Australia Day reflections
The annual Australia Day debates started at least a week earlier than the day itself as those with differing agendas quickly sought to take control of the dialogue.
I celebrate Australia Day as a time to reflect on what I love about living in this country. Everything from the beautiful environment and many great Australians I share it with, to the settled political system and affluent lifestyle it provides. Personally, I want to enjoy celebrating the good things about Australia and I want to be able to be proud of my country. There are certainly some policies- past and present- that I am not proud of, but plenty that I am as well. It is a powerful day for many that engenders a positive sense of national identity in many that has the potential to be harnessed towards positive social change.
I recognise that Australia Day has different context for indigenous Australians, who undoubtedly experienced colonisation through a very different lens. And I recognise that although society has come a long way since then, there are still a range of damning statistics about the welfare of indigenous Australians. There also still exists a level of unease within our society towards our first inhabitants, which is obvious from the often vehement and hysterical response to anyone who raises the issue of racism. Last year’s campaign of harassment towards Adam Goodes may have evolved to encompass issues other than racism, but its foundations appeared to be based on his public stance against racism.
Now I could celebrate Australia Day on any day of the year. I’m a republican who celebrates the Queen’s Birthday so you can be assured I’ll make the most of any public holiday you give me. So you might think I am totally in favour of moving the date. I certainly respect and understand why an increasing number of people are and I wouldn’t oppose it, but I am not really in favour of it either. I personally don’t think it is conducive to improved treatment of indigenous Australians to continue to focus our attention on events so far in the past. The troubles of modern day indigenous Australians are significant and complex enough and should be where this discussion is focusing. Issues such as incarcerations rates and life expectancy have no easy solutions for our political leaders either, with some of the solution needing to come from the indigenous community itself. To make a real difference, the conversation needs to shift from cataloguing problems to discussing solutions- shifting from symbolism and the past to pragmatism and the future- and I don’t know that changing the date of Australia Day is an important part of this.
As a descendant of Polish Jews, I say with full sympathy that I don’t believe continuing to relive the horrors of previous centuries will answer the problems of today, or tomorrow. As a controversial issue, it would cost considerable political capital, which could be better spent addressing some of the current issues such as incarceration rates, poverty, violence, education, substance abuse and life expectancy. In my view, changing the date of Australia Day will not address any of these problems. Nor will it improve race relations. It may even be detrimental and divisive. I think the increasing support for the idea shows we are maturing as a society, but I am not sure we are ready yet. I feel the way the idea is promulgated- highlighting some of the darker moments of our national history, as others are preparing to celebrate what they are proud of- can be a bit counterproductive.
Much of White Australia has little historical connection to past mistreatment of the first Australians and many do not react well to having their pride in their country challenged or contradicted by accusations of a racist society. I understand this, as I love my country in the same sort of way I love my family- I know it isn’t perfect and I know some members have even done some pretty bad things at times, but I feel there is still a lot to love about it and I know how easy it is to get defensive when others don’t agree. Pushing too hard against this sentiment will generate a pushback in the form of ‘conscientious racism,’ in some parts of society.
In this way, it can actually have the effect of reducing support for changes that could have more significant impacts on the lives of indigenous Australians. While I don’t usually advocate catering to aggressive minorities, pushing this line of debate also gives easy ammunition for those groups who like to claim the white Christian male is the new oppressed member of society. Unfortunately (as people like Sam Newman have demonstrated) these arguments can be more persuasive than we would like to believe. It may seem an unnecessary concession to those with this view, but it might help cultivate a more fertile environment for meaningful change.
I’ll take a further moment to talk about patriotism too. Patriotism is a love of your country. I like seeing all the Australian flags out on Australia Day and find the sense of national pride quite uplifting, but I have to say that it does not mean a lot if it is out of character and the rest of the time you behave like a self-centred hateful arsehole. Calling yourself a patriot does not make you one (are you listening UPF and other bigoted hate groups) any more than calling yourself a philanthropist, genius or hero does. The only way you can show patriotism is to show that you love your country and countrymen (regardless of religion or heritage). It doesn’t matter how loudly you proclaim your patriotism and how vigorously you wave a flag, it means nothing if your actions towards your fellow Australians don’t back it up. So if you drive in an inconsiderate or dangerous manner to wherever you are celebrating the day; trash the area you use and don’t clean up after yourself; spew hate at other Australians; or end up getting violent towards other Australians when you have had too much to drink; you are no patriot.
As much as I enjoy the day, I always approach it with a little trepidation. As much as it generates patriotism, Australia Day also fosters patriotism’s ugly stepsister- racism. The usual clichés like, “Love Australia or leave,” ramp up across social media and redneck groups like Reclaim Australia and the United Patriots Front bellow their message of intolerance to anyone that will listen.
I have never claimed to be the most patriotic or “Aussie,” member of society, but the great thing is Australia Day is not a competition about who is. An easy trap to fall into is the erroneous assumption that conforming to culturally recognised forms of marking the day is somehow an indicator of being more patriotic or Australian. However people choose to enjoy the day, they are exercising the freedom we value so highly. There is nothing ‘unaustralian’ about that.
I celebrate Australia Day as a time to reflect on what I love about living in this country. Everything from the beautiful environment and many great Australians I share it with, to the settled political system and affluent lifestyle it provides. Personally, I want to enjoy celebrating the good things about Australia and I want to be able to be proud of my country. There are certainly some policies- past and present- that I am not proud of, but plenty that I am as well. It is a powerful day for many that engenders a positive sense of national identity in many that has the potential to be harnessed towards positive social change.
I recognise that Australia Day has different context for indigenous Australians, who undoubtedly experienced colonisation through a very different lens. And I recognise that although society has come a long way since then, there are still a range of damning statistics about the welfare of indigenous Australians. There also still exists a level of unease within our society towards our first inhabitants, which is obvious from the often vehement and hysterical response to anyone who raises the issue of racism. Last year’s campaign of harassment towards Adam Goodes may have evolved to encompass issues other than racism, but its foundations appeared to be based on his public stance against racism.
Now I could celebrate Australia Day on any day of the year. I’m a republican who celebrates the Queen’s Birthday so you can be assured I’ll make the most of any public holiday you give me. So you might think I am totally in favour of moving the date. I certainly respect and understand why an increasing number of people are and I wouldn’t oppose it, but I am not really in favour of it either. I personally don’t think it is conducive to improved treatment of indigenous Australians to continue to focus our attention on events so far in the past. The troubles of modern day indigenous Australians are significant and complex enough and should be where this discussion is focusing. Issues such as incarcerations rates and life expectancy have no easy solutions for our political leaders either, with some of the solution needing to come from the indigenous community itself. To make a real difference, the conversation needs to shift from cataloguing problems to discussing solutions- shifting from symbolism and the past to pragmatism and the future- and I don’t know that changing the date of Australia Day is an important part of this.
As a descendant of Polish Jews, I say with full sympathy that I don’t believe continuing to relive the horrors of previous centuries will answer the problems of today, or tomorrow. As a controversial issue, it would cost considerable political capital, which could be better spent addressing some of the current issues such as incarceration rates, poverty, violence, education, substance abuse and life expectancy. In my view, changing the date of Australia Day will not address any of these problems. Nor will it improve race relations. It may even be detrimental and divisive. I think the increasing support for the idea shows we are maturing as a society, but I am not sure we are ready yet. I feel the way the idea is promulgated- highlighting some of the darker moments of our national history, as others are preparing to celebrate what they are proud of- can be a bit counterproductive.
Much of White Australia has little historical connection to past mistreatment of the first Australians and many do not react well to having their pride in their country challenged or contradicted by accusations of a racist society. I understand this, as I love my country in the same sort of way I love my family- I know it isn’t perfect and I know some members have even done some pretty bad things at times, but I feel there is still a lot to love about it and I know how easy it is to get defensive when others don’t agree. Pushing too hard against this sentiment will generate a pushback in the form of ‘conscientious racism,’ in some parts of society.
In this way, it can actually have the effect of reducing support for changes that could have more significant impacts on the lives of indigenous Australians. While I don’t usually advocate catering to aggressive minorities, pushing this line of debate also gives easy ammunition for those groups who like to claim the white Christian male is the new oppressed member of society. Unfortunately (as people like Sam Newman have demonstrated) these arguments can be more persuasive than we would like to believe. It may seem an unnecessary concession to those with this view, but it might help cultivate a more fertile environment for meaningful change.
I’ll take a further moment to talk about patriotism too. Patriotism is a love of your country. I like seeing all the Australian flags out on Australia Day and find the sense of national pride quite uplifting, but I have to say that it does not mean a lot if it is out of character and the rest of the time you behave like a self-centred hateful arsehole. Calling yourself a patriot does not make you one (are you listening UPF and other bigoted hate groups) any more than calling yourself a philanthropist, genius or hero does. The only way you can show patriotism is to show that you love your country and countrymen (regardless of religion or heritage). It doesn’t matter how loudly you proclaim your patriotism and how vigorously you wave a flag, it means nothing if your actions towards your fellow Australians don’t back it up. So if you drive in an inconsiderate or dangerous manner to wherever you are celebrating the day; trash the area you use and don’t clean up after yourself; spew hate at other Australians; or end up getting violent towards other Australians when you have had too much to drink; you are no patriot.
As much as I enjoy the day, I always approach it with a little trepidation. As much as it generates patriotism, Australia Day also fosters patriotism’s ugly stepsister- racism. The usual clichés like, “Love Australia or leave,” ramp up across social media and redneck groups like Reclaim Australia and the United Patriots Front bellow their message of intolerance to anyone that will listen.
I have never claimed to be the most patriotic or “Aussie,” member of society, but the great thing is Australia Day is not a competition about who is. An easy trap to fall into is the erroneous assumption that conforming to culturally recognised forms of marking the day is somehow an indicator of being more patriotic or Australian. However people choose to enjoy the day, they are exercising the freedom we value so highly. There is nothing ‘unaustralian’ about that.