Almost 40 years after the referendum which gave the Commonwealth, rather than the various states, power to make laws covering the Aboriginal people of Australia, there is little evidence that any real progress towards bettering their position has been made.

This book is a detailed and objective account of the history of Aboriginal Affairs from the time of the referendum of 1967 to 2005. It is a sequel to the author’s Aboriginal Affairs: A Brief History 1788–1994 published in 1995, and argues the case for a total overhaul of government policies and programmes.