Australia during the 20th century.

In the early 1900's Australians were worried about the increase in half-caste children. They believed each half-caste to be a "menace to the future moral safety of the community". So in 1905 Australia passed a law to allow the removal of half-caste children from their homes and were to place them in Christian missions or State run institutions. The law was nothing more than an attempt by the government to rid Australia of the Aboriginal people and their beliefs. The government didn't understand the Aboriginal tribes and didn't give their ways or beliefs a chance. Sadly it took until 1970 to end this law and this movie is a reminder of the horrible things the Aboriginal children endured.

This I thought was a great movie and is well worth watching. It does make you angry when you think about the governments and global religions who try to change the ways of the indigenous people throughout the world. It is no governments or religions place to say they are better or more right then another with a different belief. We need to learn more about others beliefs and ways of life before we try to impose ours on them. We might think ours to be better but you can see from this movie our beliefs and ways of life don't always make others happy. No government or religion should stand for the mistreatment of any individual and this movie is a great example of a government's abuse of power.

Rabbit Proof Fence
Rabbit proof fence tells the story of three half-caste girls from an Aboriginal settlement in Western Australia. In 1931 the girls were seized from their families by police who were acting according to state policy and were taken to a government compound far to the south. The three girls escaped and made a miracles journey one thousand miles through the dessert to get back home. Along this journey they followed a fence built north to south to keep the rabbits out of the fields. The girls did receive food and help from some they encountered along the way. The movie shows us about the horrible Aboriginal child removal policies in Australia during the 20th century.

In the early 1900's Australians were worried about the increase in half-caste children. They believed each half-caste to be a "menace to the future moral safety of the community". So in 1905 Australia passed a law to allow the removal of half-caste children from their homes and were to place them in Christian missions or State run institutions. The law was nothing more than an attempt by the government to rid Australia of the Aboriginal people and their beliefs. The government didn't understand the Aboriginal tribes and didn't give their ways or beliefs a chance. Sadly it took until 1970 to end this law and this movie is a reminder of the horrible things the Aboriginal children endured.

This I thought was a great movie and is well worth watching. It does make you angry when you think about the governments and global religions who try to change the ways of the indigenous people throughout the world. It is no governments or religions place to say they are better or more right then another with a different belief. We need to learn more about others beliefs and ways of life before we try to impose ours on them. We might think ours to be better but you can see from this movie our beliefs and ways of life don't always make others happy. No government or religion should stand for the mistreatment of any individual and this movie is a great example of a government's abuse of power.