Kids having kids

You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to work out that these indicators would be more perceptible in discrete Indigenous communities because of our statistical standing as the most marginalised group in the nation.

Nothing much changes from one national survey to the next. Every five years, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, it is consistently identified that Indigenous people are occupying the lowest rung of the ladder on all social indicators. So it stands to reason that there will be high numbers of family households that do not have both parents around, and if so, one or both of them will be unemployed or be engaged in casual employment.

There is also a high likelihood that overcrowding, alcoholism, substance abuse, and neglect is or has been apparent during the children’s formative years for many families.

But do these ill-fated circumstances excuse negligent parents of their responsibility to provide the ultimate protection for their underage children from older predators, or from unhealthy relationships with children of similar age?

I offer an emphatic no to the above question and in turn question whether negligent parents are indeed fit to be the legal guardians of their children. If counselling is the answer to concerns about child rearing practices or financial management, then pressure needs to be placed on the government to provide these critical services as a matter of urgency to protect the protectors of our future generations.

I lived in a fringe camp with 300 displaced traditional owners from disparate tribes on the outskirts of a rural community when I was young, but my parents didn’t use our impoverished environment as an excuse not to provide love, care and security at all times. Today my wife Rhonda and I err on the side of caution on all matters concerning our children.

There have been many occasions when I’ve offended associates from Indigenous organisations who enquire about staying at my house when in town on business - aware that I have spare rooms to take in guests - because I choose not to take unnecessary risks with a young son and daughter under the same roof.

Now that may sound alarmist from someone who grew up in a community where, in the past, caring and sharing was a redeeming feature of Indigenous families. But with the arrival of the new millennium, a plethora of new social ills have also permeated Indigenous communities that weren’t apparent in previous generations, for example, stress, mental illness and so on.

I argue that it is impossible to know if the person you meet - in the controlled environment of a community forum where everyone is on their best behaviour, who has a calm demeanour, is clean shaven and well groomed - has the darkest secrets of past associations with underage children.

It’s best to be safe than sorry. If you offend people, then sobeit. At least in the final analysis you won’t be burdened in years to come for making a grave error of judgment by allowing a complete stranger into your house overnight - especially if during the night he wanders into your child’s room.

Rhonda and I don’t engage in social drinking nor do we entertain any form of gambling or consumption of illicit drugs. Our son Stephen is now 16, and daughter Jayde is 13, and at all times, day and night, we are aware of their location and the friends they are with.

When our children go to a school social, we drop them off and pick them up at a pre-arranged time and place immediately after the event. And the same rules apply when they venture into town to do shopping or attend the cinema with friends; Rhonda and I are there at our pre-arranged time and have an expectation that they will not be a minute late when our car pulls up.