"By the time of Australia’s Federation in 1901, the colonies had established a long tradition of discrimination against Indigenous peoples. As a colonial country, racism was a founding value of Australian society – it justified the wholesale denial of Indigenous peoples’ rights to retain their social, economic and political structures, while denying their rights to participate in the polity that was under construction. This beginning helped to establish the fundamental disrespect for Indigenous peoples that underpins Australia’s legal and political development." (Quoted from paper) (The paper is available through the link)