The Wire

There have been calls recently by indigenous leaders to tighten up the test for Aboriginal identity. Australia has 67 different legal ways of confirming identity and many other informal ones. Aboriginal academic Bronwyn Carlson grew up struggling with how to establish her heritage when she was light-skinned, had a New Zealand accent and had moved around a lot and lost connections to family. Her book The Politics of Identity is a thorough exploration of a topic she says needs more discussion.