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Period: to
1830s
John Batman signs treaties with Aborginal leaders, gains over 250,000 hectares of land. Convicts are sent out from Sydney in order to work in other areas of Australia -
Period: to
1840s
Indigenous Australians are killed around Victoria. Early in the 40s, roughly one immigrant ship a week arrives in Port Phillip. -
Period: to
1850s
Gold is discovered, attracting almost half a million immigrants in a decade. German immigrants establish villages outside Melbourne (Grovedale) -
Period: to
1860s
British immigrants are tempted to move to Australia by the offers of land and financial assistance. In 1861, new laws force Aboriginal people to live on reserves. -
Period: to
1870s
In 1873, riots occur in Clunes in Victoria due to the use of Chinese miners to break a miners' strike; the violence forced the Chinese people to return to Ballarat. Immigration is aided less and less by the government, leading to less people and a falling economy. -
Period: to
1880s
The law restricts Chinese immigrants from entering Australia, leading to their immigration being practically outlawed by the late 80s. Talk of "white Australia policy" begins to surface. -
Period: to
1890s
As the econonmy plummets, Australia begins to look less inviting to immigrants, bringing the immigration in Australia to a virtual standstill. In 1892, the French language newspaper Le Courrier Australien first appears -
Period: to
1900s
Canada's immigration restrictions encourage more people to come to Australia. The "Immigration restriction Act" introducing a dictation test, making it easier for the governement to reject anyone who isn't "white." -
Period: to
1910's
WW1 slows down immigration once more. German immigraton is banned, and those Germans already in Australia get classified as "enemy aliens" -
Period: to
1920s
English schoolboys are invited to come and work on Victorian farms through a "Big Brother" scheme. 1929 and the depression brings immigration to yet another halt. -
Period: to
1930s
In 1938, the government decides to accept 15,000 Jewish refugees from Nazism over three years; only 7,500 reach Australia before war breaks out. During the depression, immigration slows greatly in Australia. -
Period: to
1940s
"White Australia" is further encouraged, while Germans and Italians are are sent to interment camps. Populate or perish is also encouraged. -
Period: to
1950s
Asian refugees, along with Asian residents of Australia are finally allowed to apply for permanent residency. The Immigration reform group puts and end to White Australia. -
Period: to
1960s
Half of all immigrants come from outside of Britain. 6000 Asian immigrants arrive each year. -
Period: to
1970s
In 1975, the Racial Discrimination Act prohibits discrimination on the grounds of race, religion, colour, descent or ethnicity. The first refugees arrive from Vietnam, Lebanon, Cyprus and Chile, fleeing civil war and political conflict. -
Period: to
1980s
Changes to the Migration act include the removal of the term "alien" and the favouring of British immigrants. African refugees from etheopia begin to arrive. -
Period: to
1990s
1992 brings about the acknowledgement of the Aboriginal people and their land. Almost 1/4 of Australians are born overseas. -
Period: to
2000s
In May 2000, 250,000 people march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge to say 'sorry' to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people for past injustices. Nationwide rallies for asylum seekers and their rights are initiated.