Image taken in Manly during the 2005 riots in Cronulla.
By JAMILA RIZVI
Seven years ago, 5000 idiots ruined my Australia Day.
Just weeks before, footage of the Cronulla riots had been aired on nightly news reports all around the world. Internationally, Australians were being labelled as racist and our country described as a dangerous place for foreigners. Images of drunken, violent protestors, chanting racist slogans and damaging public property, while draped in the Australian flag, firmly imprinted themselves in our cultural psyche.
On Australia Day 2006, I remember wandering across the lawns of Parliament House ahead of the annual celebratory concert. And I flinched as I saw a bunch of teenage boys kicking around a footy; they were wearing the Australian flag as capes, superhero style.
Why did I flinch?
Those kids weren’t doing anything wrong. They were well intentioned, harmless, ordinary kids doing exactly what they should be on Australia Day – celebrating what’s great about our country. And yet, for the rest of that evening I looked around anxiously when I heard a bottle smash, or heard someone yell out ‘Aussie, Aussie, Aussie’; worried that violence might ruin the hundreds of happy family picnics happening around me.
That night, I hated myself for my own nervous reaction. I hated those violent idiots at Cronulla who had caused our nation’s flag and a chant of patriotic pride, to become so closely associated in my mind with violence and intolerance. I was filled with rage and filled with hate and quite honestly – filled with fear – on a day, which is supposed to be about celebration.
Today is Australia Day.
And seven years on, it’s high time that we took Australia Day back for the good guys (and girls).
There’s nothing wrong with wearing the Australian flag.
I truly believe that we live in the greatest country in the world. A land that is girt by sea and with boundless plains to share. As the terrible noughties advertisement goes – a country that was founded in 1901, by a vote and not a war. Yes, our citizenry is a multicultural one and that can present its difficulties as well as innumerable advantages.
We have our fair share of idiots. Every country does.
And we have our fair share of less-than-noble history. (Something that our Aboriginal brothers and sisters know all to well.)
But every country does.
Our challenge today is to rise above the idiots and not let them give our country and our national day a bad name. Our challenge is to recommit to never again make the mistakes of the past – whether they be those of eight years ago or of 250 years ago – while also taking the time to be proud of our country’s achievements. Because they exist and they are plenty.
Our challenge is to embrace Australia’s diversity: appreciating the stable and peaceful system of governance the British gave us, cherishing the different cultures and faiths who have arrived since then and of course, respecting and valuing our 40,000 years of Indigenous history.
I love Australia Day.
I love every silly tradition, every ridiculous cliche and every kitsch piece of memorabilia.
And so this year I will make a fool of myself with a cricket bat, share around my failed attempt at making pavlova and smile with pride when I see kids mucking around dressed in the flag.
I will pack the sausages and sauce, right next to the curry and rice and take my picnic to the grass next to Bondi beach and celebrate what’s great about our nation.
Because nothing says Australia Day more than hanging out with mates, overlooking the most beautiful stretch of sand and sea in the world and listening to a bunch of poms complaining about their sunburn.
Comments
101 Comments so far
I spent the day celebrating how wonderful our country is with all my friends of many different backgrounds – Malaysian, Philipino, South African, Croatian, Finnish AND Australian. Just a bunch of mates having a drink, a laugh, kicking the footy and listening to Triple J. Some of us wore the flag. No one was offended. It was perfect.
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Great article Jamilia, I couldn’t agree more.
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Fair go people – I for one am proud of my fellow Aussies that stood up and defended OUR way of life (note ‘defended’, we did not start the ruckus). I’m not condoning the violence but I do condone protecting our values and culture. Rather than focusing on the ‘what’, do some research and focus on the ‘why’… cut us some slack. Its only fair that an innocent young Australian girl can go to her local beach in a bikini without being slandered by intolerant and racist comments such as “Aussie slut” or getting gangraped….FAIR GO!
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Those riots were an inevitable outcome from the gangrape trials that had taken place over the last six or seven years. Highly publicised and notable for the ethnicity of the victims and their youth and also the ethnicity of the offenders and their age. The court proceedings allowed an insight into who and why and as to how the court system works.
Australia is no different than any other western country, we have our moments to be proud and those to be ashamed. It’s a great place if you are financially ok, if not; you are not heard.
Celebrate or don’t celebrate. That is one of the great things about this country.
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You lost me at “intolerance”. I don’t tolerate such a word, even less so when it’s used by supposedly progressive commentators. This rendered the rest of the article void. No one comes to Australia to be put up with, they come here to be respected.
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“and listening to a bunch of poms complaining about their sunburn.”
I’d really appreciate it if you didn’t refer to English people as “Poms”, not all of us find it a term of endearment.
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If you can’t endure a bit of playful ribbing, I don’t think Australia is somewhere you will be very happy. It’s pretty much a national sport!!
Also, I lived in England and was regularly referred to as a ‘convict’ – I understood that, like the term ‘Pom’, it was a playful joke and didn’t get my knickers in a knot over it! Appreciate the humour and get over yourself a bit!
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This article horrified me. Respecting and valuing your “indigenous brothers and sisters’ ” history means not celebrating January 26th. You can’t celebrate Aus Day and then tack on the end that we should value Indigenous people as if that fixes everything. As well as that, extreme nationalism is what leads to wars, racism and the creation of an us and them mentality. Not helpful at all. I love living in Australia and am so grateful to have been born into a safe, developed country but I am not in love with the actual country itself. What is the point of that? Nations are a social construct- why must we ‘love’ them and set ourselves up against other countries as competition?
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here here Lou.
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Seeing the aussie flag being waved on Australia day does make me feel uneasy?! But watching my kids at an Aussie day event waving flags and wearing Aussie flag tattoos on there cheeks and feeling so proud of their country made me realise not to let a few idiots take away from our pride. We need to move forward together to help us heal.
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HERE HERE! It SICKENS me that the southern cross is now a sign of dirty bogans and not a symbol of pride for us.
In America, despite the many rednecks, educated Americans are still RIDICULOUSLY patriotic and we could really take a leaf out of their book and remember that – that it’s OK to be patriotic! (the educated, non red neck Americans, that is
yeah!)
I wanna be able to drap myself in my flag with pride and not be riduculed by my friends and others. I agree, we are the best country. Best ever!
We need to claim back the flag, the southern cross and be PROUD of all the good. The racists are a small minority, unfortunately they get media attention. Ignore them mayhaps?
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Can we just stop calling people bogans?
It’s such a nasty slur issued by those who think themselves superior.
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I love Australia Day – not because it’s on January 26th. I’m not celebrating the arrival of the Europeans. I love Australia Day because it’s a reminder of how fortunate we are living in a country like this. We live in relative safety, can question things without persecution and are blessed have many resources to give us happy comfortable lives. Not many countries can claim this. So Australia Day for me is a day of thanks for everything that we have. I would prefer to have Australia Day on January 1st, marking federation, which much more inclusive for Australians as a whole.
I sang the national anthem last night with 40,000 others at the cricket. It really brought a smile to my face.
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Geez, I must still be waking up from yesterday. Sorry about all the non-sentences in there!
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I have to say that I disagree with the comments that celebrating Australia Day is denying the Aboriginal history of our land.
I personally feel Australia Day is about embracing our country as it exists today, which includes accepting that we do have some horrible parts of our history, but that the best thing we can do is focus on uniting as a country today and in the future.
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For me Australia Day = My Birthday…. I am very proud to be Australian and love sharing my day with my country… It helps that when I lived in oz I had a holiday and fireworks just for me lol…. Be proud of where you come from… but be kind to those who come to share your country
Happy Birthday Australia
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Personally, I think its disrespectful to wear a flag in any form (cape, boardies, bikini et al) – it is a symbol of the country, and if you respect the country you should respect the flag.
I celebrate Australia Day as there is a great deal to be grateful for but am quite uncomfortable with the jingoistic “Australia is the best bloody country is the world” bogan chant …
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As an Aboriginal woman I call today ‘Survival Day’
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I like Australia Day because I like the day off work. I never really celebrate it though… I love my country, for all its flaws, every day of the year… I don’t feel a particular need to celebrate it on 26 Jan in the same way I don’t celebrate my relationship any more than usual on Valentine’s Day.
Australia Day seems to me to be an excuse for bogans to fly flags and get pissed. I’m happy ignoring it for the most part.
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I’m not keen on seeing people wear the flag as a cape. I don’t know why it irks me, it just does.
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Does it irk you to see people wearing the flag as a headscarf? Or is it just the wearing it as a cape that irks? btw, I love anyone wearing our flag proudly, however they wear it.
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I don’t understand why it’s become popular to wear the flag.
It’s actually disrespectful. Flags used to mean something. There are clear rules to how they are meant to be displayed. I find it ridiculous that the only people who seem to give a damn about the flag these days are the ones desecrating it
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Yes and they are not even made in Australia!
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Yep. And as boxers, and boardies, and bikinis, and whatever the hell else it’s been put on. Flags aren’t supposed to be worn. They’re supposed to be flown on a flagpole and respected. You’re not traditionally even meant to let a flag touch the ground, let alone twist and turn it around or have it against your arse.
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You know the boxers and bikinis, tea towels, stubbie coolers etc etc aren’t actually made out of flags, don’t you. How’s it disrespectful. Every country makes things with the countries flag design on it.
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we’re getting a bit precious if one cannot wear a shirt with the Australian flag emblem on it, aren’t we. I will continue to wear my Australian Bikini and dry myself with my Australian flag towel, while drinking a beer in my Australian flag glass. I love Australia and am very proud to be an Australian.
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I’m proud to be an Aussie too. I don’t think I need to wear the flag inappropriately to prove it though.
How would you feel if you saw someone scrunch it up, or walk on the flag?
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I’m not talking about fashioning clothes out of an actual flag. Wearing a shirt or a bikini with the emblem is ok in my books. All countries have souvenirs with their countries flag / emblem on it and there is nothing wrong with it.
Spit on, stomp on or burn the flag, then we’re going to have problems.
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I don’t really care what other countries do.
You seem to be on this kick that those of us who don’t like the getups that people get around in think that it’s flags getting cut up to make all the flag crap. We’re pretty cluey, and realise that this isn’t the case.
Thinking that having your arse on the flag in boardies or a bikini, or wiping stuff up with a flag isn’t being precious. It’s having an opinion that differs to yours.
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Cringe factor, I just had a visual.
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Not an everyday thing, Just for Australia Day
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I agree Bradley – don’t even get me started on the trashy Australian bikini’s!
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Yes Australia is a pretty good country. Comparing us to other countries we usually seem pretty good but that doesn’t mean we can ignore the embedded racism and historical consequences of hundreds of years of racism and sexism. Australia is not a golden country, and still has much room for improvement.
Australia Day is usually a day used to try to define what being an Australian is, usually at the expense of those not white or ‘Aussie’ enough.
Go ahead and celebrate it – but remember those riots are an expression of the racism within Australia which is something that cannot be ignored.
* The Author should also note that many Indigenous people have started something called ‘Invasion Day’ which is used to highlight the fact that the day we celebrate was a day when they lost their rights to their land and had everything stolen off them.
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Kate….I think that you are obviously hanging out with the “wrong” type of Australians.
Celebrating the day at the expence of those who aren’t “white enough” or “Australian enough” ??????????????
My wife and I just celebrated Australia Day at a Korean restaurant with a Pom of Indian origin, a Malaysian and a Sri Lankan lady and her Swedish born husband. Stangely…I don’t know that anyone’s skin colour was considered when the event was being organised. Stranger still, we all felt proud to live in this country and be able to celebrate all that it offers.
You can play the victim card if you wish. Oh, and I hope that you enjoyed your day however you chose to spend it.
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Just to be clear, the first fleet actually arrived on January 18, so if you want to refer to an ‘invasion’ day, it would be that. January 26 was the day they first sailed into Sydney harbour and were enthralled by its beauty. Personally, I am proud of Australia day. It celebrates everything that is wonderful about our country.
And yes, there is an awfully long way to go to bridge the gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal living standards. I would love to see us respect our indiginous heritage more. We should teach the history in more detail to our school children. We should listen to the tribal elders, and try and be more tolerant.
Australia day is a celebration of Australians. All Australians, any religion, creed or colour. I don’t know any of the ‘racists’ you speak of. Most people I know are wonderful, tolerant individuals who don’t think about race when they meet people. A few idiots do not represent me or anyone else I know, nor do they represent the country I am honored to be a resident of.
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“Enthralled by it’s beauty”? I’m sure beauty was high on the agenda for a dumping ground for convicts.
I think you might find it was more that it was the deep harbour and coves, and the source of freshwater in the Tank Stream that attracted them, as none of this was available in Botany Bay.
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I’m sure you are right. But the journals of Captain Phillip at the time specifically reference the beauty of Sydney Cove when they sailed into Port Jackson. So you may choose to see it as glass half empty. I don’t.
Either way, the point is the same. Australia Day does not celebrate an invasion, nor is it the Anniversary of the day Europeans first made contact with Indigenous populations. It is the day the first fleet sailed into Sydney harbour for the first time after spending a week in Botany Bay. Any ‘invasion’ occurred a week prior.
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I just can’t get on board with Australia Day. For starters, the actual event it celebrates is really more of a win for the British than Australians. If it were more like Bastille Day or Independence Day I could see the point. Right now we are just celebrating the day we became a colony, and I don’t believe that really has much relevance to modern Australians.
Obviously I also hate that we continue to celebrate it on a day that must have been horrific for the indigenous population. Again, for all the personal significance the day the British invaded has to modern Australians, we could just pick a random day, call that Australia Day and stop celebrating on a day that marks the worst part of our history. At this point it’s extremely offensive that the day hasn’t been moved.
I guess right now the holiday just seems quite random and to be honest I find the whole jingoistic “Australia’s the best place on earth thing” pretty gross. 20-30 years ago people didn’t carry on like that, they just enjoyed a day off work. Now there’s weeks of lead up, a ton of Australian flag themed rubbish shipped in from China, and a scary amount of extreme nationalism. We’re becoming more and more like America. I think we all roll our eyes when Americans proclaim their country the best, so I don’t know why we’ve started taking their lead.
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Again, check your facts. If people are particularly hung up on the date of Australia day being the date of invasion, that is inaccurate. It is the day they sailed into Sydney harbour, a week later. They had already landed and made contact. So in effect, it is actually, just a day that has no particular significance more than any other, except that the ‘invaders’ saw the harbour for the first time and thought it was particularly beautiful.
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Thanks, but I know my history.
I’m aware that the arrival of the first fleet in Sydney Harbour is not technically the invasion day, but throughout history you see that the actual dates of events are usually muddied. Jesus wasn’t born on December 25, but ask people what we celebrate on Christmas Day and they’ll say the birth of Jesus. What matters is what the day has come to represent, and Australia Day has been popularized as invasion day.
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You are right- we don’t know the exact dates. We do know, however, from Captain Phillips log that it was between January 18 and 20, and not January 26. The formal establishment of the colony didn’t happen until February that same year, so it isn’t an anniversary of official recognition of claiming the land for Britain either.
The point is that it is just a date. It doesn’t celebrate landing in Australia, invading Australia, or any kind of lack of recognition. It is a random date that we chose to celebrate our nation. It didn’t even become recognised as an Anniversary until decades later in the 1800′s.
Jamila’s article points out that it is a day to celebrate all Australians, and everything that is Australian. That day in 1788 was one of many days that formed a nation – and yes, many of those days treated the local indigenous poorly, particularly by today’s more enlightened standards. But most of us, migrants and descendants of European settlers alike, would not exist today without the first fleet.
So I am thankful for that, as well as the fact that I live in what I consider to be the best place on earth – which has its problems, many of them serious. But which affords its residents freedoms not enjoyed by the majority of the population on this earth. Which has a culture that is unique, diverse, ecclectic and wonderful. And which is a place that I personally feel is worth celebrating, whatever your cultural or ethnic background may be.
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But they went looking after deciding that Botany Bay was useless. 26 Jan is when they claimed the land for Britain and didn’t recognise the indigenous owners.
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Wrong again. That happened on February 7th.
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Wrong again? Where was I wrong before?
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http://www.australiaday.com.au/studentresources/history-1788-1888.aspx
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You appear to be having another bad day
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How so, Wowsers?
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A white guy with an Australian flag is perceived as racist. A non-white man with an Australian flag is perceived as patriotic.
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The top photo is actually taken outside the Steyne Hotel in Manly Corso, not Cronulla.
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Thanks Dan (and other commenters who let us know), I’ve amended the caption accordingly.
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Did anyone else notice that the image at the top of the article is from Manly? It’s not an image from the 2005 cronulla riots as stated.
Sorry to criticise. I have lived near Cronulla for five years, its a beautiful place. Just a horrible thing to be known for, as it’s not representative of the area I know and love.
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After 18 months in the US, I am proud to be an Australian. It has made me very aware of how lucky we are in so many areas, and I can’t wait to come home.
We have an amazing country, an amazing system, amazing people. Every country has idiots. Every country has areas which might not work as well as others. As a whole, we have something that is more special than many other developed nations have.
Please respect and look after it!
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*bugger. Posted in wrong spot. This one in response to Anonymous, below*
My understanding of the event was that the lifesavers approached the “racist thugs” for staring at them. Staring.
And that one of the lifesavers later admitted to police that “the thugs” had been there all day and hadn’t caused any trouble.
Having said that, there have been racial tensions in that area for decades so while I question the accuracy of what you said re who started that particular fight, I genuinely just don’t even know what to think of the whole mess and cannot point fingers at either side. They’re all equally stupid.
It’s like West Side Story, without the love.
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you missed the part about about them bashing the lifeguard. Thats ok in your eyes is it. And the constant slurs against women, that’s ok is it too. Unless you lived there you had no idea what it was like. ( still is) And yes they did act like thugs. These were groups of men who used to intimidate women daily. DAILY.
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I lived there even thought it was for a short time – you don’t know what you’re talking about.
I can assure you the leering, the slurs & the comments are all very real. Why people think that this should just be accepted and not pushed back against for fear of being the ‘white racist’ is beyond me.
This incident happend to be about race. In my opinion any disgusting behaviour should be put in its place regardless of race, gender or age.
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Having lived in Australia for two years, I have to disagree with you. Australia is incredibly racist. Even on the work place I heard and saw these things. Just ask anyone in the Mamamia office. Australia is a runner up to South Africa.
Apart from the daily racism, it is and amazing land and filled with amazing and kind people.
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Does everyone forget why the riot happened? Because some idiot racist thugs bashed a lifesaver. Because some idiot racist thugs kept calling women on the beach ” Aussie pigs”. Does everyone forget this. People had had enough. And I am not, for one minute, condoning what took place, but everyone is banging on about the Aussies who acted like idiots, but not the culprits, the other racists, who started it all.
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They’re not “culprits”. They were doing something offensive which idiots took into their own hands, and sent text messages (a couple of colleagues received them in the week leading up to it, and we were on an army base in Qld) to organise. Totally over the top, and anyone who even vaguely justifies their actions in getting 5000 bogans to Cronulla and beating up random people in a misguided act of “revenge” should be ashamed.
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But remember racism is only considered racism when it is directed towards people who aren’t caucasian…..
Said with tongue firmly in cheek.
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I was at a cafe this morning with an Aus Day ceremony being held outside.
I don’t usually notice other people let alone their race, but when the anthem started playing and my friend and I (inside, but still able to hear it) stood up in the middle of our breakfasts for it, I looked around the cafe and was so proud to see Australians of different ethnicities all standing up for our anthem! I loved that they recognised it, and it meant something to them, and they wanted to show their respect!
I was especially moved by the elderly Chinese lady who needed help standing and had to hold on to her chair for support.
And then I saw the two middle aged white couples who continued to sit and eat and talk through the anthem, completely ignoring the beautiful compatriotism around them, and I was really disappointed.
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how do you know the ” two middle aged white couples”, were even Australian? How do you know they live here? How do you know they weren’t deaf and couldn’t hear? What’s being white got to do with it anyway? These sorts of comments disappoint me.
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I assumed everyone standing up around them would be a good indicator that it would be the appropriate thing to do, even had they not known, couldn’t hear, and don’t live here. Also, i walked by them later and they had Australian accents. Of course, if I hadnt heard them talking I wouldn’t have known because, like, all white people look the same, lolz! (in case you couldn’t tell, I was KIDDING in this last sentence here).
If I were in another country on its national day and their anthem started playing I would stand out of respect. if I didn’t recognise it for what it was but those around me stood, I would still be able to comprehend that this is the correct behaviour and take my cues from them (and maybe ask someone what had happened later).
Today, I noticed colour. No explanations, no apologies, no recriminations, I just happened to notice, that’s all.
Incidentally, there were lots of other white people there who stood. But the only ones I saw who didn’t were too.
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I’m Australian born and bred and as proud as they come… I don’t think I’ve ever stood for the national anthem though. Seems a bit ‘American’ to do so to me. I dont think its that big of a deal to not stand really.
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It’s not an American thing. It’s an every country thing. Stand up and sing!
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“stand up and sing”!. NO, I sing my countries National Anthem only. Why should I stand up and sing the American National Anthem, just because I happen to be in America? Why should I sing the Australian National Anthem if I’m not an Australian and am just visiting. And don’t say “because it’s polite”. I want to know why.
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If I was sitting in a cafe or anywhere else where I happened to overhear the national anthem being played at an entirely separate event then I probably wouldn’t stand. That’s the overly patriotic attitude I was referring to by saying ‘American’. It’s great that some people do, I don’t think it reflects on the pride some feel for Australia if they don’t though.
If I was at the actual event then yeah, ok I probably would. But standing in silence when it’s overheard through the walls of a cafe from an event outside? Probably wouldn’t bother. In the same way I don’t stand in silence in my living room if I hear it on TV or on the pavement outside the MCG if I overhear it being played before a sporting match.
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Ease up there turbo. It was a response to Miss Finance, claiming that she’s Australian born and bred and has never stood for the anthem.
Not sure how you got standing up and singing the American Anthem out of that.
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Every country I know of stands for their anthem. It’s placing your hand over your heart while it plays that is the American custom.
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Actually the Romans began the custom of hand over the heart for anthems and as a sign of patriotism. Interestingly and American friend pointed out the other day the vast difference between patriotism and nationalism. As in the rednecks or bogans using their warped ideas to show their love for their country by omitting others is nationalism or if you prefer Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy display nationalism. I think this is why we sometimes cringe at actual patriotism because it can too easily be seen in Australia as nationalism.
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Some of the people standing may well have been standing because they felt they had to, not because they wanted to. People can get a bit aggressive on Australia Day if you do anything they consider “unAustralian”.
I don’t stand for the anthem. “For those who’ve come across the seas, we’ve boundless plains to share”. With the way asylum seekers are being treated there is no way I could sing that or stand while someone else did because if I did it would make me a massive hypocrite. At the moment, I am embarrassed to be Australian.
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I’ll never be embarrassed to be Australian, I love Australia and there are a whole lot of fabulous, intelligent, compassionate people here doing a whole lot of really great things. Sure not everything’s perfect, but what country is.
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Where’s the dislike button. If you’re embarrassed to be Australian go overseas and see how things are like there. I can’t agree with your comments about the “queue jumpers”. Most are no more seeking asylum from a troubled area but rather trying to rort the system.
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I realise how we deal with asylum seekers is a very sensitive issue with no clear answer but I do take issue with your comments about “queue jumpers”.
By definition anyone granted asylum seeker status is fleeing danger in their home country, they’re not rorting the system – they’re too afraid to remain in their homes.
It is also standard process for asylum seekers to apply for status within Australia. Applying in their own country can be dangerous – they are therefore not queue jumpers at all, merely following due process.
A bit of understanding and sympathy for these poor people wouldn’t go astray, regardless of your political views on the issue of how they’re treated or where they end up.
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You probably never take your hat off at the dinner table either!
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Great post Jamila
Sitting here in freezing cold Mid-West U.S and wishing I was back home on the beach!
Happy Australia Day!
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I completely understand the hurt & pain attached to the origin of Australia day, but I also think its unfair that there are no other days for Australia to celebrate this great country. Id be completely happy if there was a new day that could just be focused on celebrating the amazing place we are lucky enough to live in. High standards of education, health and welfare compared to the rest of the world. This honestly is an amazing place, and I am genuinely sorry for the hurt caused during settlement, but we need a day to appreciate the things we DO have.
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Great post. I remember driving home from Qld the night after the Cronulla riots. I lived in the Sutherland Shire at that time, and had to show identification to police at 3am before they’d let us pass. I felt so angry – not for being stopped (Bless the police who had such a tough job at that time) but that hatred and ignorance had made such a huge impact. I felt ashamed that vision of utter racism had been broadcast around the globe and it was my local area. It took a really long time for me to get past that. I still feel infuriated when people go on with their “blind patriotism”, because it reminds me of that awful time.
I try to teach my students about tolerance in History and English – of all races, religions, genders, sexual preferences (not forcing them to be gay as implied by certain politicians – but to respect a person for who they are, not judge them because of who they love). So in some way I hope that over time I can make a difference.
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Happy Invasion Day.
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My hubby has always been very proud of our Australian flag. This was passed on to him by his father. His father had a flagpole in his front garden and proudly flew the Australian flag on Australia Day and in years past, my husband would display the flag in our front garden every Australia Day.
However, since the Cronulla riots, he has stopped. He is no longer proud to display our flag. He feels that the thug element use our flag in a confrontational and racist way and he wants no part of it.
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If it is used for good more often than bad, will that not be the greater perception? It is almost like a tally and for everyone who decides not to use it the scales tip in favour of the minority of idiots who use it inappropriately.
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As someone who is married to an aboriginal man, Australia Day is not a particularly positive day in our home. I don’t really begrudge those that celebrate it, we just choose to opt out.
In years past we would fly the aboriginal flag off our front deck as our little symbolic gesture for Australia Day. We’ve stopped that since having kids though because of the verbal abuse we would cop from the bogans driving past our house.
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that makes me so sad (the bogans, not the opting out). I don’t understand it.
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I’m so sorry to hear that they have taken that right away from you Anon. I don’t celebrate Australia Day either – I am not Aboriginal but it’s my choice and I’m comfortable with that.
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Such a gorgeous picture used above for this fabulous article! Um, clearly not referring to the riot pic!
Happy Aus. Day Jamila!
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Thanks Phoodie! You too. x
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Great piece, Jamila. Happy Australia Day!
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I’ve always struggled with celebrating what is effectively ‘invasion day’.
I read an article last year that suggested Australia day for Aboriginal people might feel akin to celebrating ‘Japanese Day’ if the Japanese had successfully invaded Australia after bombing Darwin in 1942.
Something to think about perhaps.
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Hey Bec,
I know what you mean, I’ve had moments of feeling the same. Like I say in the post – there are certainly parts of our history that are difficult to be proud of.
But it’s our national day for now and I think we focus on how we can do better than we have in the past and that’s enough. (I suspect it will change in time anyway – which is a good thing – bring on the Australian Republic Day!)
Jamila
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I can’t wait till we celebrate republic day! Get rid of that ugly Union Jack on our flag.
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Men have fought and died under that flag.
KEEP IT.
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My ancestors were sentenced to life here. How does that make them invaders of this land?
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I struggle at times with this too, especially now I’m explaining Australia Day to my kids – I want to be balanced, but still give them a sense of pride in and hope for our country today and its future. My take on it to them is that we can’t change what happened in the past, but we can use what we know to help us make better decisions in the future (this, of course, goes for everything in life). Knowledge + empathy + inclusiveness = great things
Watching the citizenship ceremony in Canberra reminds me of why so many people choose to be Australian. Australians don’t tend to beam with pride for our country and way of life on a daily basis, and we don’t often pull out the ‘greatest country on earth’ line (which I think helps stop us becoming too inward looking). I think it’s a positive thing for us, as a whole, to take a day a year to celebrate where we are, remember how we got here and look to where we’re going. Like Jamila says, for now that day is January 26 – whether or not that changes is going to be up to us and our children to push for and decide.
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I feel exactly the same. While I’ve always tried not to be a spoil sport about Australia Day it has just never felt quite right in my gut. I don’t care how inclusive we try and engineer it to be, until we do something about changing about the particular date we celebrate this great nation in all its diversity it will just feel completely wrong to me.
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Not quite – the analogy there would be celebrating “England Day”, not “Australia Day”. Although I have a lot of respect for the position of the Aboriginal people in relation to January 26th, it was the day that our modern nation of Australia began, and Australia now includes the Aboriginals, as well as Europeans, Asians, and other nationalities.
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Brilliant post Jamila! I too felt the same after the Cronulla riots and still to this day feel uneasy when faced with crowds of people covered with Australian flags.
Thank you for putting into words my feelings about Australia Day
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I didn’t realise that Australia Day had been taken away from “the good guys.”
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“a country that was founded by a vote and not a war”….our Aboriginal friends might disagree with you on this one Jamilla.
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I was just coming down here to say exactly that. I find the statement that Modern Australia was not founded on a war extremely offensive
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Hi Kylie
I was referring to 1901 and not the so-called settlement (but not really, like, at all) but you’re very right – I’ve made that reference more explicit. I think I was pretty clear on the fact there are parts of our history that aren’t something to be proud of but something to be learned from so such atrocities never happen again. Happy Australia Day.
Jamila
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1901 (assuming you mean Federation) was Jan 1, wasn’t it?
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That’s what the ad refers to – not Australia/Invasion/Survival Day.
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