Before the colonization of the Australian Aboriginals by the British Empire, the natives lived a life in harmony with nature. There were over 400 nations, and they had a sustainable way of life with a rich societal life. Lieutenant James Cook came in 1770, ignored the fact that Australia was habited, and decided to colonize it. The first colonizers arrived in 1788 and destroyed thousands of years of harmony in months. The once harmonious, sustainable, and independent lifestyle was completely turned upside down by the British colonizers and then began the many hundreds of years of racism.