Face the facts: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women and Girls
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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and girls hold the knowledge and lived experience to create the systemic change required to enhance the health and wellbeing of First Nations women, girls, families, and communities.
There are nearly 491,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, representing 3.8% of women in Australia.[1] * It is important to note that First Nations people are undercounted in census data, so this number may be higher.[2]
Country & Connection
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women are vital to cultural continuity:
- 85% of women participate in, watch, or attend cultural events or activities.[3]
- 74% aged 15 years and over recognise a geographic area as their homelands or Country.
- 63% identify with clan, tribal or language groups.[4]
Health & Wellbeing
- Life expectancy for Indigenous women (75.6 years).[5] is almost 8 years shorter than non-Indigenous women in Australia.[6]
- Among babies born to Indigenous women, 14% are born preterm compared to 8% of babies born to non-Indigenous women.[7]
- Indigenous-led health programmes lead to dramatically higher outcomes, like the 'Birthing On Our Country' initiative which reduced the proportion of preterm birth for women in the programme from 14.3% to 8.9%.[8]
- 24% of First Nations women and girls live with a disability.[9]
Within the Legal System
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women are:
- The fastest growing prison population and imprisoned 21.2 times the rate of non-Indigenous women.[10]
- Over five times more likely to be charged for minor, non-violent offences and receive harsher sentences than non-Indigenous women.[11]
- 15.7 times more likely than non-Indigenous women to be held in custody while awaiting trial. This is also higher than the rate experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men.[12]
- Ongoing contact with the justice system drives cycles of re-incarceration[13]
- First Nations children and young people are imprisoned at 26 times the rate of non-Indigenous children and young people.[14]
Education, Employment and Care Work
- There are twice as many female Indigenous higher education students (12,043), as male students (6,019).[15]
- Indigenous women make up the majority (66%) of Indigenous enrolments in higher degrees by research (such as doctorates or masters by research).[16]
- However, this does not translate into long-term meaningful employment, as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women have substantially lower rates of workforce participation (51.5%) than Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men (65%).[17]
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women are more likely to take time out of paid work to care for family than Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and non-Indigenous Australians.[18]
- Almost two-thirds of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children aged 0–14 years had a main carer who was an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander woman.[19]
- 61% provide support to someone living outside of their household and 61% of these women also live in a household with dependent children.[20]
- 17% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women 15 years and over provide unpaid assistance to a person with a disability.[21]
References
[1] Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, The health of Australia’s females, Who are Australia's females? (Report, 7 June 2023) <https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/men-women/female-health/contents/who-are>.
[2] Ingeborg van Teeseling, ‘The Census and Indigenous People: Undercounted and Underserviced’, Australia Explained (Web page, 10 August 2021) <https://australia-explained.com.au/opinions/the-census-and-indigenous-people-undercounted-and-underserviced/>.
[3] ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women Celebrated’, Australian Bureau of Statistics (Web page, 9 July 2018) <https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-peoples/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-women-celebrated/latest-release>.
[4] ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women Celebrated’, Australian Bureau of Statistics (Web page, 9 July 2018) <https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-peoples/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-women-celebrated/latest-release>.
[5] ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Life Expectancy Lowest in Remote and Very Remote Areas’, Australian Bureau of Statistics (Web page, 29 November 2018) <https://www.abs.gov.au/articles/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-life-expectancy-lowest-remote-and-very-remote-areas>.
[6] ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Life Expectancy Lowest in Remote and Very Remote Areas’, Australian Bureau of Statistics (Web page, 29 November 2018) <https://www.abs.gov.au/articles/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-life-expectancy-lowest-remote-and-very-remote-areas>.
[7] Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Pregnancy and Birth Outcomes in Indigenous Women 2016-18, (Report, 2021).
[8] Yu Gao, ‘Birthing on country service compared to standard care for First Nations Australians: a cost-effectiveness analysis from a health system perspective’ (2023) 34 (100722) The Lancet, 1-14.
[9] ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People with Disability’, Australian Bureau of Statistics (Web page, 11 June 2021) <https://www.abs.gov.au/articles/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-people-disability>.
[10] Australian Law Reform Commission, Pathways to Justice: Inquiry into the Incarceration Rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples(ALRC Report 133, 2018) Chapter 11.
[11] Australian Institute of Criminology, Indigenous Women’s Offending Patterns: A Literature Review (Review, 2010) 20-21.
[12] Australian Law Reform Commission, Pathways to Justice: Inquiry into the Incarceration Rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples (ALRC Report 133, 2018) Chapter 11.
[13] Australian Law Reform Commission, Pathways to Justice: Inquiry into the Incarceration Rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples (ALRC Report 133, 2018) Chapter 11.
[14] ‘Overrepresentation Explainer: First Nations Kids Are 26 Times More Likely to Be Incarcerated’, Amnesty International Australia (Web page, 8 Setember 2022) <https://www.amnesty.org.au/overrepresentation-explainer-first-nations-kids-are-26-times-more-likely-to-be-incarcerated/#:~:text=This%20shameful%20reality%20is%20even,in%20these%20statistics%20about%20prison>.
[15] Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, ‘Educational participation and attainment of adults’, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Performance Framework (Web page) <https://www.indigenoushpf.gov.au/measures/2-06-educational-participation>.
[16] Australian Government Department of Education, Indigenous Students in Higher Degrees by Research (Report, August 2019).
[17] Workplace Gender Equality Agency, Gari Yala (Speak the Truth): Gendered Insights (Report, 2021) 2.
[18] Workplace Gender Equality Agency, Gari Yala (Speak the Truth): Gendered Insights (Report, 2021) 9.
[19] Australian Bureau of Statistics, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Performance Framework 2021 (2023) https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4714.0 ; ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women Celebrated’, Australian Bureau of Statistics (Web page, 9 July 2018) <https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-peoples/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-women-celebrated/latest-release>.
[20] ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women Celebrated,’ Australian Bureau of Statistics, (Web page, 9 July 2018) <https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-peoples/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-women-celebrated/latest-release>.
[21] Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing: Reflecting Australia - Stories from the Census, 2016 2071.0 (27 March 2018) https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-peoples/census-population-and-housing-characteristics-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-australians/latest-release#unpaid-work.
