Change the nation

We cannot seek an end to the oppression of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people by cajoling the broad majority of Australians with soft entreaties of ‘change the date’. As rightly pointed out by many, changing the date of Australia Day – without the achievement of social justice or legal restitution in the form of Land Rights and Treaty – only moves the celebration of unfinished business to another date.

Recently, a wonderful story hashtag-restored my faith in Australia’s mainstream media. For once it was talking somewhat positively about the homeless Indigenous people of Darwin. 

That Day was once Many Days, as each state held their foundation days at different times of the year. The cry for a national day on 26 January came from the Australian Natives’ [sic] Association.

Least anyone become overly concerned, the date chosen to mark Australia Day has historically been a movable feast. For instance, July 15 was once the favoured date. While many believe that the current date – January 26 – commemorates the landing of the so-called “First Fleet” (which itself is historically inaccurate), I would expect that the date was moved from the gloom of a southern winter to mid-summer for the sake of devotees of the barbeque and patriotic lamb advertisements.

I searched the Internet for my name on a fine January morning, it can be the only way to find reviews of my work. I found my name somewhere unexpected, in an article by Keith Windschuttle in Quadrant (“Australia Dystopia”, Quadrant, January/February 2018). He quoted me, which is OK although I would prefer not being used to further his vitriol. He also called me a ‘hypocrite’, which is not ok.

Changing Australia Day isn’t the end game, it’s just the first move. So if you aren’t willing to see it through to the end then maybe just don’t even bother.

According to the Australia Day website: “The tradition of having Australia Day as a national holiday on 26 January is a recent one. Not until 1935 did all the Australian states and territories use that name to mark that date. Not until 1994 did they begin to celebrate Australia Day consistently as a public holiday on that date.”