On 26 May 1997, the report of the National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from Their Families, entitled Bringing Them Home, was tabled in Parliament. The report was the result of a national inquiry that investigated the forced removal of First Nation children from their families since colonisation.

It is estimated that between 1 in 10, possibly as many as 1 in 3, First Nation children were removed from their families and communities between 1910 and the 1970s. These children were taken by the police; from their homes or on their way to school and put in to institutions, fostered or adopted out to non-Indigenous families. Many children suffered harsh, degrading treatment (including sexual abuse) and were frequently indoctrinated to believe Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were inferior.

The Bringing Them Home report consists of 54 recommendations to redress the impacts of the removal policies and address ongoing trauma. The recommendations included a national Apology, reparations, improved services for Stolen Generations members and a process for monitoring the implementation of the report’s recommendations.

Over two decades on and the Bringing Them Home report remains just as relevant because many of the recommendations are still outstanding.