Artefacts about 1990s
It took time and activism to establish government services for Aboriginal people in Tasmania. These DSS newsletters introduce the first Tasmanian Aboriginal Liaison Officer in 1984 and show how services expanded into the 1990s.
To encourage uptake of the Support Network for Aboriginal Parents (SNAP) Program, DSS made a video to explain how it worked.
DSS asked residents of Aboriginal communities in northern Australia whether social security met their needs, what problems they had getting payments and if any changes to the system were needed.
DSS used community scenarios on a poster to show when people needed to let the department know about changes of circumstances.
To give Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families information about a new payment, DSS worked with Aboriginal professionals to publish a comic.
The government simplified social security legislation, with the intention of making it easier to understand. They also included passages encouraging positive change for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
DSS used a colourful poster to introduce Newstart Allowance to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
In 1991, DSS published histories of service delivery in a staff newsletter and annual report. Both pieces included information about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander servicing.