Like Christmas Day, Australia Day is a holiday where most. For First Nations peoples, changing the date would acknowledge the pain associated with January 26. Heres a list to get you started: 1. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. In June 2020, following the death of Black man George Floyd at the hands of the American police in Minnesota, Black Lives Matter protests occurred around the world, including here in Australia. However, in recent years the Hottest 100 has become a symbol in the debate about Australia Day. In fact, it was only 25 years ago that it . An elderly man walking along the boardwalk was adamant the date should not be changed. Today's episode is a very important one. In fact, they label it a Day of Mourning, Invasion Day, or Survival Day.. '&l=' + l : ''; The number of people who agree with that sentiment has jumped by 12 percentage points since the last Australia Talks survey in 2019 one of the biggest moves in public sentiment between the two surveys. You have almost exterminated our people, but there are enough of us remaining to expose the humbug of your claim, as white Australians, to be a civilised, progressive, kindly and humane nation., Aborigines Claim Citizen Rights! To conclude, the date of Australia day should be changed to reflect changing community attitudes. Now, there are two lines of thinking when it comes to this date. They had been living on this land now called Australia for more than 60,000 years and most were all gone within a bit more than a century. Its like an official slap in the face of the Aboriginal people. window.onload = func; var oldonload = window.onload; This shift became about as more folks became conscious and alert to the ugliness that followed the invasion of the land we now call Australia in 1788. We hope that a constructive conversation can continue with the Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander groups so we can find an inclusive day to celebrate our Australian Day. It begins with treating well the people who were there first. We cannot change the date without overwhelming majority support for its replacement. Not until 1935 did all the Australian states and territories use that name to mark that date. } Luke Pearson is a Gamilaroi man living in NSW. Isnt that the epitome of cruelty? Events and interactive experiences exploring ethics of being human. Were joiningChange It Ourselves, celebrating Australia Day on a different date. Wouldnt the day that Australia abolished this act and, on paper at least, welcomed non-white migrants into Australia make more sense as a day to celebrate what is great about Australia and being Australian. Crescent Foundation More from Letters to the Editor Barnaby is both out of touch and running out of time Definitely. Celebrating on this day is an acknowledgment of the first time Europeans inhabited Australian land: men, women and children. if(force != '' && all_links.href.search(force) != -1) { A common alternative that people suggest is Federation which will never happen, mostly because it is on the 1st of January, but even if it wasnt is that really a day that would inspire us all want to come together as a nation? Changing the date of our current Australia day celebrations provides an outlet for all Australians to come together and rejoice for everything good about our nation whilst being respectful and helping to break down colonially embedded stigmas around Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. I've written about that date before, its origins and forgotten stories and recent almost-comical attempts to protect a public holiday. Because, when it comes to this tradition, what exactly are we celebrating? document.links[t].removeAttribute('target'); It's a day "for all Australians, no matter where our personal stories began, [to] reflect on being Australian, celebrate contemporary Australia and recognise our history," according to the National Australia Day Council. A day to reflect on the dark parts of our history, so we can move forward together as a nation.. According to the ABCs Australia Talks National Survey 2021, a whack of people now believe Australia Day should not be celebrated on January 26, given the historical significance of the date for First Nations peoples. Australia Day was not celebrated consistently on 26 January until 1994 Australia's national day of celebration has drawn much criticism recently from those who say it causes unfair hurt to. Australia Day and #changethedate a tale of two truths, Australia is no longer a human rights leader, not an appropriate date for an inclusive celebration, He said, she said: Investigating the Christian Porter Case. // console.log('Changed ' + all_links.href); Hi everyone. I want an Australia thats worth celebrating. The equivalent for Australia is July 9, 1900. Social structures implanted by the new arrivals were not beneficial for First Peoples, who were barred from economic participation and denied genuine access to education, health and justice until approximately the 1970s. It only began to be a national public holiday in 1994 - making it a mere 27-year-old tradition. According to the Australia Day website: "The tradition of having Australia Day as a national holiday on 26 January is a recent one. Each year a person is named Australian of . Trans-generational, or inherited trauma, is real meaning that the agony of colonisation is still felt by many Indigenous Australians today. It took only 120 years to eliminate 90% of them. f.parentNode.insertBefore( j, f ); Until that point, Australians celebrated it in varying forms. Change the nation. Sorry, the video player failed to load. (function() { new Date().getTime(), event: 'gtm.js' And, the day wasn't even declared as Australia Day until around 150 years later and since that time, the date of Australia Day changed many times. After watching that video, we must make a change. If it doesnt really matter to most people when Australia Day is held, but it does to the Aboriginal community, then why not just change the date of Australia Day? The fight for rights is not over. All of these decisions were criticised by the federal government at the time. What is Australia Day? } While its undoubtedly an uphill battle to get governments to listen, its not impossible, which is why pressure needs to be continually applied for them to listen. Keeping politics out of Australia Day Changing the date of our current Australia day celebrations provides an outlet for all Australians to come together and rejoice for everything good about our nation whilst being respectful and helping to break down colonially embedded stigmas around Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. var change_link = false; Crystal Andrews is a journalist, author and founder of social news platform @zee_feed. We use cookies to improve your experience on our website. It should not be relied upon for tax, legal or accounting advice. 5. "We need to abolish Australia Day and change the discourse - it shouldn't be a day of celebration but a day of remembrance." The second argument is to change the date of the Australia Day celebration, moving any sort of revelry away from a day that is devastating for Indigenous people. Now, she said, Australians from all walks of life are more invested in learning more "about our shared history [and] understanding Indigenous perspectives". In recent years, Australia Day protests have swelled and tens of thousands of people Indigenous and non-Indigenous march together all across the country. Each year since 2015, Essential Media has managed a poll with results showing a steady decline in people celebrating on January 26. Cancelling the commemoration completely would move the conversation around racism forward in this country, while also highlighting the needs of First Nations peoples. Before then, in the lead to the 1888 celebrations, Henry Parkes the premier of NSW at the time was asked if he was planning anything for Aboriginal people on Australia, to which he simply retorted, And remind them that we have robbed them?. Secondly, changing the date would spare indigenous Australian and islanders the painful reminder of their loss of country, family and culture. } Already others have suggested alternative dates such as ANZAC Day on April 25th. Photo: AAP At the time, many people pledged to educate themselves on what it takes to be an effective anti-racist ally. Many Australians might not care which day Australia Day is held on, but for others, it is a day of major celebrations. This is especially so if you want to be a nation known for its inclusivity and multiculturalism. The sovereignty of approximately 600 distinctly different cultural/language groups was never ceded. The only way to aspire towards a day where we can come together as a nation is to change the date. It was only in 1994, 26 years ago, that it officially became a public holiday. Sienna-Swan, 12, said it was a "fun, kind and respectful" way to spend the day. Australia Day: Change the date? When it comes to January 26, instead of organising a party with friends, consider attending an Invasion Day rally. Today is not a protest: we gather to reflect on why this date is better than any of the other 364 days. Thats when the First Fleet landed on Sydneys Botany Bay. As the public broadcaster representing all Australians, triple j and the ABC doesnt take a view in the discussions, triple j said in a statement. Here we are again: New Year, new January, same Australia debating whether or not to change the date of the national holiday. Ive written about that date before, its origins and forgotten storiesand recent almost-comical attempts to protect a public holiday. I choose not to repeat myself, because the date will change. You could also lobby your local council to stop holding citizenship ceremonies on January 26. Australia Day is our national day. In 2004, a Newspoll survey that asked if the date of Australia Day should be moved to one that is not associated with European settlement found 79 per cent of respondents favoured no change, 15 . First Peoples already had functioning, sophisticated social structures, law, spiritual beliefs, science and technology. News Corp reports 29% of more than 1,000 people surveyed said they would celebrate Australia Day 2021. It was also when Indigenous people began being oppressed - massacred,. There are flag raising ceremonies all around the country and it is a day when many migrants (people from other countries who want to live in Australia) become Australian citizens at citizenship ceremonies. Country, family and culture. official slap in the face of the other 364 days years eliminate! 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