It marks a dark moment in colonial history that started the death and suffering of the Indigenous peoples of Australia. It resulted in genocide, languages lost, land stolen, and the effects of colonialism continue to this day. That should be enough by itself.
There are other significant dates for it to be on. Foundation of 1st Jan makes more sense as Jan 26th is a NSW-centric date that’s based off the “discovery” by England (who wasn’t even the first non-Indigenous nation to sail to Australia).
It wasn’t until 1994 that Australia Day was consistently celebrated nation wide on Jan 26th as a public holiday
In fact the first official national day called Australia Day was on July 30th in 1915, 1916 it was 28th July, and many other dates have been celebrated in different states for different reasons. It hasn’t always been like this and it doesn’t need to continue,
Changing would signal that the country actually values Indigenous people’s voices and is a small step to take towards reconciliation. If we can’t even do this one thing, how capable and ready do you think we are to make meaningful change in other areas? Australia Day should be something that all Australians can enjoy, not a constant reminder of our indifference to the suffering of Indigenous people.
So ultimately, the date is an insult to Indigenous Australians but has no deeper reason to remain. Keeping it is going to continue to be divisive whereas changing it will be a step forward for the nation. It just makes sense.
2 years ago
