New polling shows a significant drop in support for January 26 in just two years.
Foreigner here. Would you like a different date? When? Or would rather re-define the current one?
Edit. I just saw the SJ Patterson post and learned a lot on there.
saw the SJ Patterson post and learned a lot on there
Haha yeah.
What isn’t exactly made explicit in that thread (it’s sorta just understood by everyone, so while hints towards it are there, nobody needed to make it explicit), 26 January is associated with the arrival of white people on this land, and thus it’s symbolic of the start of oppression towards the Aboriginal population. Among progressive and Aboriginal circles, you’ll often see it called “invasion day” for that reason.
That’s why people think it should be moved, though agreeing on when to move it to is a much harder proposition.
Some people want it to stay around this time of year because it’s summer and people like barbies and outdoors. Others say we have enough holidays already between late December and early May (Christmas, Boxing Day, New Year, Good Friday, Easter Monday, ANZAC Day, Labour Day) and would like to see something in the back half of the year, between September and November. Then there’s the question of whether or not it should be a day that has meaningful symbolism, and if so what that symbolism should be.
I’ll re-share my proposed alternatives in case anyone else wants to see them:
3 March as the day of commencement of the Australia Act (1986), which saw the last vestiges of Australia’s status as a British dominion ended.
3 September as the day Australia adopted the Statute of Westminster with the Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942, which removed the United Kingdom’s ability to legislate over the Commonwealth of Australia and making Australia truly a legally independent nation in a de jure sense.
9 July as the date the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act 1900 became law, enabling the constitution to actually take effect on 1 January 1901.
The march and September dates are already holidays. Not that I object to shuffling Labour day around.
According to the Australian holidays calendar I subscribe to, 4 March is Labour Day in Western Australia. That would just mean they get an extra-long weekend. (Besides, no offence, but that’s a dumb time for Labour Day. In terms of the history of the labour movement, on or about 1 May is when it should be.)
There’s no holiday listed on my calendar on or near 3 September. Are you thinking of October, which is when ACT, NSW, and SA have their Labour Day (plus Qld has King’s Birthday and Christmas Island has Territory Day)?
It turns out our (WA) Monarch’s birthday is September 23. I thought it was earlier in the month than that. But still, it’s a bit close to September 3.
We do the queen/king’s bday on a different date to whatever the current Monarch’s actual bday is. Surely we could just do the same thing with any of these other dates.
It’s become a day/weekend for bogan flag waves to get drunk and annoy the shit out of everyone.
It’s the only long weekend I stay home and don’t go camping due to ever increasing fuckwits.
The entire idea of Australia Day means nothing to me anymore.
It’s literally a day off work for me where I can sleep in, nothing more.
It’s the holiday equivalent of those oversized American utes
Omg that is a fucking brilliant analogy.
It’s become a day/weekend for bogan flag waves to get drunk and annoy the shit out of everyone.
Not according to Murdoch’s report. Am surprised they published it.
Scenes at Bondi Beach today made it clear: Australia Day certainly isn’t celebrated as it used to be.
“I went to a barbecue last year, and I was surprised because they had heaps of Australian flag stuff out, but they wouldn’t have done that in public,” she said.
I don’t get it first they’re saying that the majority of Australians celebrate Australia Day over on Sky but now they’re admitting maybe they were wrong on Sky?
Perth has an Australia Day tradition that’s pretty wholesome. The slogan this year is “Reflect. Respect. Celebrate” it’s a family day, very multicultural. Tonight there’s fireworks and a drone show.
(I’m here, now. The kids are watching dreamtime stories)
The Commonwealth and state governments agreed to unify the celebrations on 26 January as “Australia Day” in 1946. So it is not even an age-old tradition the white supremacists like to pretend it is.
Some extra context on that:
Despite not being recognised nationally the foundation of the colony of NSW had been celebrated much longer
The only thing I care about is more holidays.
The donkeys smashing up Woolworths stores, and vaping on the train and driving their stupid dodge ram utes cutting through corners when driving though have ruined it for everyone.
No idea why we haven’t just changed the date yet. It’s not a big deal, and the people who are making a big deal about it are the kind of people nobody wants in Australia I’ve noticed anyway
because changing the date is a lose / lose for whoever attempts it, so it will just be left ‘as is’ and disappears on Jan 27. Fact is, some people support changing it, and other people want it left the same. Either of those two groups are going to be the noisy minority to that discussion… IMO, it will never happen, they will just mobilise police for the protests and schedule them for time in leiu the day after.
I’m not sure it is these days honestly.
I think only the loud and annoying people only care
It’s like the EV discussion, if you jump onto Facebook, you’d think everyone loves petrol. However, in practice, people are happy to switch, but just want them cheaper. But they aren’t the kind of people to be plastering Facebook with it
We have a huge problem with a small amount of toxic people here (and they cause the same problems for everything).
They might protest, but after aus day passes, honestly, it will simply flame out the debate when people realize they don’t care.
But you do make a good point, as they’d have to survive that first year. I just wish we had more mature people in here (I’m starting to think I’d be better off in NZ or elsewhere, because I hate all the kids who have temper tantrums here constantly, they’re ruining Australia)
I think we are saying the same thing… the noisy ones will be around for either decision… they will be either protesting that it should stay the 26th (if it were to be changed), or protest that it is the 26th as invasion day… the fact that it goes away the day after makes it an easier decision for the government of the day… they just have to wait it out.
I don’t care which, I don’t celebrate other than enjoying the public holiday. If I could swap it for my birthday off, I would do that :0)
yeah… I couldn’t give a toss about Australia day either way. If there is anything we can all agree on, its to make it two days
I was speaking with an Australian friend like an hour ago about this, his partner is aboriginal so they don’t really celebrate it in the same way cause of the whole colonialism part.
