The idea for daylight saving time is usually credited to George Vernon Hudson, a New Zealand entomologist who gave a … Friday on our minds ... the Australia Day debate. Born and raised in a time of compulsory voting few Australians know that they adopted a law in 1924 requiring all citizens to present themselves on election day. It's the same kinda nonsense as trying to ban Hitler. Children of immigrants are more likely to have negative associations with Australian Day. Protesting Australia Day is an anti-colonial movement, a movement that calls for our country to exist independently, with treaties acknowledging the Sovereignty of First Nations peoples; and completely separate from the British Empire. "There are only two events where we can be guaranteed to see white people wearing flag capes—on Australia Day and at neo-Nazi rallies. The Easter Bunny is pagan, should we abolish Easter? In recent years, social justice activists, Warriors of the Aboriginal Resistance, have led a movement to "Abolish Australia Day" until we become a nation worth celebrating at least. We cannot continue to overlook the gruesome invasion by the British Empire and the disregard for Black life throughout its illegal occupation to date. (It's also known as "Anniversary Day," "ANA Day" and "Foundation Day. Families and those born overseas are most likely to celebrate. Our country, the Commonwealth of Australia, is a federation. Did you know, that according the United Nations, Australia is one of very few countries that celebrate the beginning of its colonial rule? See why nearly a quarter of a million subscribers begin their day with the Starting 5. Many of us hold the view that we need to abolish the day." The king of Denmark who conquered Greenland in the 19th century, etc. Every year I dread the anniversary of January 26 - but this year feels a little different. Today, Indigenous activists and their allies refer to Australia Day as Invasion Day or Survival Day. On 26 January, these celebrations condone genocide, racism and destruction of Indigenous lives and culture. It’s true, that as Australians, we should be able to come together and celebrate the things about our nation that we’re proud of and grateful for. Another growing movement is to abolish Australia Day. ‘It’s time to move on. Australia Day, which commemorates the landing of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove, has become a source of deep division and debate. 13 million people (or half the population) participates in specific Australia Day celebrations each year. The Australia Day parade in Melbourne attracts thousands of spectators. But this doesn't change the white nationalism attached to it or make Australia any more inclusive. Or should I say, “Happy Invasion Day”? In 2017, the city council of Fremantle voted to hold an alternative celebration on January 28, following growing pressure around the country to change the date of Australia Day. Happy Australia Day 2019 everybody! "The two can coexist. The first “Australia Day” was actually held on July 30, 1915, to raise funds for the World War I effort. The simple truth is we … "[It's] not just the actions of 230 years ago, or a century ago, or 50, or even 15 years ago that are problematic. If we abolish then, then we should abolish everything that celebrates more cruel people in history, such as King James the First, Winston Churchill. No, I don't believe that we should ban Columbus. Australia Day was first celebrated on July 30, 1915. Festivals are held, barbecues is eaten, community awards are given out—including Australian of the Year—and new Australians are sworn in and. This challenges our nation to overcome our colonial past by abolishing "Australia Day" completely and address the root of the issues that First Nations peoples. Young Gomeroi, Dunghutti and Biripi woman Tameeka Tighe has protest running through her veins. suggestion for Australia Day would be the 29th October. "I hope you enjoy it," writes Boston Globe Jeff Jacoby. In this we can dismantle systems of oppression, and maybe then, we can be "One and Free. That's why many have advocated for abolishing Columbus Day and replacing it with Indigenous Peoples' Day or its alternative, Native American Day. To some, January 26 is a modern tradition worth protecting, a celebration of what Australia looks like today. Australia Day should support diverse lives and culture. I’ve said for many years that Australia’s national day, if we must have one, should be the day the nation shrugs off that other country’s royal parasites and declares itself to be a republic. Many of her relatives have taken to the streets in the past to demonstrate against injustice. Indigenous leaders have been demanding to change date since 2000. One could argue that, at the very same time, we also beaten our woman, denied rights to females, gays … It’s the National Day of Australia, celebrated with much fervour and energy throughout the country. Halloween is a pagan ritual as well, should we abolish that? Source:Supplied Israel Has a Legal and Moral Responsibility to Vaccinate Palestinians, Fake International Law Is the Newest Anti-Israel Libel, All the Gifts Meghan Markle Received in Australia. With May 8 pronounced to sound like the drawled ‘maaaate’, moving Australia Day to May 8 is a nationalistic affirmation of ‘mateship’. “We respect the views of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who consider 26 January as a day of mourning, or a day to mark the survival ", In 2016, the city of Fremantle delayed the event by two days, holding a "culturally inclusive alternative" on January 28 with public festivals and citizenship ceremonies. It's a debate that pops up all the time: should we change the date of Australia day? Moving an overly politicized and problematic day to another date won't change that. "), But as long as Australia Day has been an idea, it has faced criticism from members of the Indigenous community, many of whom are outraged that the invasion of their land and the decimation of their people are celebrated in a national holiday. "There are no treaties, sovereignty hasn’t been conceded and reparations haven’t been made. In recent years, social justice activists, Warriors of the Aboriginal Resistance, have led a movement to "Abolish Australia Day" until we become a nation worth celebrating at least. Nationally, though, the will to change things just isn't there: Less than 15 percent of all Australians think the government should move Australia Day to another date, with Prime Minister Scott Morrison calling the day a celebration "for all Australians. She tells Hack why she thinks Australia Day should be abolished. 75 percent of Australians say Australia Day should be a time to recognize and celebrate the country's cultural diversity. January 26th is a special day for Aussies. 2021 marks 30 years since the Royal Commission into Black Deaths in Custody; and statistics tell us that over 440 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have died at the hands of police or corrections since 1991 - yet not one conviction. Back home, in solidarity with family of George Floyd and in support of the Black Lives Matter Movement, we saw thousands take to the streets to demand that Black Lives Matter in our own country too. January 26 is Australia Day, a national holiday honoring the arrival of the British fleet into New South Wales in 1788, the start of British sovereignty over Australia (or at least its eastern seaboard). Bill Shorten said Australia Day should not become an “idiot magnet” for anyone. It’s a common misunderstanding we’re marching to change the date but we’re marching to change the nation. It is argued that without significant changes in key areas of justice relating to First Nations people, there is nothing to celebrate. In an attempt to move forward from the divisiveness of January 26, many allies called to "Change the Date." It is those things that exist today that are so problematic that I couldn't in good faith celebrate our nation as a whole," wrote Luke Pearson on IndigenousX. Whether it should be on the day is colonisation the 26 th January is in contention. We should value future and present, not dwell and focus on the past. And that is where the wandering should … In recent years #changethedate has emerged as a social media campaign, though some would like to see the holiday abolished altogether. This challenges our nation to overcome our colonial past by abolishing "Australia Day" completely and address the root of the issues that First Nations peoples. I don’t think we should abolish Australia Day because it celebrates Australia as a nation. e.g. Scott Morrison, the horse has bolted. As a Black woman in this country, it is hard to demand that my Black life should matter when for 233 years it never has. ". By doing so, we … A vandalized statue of Captain James Cook in Melbourne on Australia Day 2018. "The day needs to be abolished. This figure includes my brother, Tane Chatfield, who died while on remand at Tamworth Correctional Centre in 2017. This means to cancel the national holiday, the concept of Australia Day and what it celebrates. Some may not see the connections of celebrating Australia Day and a lifeless Black body on a concrete floor of a correctional centre, but this is why we simply can't "get over it"; the oppression and systemic racism still exists and the trauma of it is felt across generations. What next? To American eyes, Australia Day looks like a combination of July 4 and Thanksgiving, a time to reflect on the national character, remember Australian history and celebrate with family and friends. Tameeka Tighe attends a protest in Sydney. In rallies across Australia, demonstrators calling for equal rights for Indigenous people and for an end to the celebration of Australia Day on January 26. The aboriginals refers to the date as invasion day.. Mt. The wars were years ago.’ Obviously, we’d never treat our veterans with so much disrespect, living or dead. Keeping Australia Day on January 26 only shows Australia’s collective ignorance. In 1938, the Aborigines Progressive Association held a day of mourning on January 26. As a young person who grew up in this country, I want to feel proud on Australia Day. 26 January has been a day of protest and mourning since being declared so by William Cooper in 1938. On many occasions, Black people have provided ways to progress as a nation, we must allow Black voices to be heard to do this. Australia Day Council has attempted since the early 1990s to reframe Australia Day as an occasion where we can “celebrate and mourn at the same time”. We should … Should our national day be held on January 26, the day the Union Jack was raised at Port Jackson on the land of the Eora clans? ", "We don't have to pull Australia Day down to actually recognize the achievements of Indigenous Australia, the oldest living culture in the world," Morrison told Channel Seven. To continue reading login or create an account. 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