Does this day give you mixed feelings? I'm all for having a national day on which people can celebrate all the good things about their country and its people. However, I don't think I'm alone in thinking that it might be time to consider changing the date of our national day's celebrations.
At present, Australia Day is celebrated on January 26th, commemorating the day on which the first fleet of European settlers alighted on Australian shores. For our indigenous population, this date marks the beginning of the end for an ancient culture.
Perhaps we could celebrate Australia's beauty, history and achievements on another day?
2 comments:
Yes, I agree. I don't think most Australians actually know what the date signifies- not even the politicians!
Federation Day is arguably more appropriate as it signifies the beginning of Australia as a nation rather than as a convict settlement, but it happens to coincide with New Years day, and your average Australian certainly won't want to miss out on an extra holiday.
But personally I think we need to embrace the Australian values of respect and equality and select a more appropriate date.
I agree also. Sarah articulates it well. Not many people know what the 26th was, so changing the date to say today is about celebrating that we are all Australian would be a good path to go down.
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