The South Sea Islander community is celebrating a small but important victory after their flag was raised by Sydney's Inner West Council — the first time it has ever been flown on a government building.

Often calling themselves the "forgotten people" of Australia, they are descendants of Pacific Islanders who were taken to Queensland's sugar plantations in the late 19th century to work as labourers.

Advocates are hopeful this small step will raise more awareness of what happened and, one day, lead to a national apology, similar to Kevin Rudd's 2008 speech to the Stolen Generations.

Danny Togo, Vice-President of the Australian South Sea Islanders Association, Port Jackson says seeing their flag flying at Petersham Town Hall was a proud moment.

"Raising this flag, it means so much, because our history needs to be taught," he said.

"We are the forgotten people, so this is just a minor step, but it's a big step for us."

'Australia had a slave trade … we're still here'

South Sea Islanders are hoping other councils will follow the Inner West Council and fly the flag ( Supplied )

More than 60,000 Pacific Islanders were coerced, kidnapped or tricked into coming to Australia, with most coming from Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.

The practice is known as "blackbirding".

Although most South Sea Island descendants remain in Queensland, a strong community in the Sydney suburb of Ashfield brought the issue to the attention of the Inner West Council.

Mayor Darcy Byrne joined calls for political acknowledgement of the "atrocities" of Australia's blackbirding trade.

"It's time that all governments, local, state and federal, give proper recognition to the history of what occurred to South Sea Islanders, here in this continent," he said.

"And we need to see the South Sea Islander flag flying, not just over Petersham Town Hall, but right across the country."

A shipload of South Sea Islanders arriving in Queensland. Taken circa 1890. ( State Library of Queensland )

It has been 24 years since Australian South Sea Islanders were formally recognised by the Keating government as a unique and disadvantaged minority group.

Melina Fakatava, whose great grandparents were blackbirded from Ambae and Santo islands in Vanuatu, wants the history of Australian South Sea Islanders to be more widely taught.

"I just think of my great grandmother, eight, being taken. And my son is six — imagine him being taken from a beach and never being seen again."

"It's so surreal that it's not part of our history, it's not taught in schools.

"The majority of Australians don't even know that Australia had a slave trade, let alone that we're still here."

Group of male and female South Sea Islander farm workers on a sugar plantation at Cairns in 1890. Many of the workers are carrying hoes and other farming equipment. ( State Library of Queensland )

The South Sea Islanders labouring on Queensland farms received low wages compared to other groups at the time, and almost a third of the arrivals died from exposure to European diseases, malnutrition and mistreatment.

For many decades, those with South Sea Islander heritage were absorbed under Aboriginal Protection Acts and many were placed on missions, stations and reserves with Indigenous Australians.

Mr Togo says South Sea Islanders are still feeling the effects of blackbirding today.

"A lot of our young teenagers have been affected by this, and we do have a lot of our people in jail, and we believe it's got to do with what's happened. A lot of them don't know where they're from."