On 26th of January 1788, an old ship occupied by British convicts arrived at Sydney Cove, where Governor Arthur Philip raised the Flag of Great Britain. Two hundred and thirty years later, the traditional owner of the Australia land had persisted in protesting the date of the Australia Day. The March of Freedom, Justice and Hope which took place in 1988, had summoned more than 40,000 people, including both aboriginals and non-aboriginals, to chant for land rights through the street of Sydney. The pressure on the nation to resolve conflicts about the relationship between aboriginals and European arrivals had never ceased to mount. An Australia Institute survey has shown that only 37 percent of people recognised that the celebration of Australia Day on January 26th may be offensive to aboriginals. Additionally, nearly half of those – 49 percent – acknowledged that the National Day should not be celebrated on a day that offends certain populations.
These statistics are not new and shouldn’t be a surprise to us. No one denies that at least 40,000 years …show more content…
It is indeed an important date for the entire nation, yet behind the debate underlies more pressing issues that could be done for the indigenous Australians. Despite some of the recent improvements for indigenous populations, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics, the average life expectancy of indigenous people was still approximately 10 years less than that of non-indigenous Australians. Furthermore, the NWMR Koolin Balit PCP Consortium Project had found that the gap had widened for cancer mortality and there has been no improvement for diabetes, suicide or transport accidents in recent years. Incidents of mental health and incarceration continues to be an area of particular concern for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. And among all, a culture that is built to be welcoming and inclusive of all cultures is yet to