Australia is a multicultural country. This is because an increasing number of different people have come to live here for many different reasons. They all called themselves Australians and accepted Australia as their new home. Although the perspective of accepting a different race/culture has changed, racism still exists in Australia. Australia's indigenous people were the first victims of racism in this country. For around 50,000 years before British settlement, Australia was occupied exclusively by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. After British settlement, the European legal concept of Terra Nullius was used, allowing white settlers to gain economic and political control over the land until the federation of the colonies of Australia in 1901. The Policies of Colonization British and subsequent land laws were formulated in the belief that the colony was purchased/possessed/received by occupation (or settlement) of a Terra Nullius (ownerless land). The colonizers recognized the presence of indigenous Australians but, justified by their land rights policy, they declared that "Aborigines were too primitive to be real owners"[6]. Furthermore, this caused strict immigration laws to favor "white" Europeans based on their Social Darwinist principles, resulting in the creation of the "White Australia Policy". Three important events led to the downfall of this policy, one being the creation itself, the weakening of the policy by bringing in non-European migrants and the change in perspective from the original ideal of superiority white. Discriminatory laws against Aboriginal Australians and immigrants were abolished in the post-war period. Multic policies...... middle of paper ......e-or-perish->."Australia and the Colombo Plan 1949-1957 - Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade." Australia and the Colombo Plan 1949-1957 - Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Np, and Web. April 24, 2014. “Populate or perish!” » , After the Second World War, Australia after 1945, SOSE: History Year 9, TAS. Np, and Web. April 24, 2014. “Reconciliation Documents.” Council for Indigenous Reconciliation. Np, and Web. May 1, 2014. “HISTORY.” Origins: History of immigration from China. Np, and Web. May 2 2014. .