Right: The scene in the film in which the girls are taken from their mothers by a WA policeman.Further implications
It seems unlikely that 'Rabbit-Proof Fence' will be banned in Australian schools. Many of Keith Windschuttle's claims have been forcefully disputed and at best the whole debate around the film seems more a dispute over interpretation than fact.The question in essence is whether Australian governments practised and should be condemned for practising a policy that favoured the breeding out of Aboriginal blood from those of mixed black and white parentage. Banning seems no way to respond to questions of disputed interpretation.
What Keith Windschuttle's claims about the film may do is make Australian teachers more cautious than many may currently be in their treatment of the film. It has been suggested that what teachers should do is make students aware that some of the claims made within the film are the subject of debate. They should then, it has been suggested , have that debate within the classroom.
It can only be seen as desirable if Keith Windschuttle's call for a ban results in an enlivening of informed debate on questions surrounding the 'Stolen Generations'.
Keith Windschuttle accuses his opponents of fabricating history and creating propaganda. His critics accuse him of too narrow a focus and of a tendency to simply discount alternate points of view. Vigorously debating divergent views of Australia's history appears the best way to arrive at some sort of tentative 'truth'. Studying and carefully analysing 'Rabbit=Proof Fence' could be a useful component of this debate.