Chesterman (political science, U. of Melbourne, Australia) focuses on the twenty-year period between the mid-1950s and the mid-1970s, when Indigenous Australians achieved formal equality as Commonwealth and state governments repealed their discriminatory laws. Based on extensive examination of governmental records from the period, the author examines why the civil rights changes occurred when they did and concludes that civil rights were won by Indigenous people, and not simply handed to them by governments. He also examines the question of why formal equality has not led to greater changes in the well-being of Indigenous Australians, and how their civil rights affect the recognition of Indigenous rights. Distributed in the U.S. by ISBS. Annotation ©2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
