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History of Australia Day
Cultural significance of Australia Day
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On January 26 most Australians celebrate “Australia Day”.Australia day has only recently been marked as a holiday in 1988 it is the day that is celebrated by many Australians by the day of the founding of our nation. Australians celebrate this day with BBQ, partying, going to the beach, dressing up in red,White and blue colours as that represents Australia and the English heritage. On this day, Indigenous people who are the previous inhabitants of the Australian continent, don't celebrate this day as a celebration instead they celebrate it as a day of mourning, a day of survival and a day of invasion. These two opposing takes on the day caused dispute, separation and awkwardness throughout this country. Australia day isn't only a celebration of the founding of Australia by the European …show more content…
This is celebrated by the coming together as a nation to celebrate Australia and what is great about being an Australian. It is a day that Australians are proud of what they have achieved and what will make Australia a better place in the future. Australia day is a celebration of Australian history with the anniversary of the arrival of the first fleet and captain Arthur Phillip. However the 26th of January was not the date of when the first fleet arrived. The first fleet arrived at Botany bay between the 18th and 20th of January in the year of 1788. As Botany Bay was unsuitable on the 21st Captain Arthur Phillip and a few officers travelled north to Port Jackson to see if it was better land for settlement. They stayed here until the 23rd and also made contact with the local Indigenous people. Captain Arthur Phillip and the few officers went back to Botany Bay to transport everybody up to Port Jackson, the French soon came and only one ship made it out, the one that Captain Arthur Phillip was on. On the 26th of January Captain Arthur Phillip took possession of the land under the name of King George
Australia was imperialized by England for land, and for space for their conflicts. The conflicts were there to farm food for the English people. At the same time England had already had other countries under their control at this time. Australian people were not very happy with the English
December 11th is not a date many Australians want to remember. But why? Because Australians don't condone racism or because they don't accept it is a great part of their society and history?
It is well known that Captain Arthur Philips landed in Australia on 26th of January and took over the land and is referred to as “invasion Day”. Yet little do people know, Captain Arthur Phillip didn’t land in Australia on 26 January. He first landed in Australia between the 18th and 20th of January 1788 in Botany Bay, however where he landed he couldn’t find fresh water so he then sailed into Sydney Cove on the 26th where he found a Tank Stream…..problem solved. Australia day today celebrates our diverse society, our remarkable achievements, our future as a nation and how we can make Australia a better
ANZAC Day has been significant to Australians and New Zealanders since the first service in 1916 for memory of the soldiers who lost their live at Gallipoli in 1914 . Over time Anzac Day has changed to remember all the service men and women of Australia and New Zealand . As this year makes 100 years since the landings on the beach of Gallipoli, Australia has had a larger focus on Anzac Day compared to other years due to the importance .
Australia is a very unique place, along with our multiculturalism there is also a strong heritage surrounding us. At first thought of Australian heritage we think about such landmarks as Uluru, The Sydney harbour bridge and The Sydney opera house, The Great Barrier reef and other internationally recognised places. But our heritage goes much deeper than that; it is far more than outstanding icons. Along with these icons there are also unsung places like the old cattle stations, Aboriginal missions, migrant hostels, War memorials, our unique wetlands and the towns and cities we have built. Adding all of these things together, helps to tell the story of who we are and how we have shaped this land in the unique identity it has today.
Australia is a relatively young country; only becoming a unified nation in 1901 (Commonwealth of Australia, 2012). A young country is no different from a young person; identity is an issue. Questions of who am I and where do I fit in the world are asked, and unfortunately not often answered until a tragedy occurs. National identity is a sense of a nation and its people as a connected whole. This feeling of cohesiveness can be shaped by many events in a nation’s history but none more so than war. War is a stressful, traumatic affair that changes forever, not only the people that go to it but the nation as a whole. Many consider the Great War Australia’s tragedy where we became a nation (Bollard, 2013) with our own modern identity.
...at these several events in our nation’s history have demoralised our reputation to other countries globally. To make us known as a better country to other nations, we’ve completely abolished the White Australia Policy, gave back the aborigines their freedoms and we were also the first country in the world to give women rights. Australia today in present day is now one of the most multicultural societies on Earth, and we definitely follow our values of mateship, acceptance and freedom.
Australia Day, celebrated on the 26th of January every year, is a nationally recognised day that signifies the anniversary of the arrival of the First Fleet. It’s a historic event that also marks the beginning of the oppression of the Indigenous people, that still can occur today, no matter how much the Government has tried to atone for the sins of the past. Australia Day is a day of celebration and mourning, a fact that contributes to the constant bickering between the Indigenous and non-Indigenous. There are many who believe that the meaning behind the modern Australia Day is overshadowed by the past, which will prevent the nation from moving forward, much like Ben Roberts-Smith who published an opinion piece in the Herald Sun on the 26th
Which leads into my third and final premise, changing the date will be a large step towards reconciliation and act as a demonstration that we have aspirations to make our country better. Many people claim that changing the date will not change history. Of course they’re right because nothing can change history. If we were capable of doing so, I’d like to think we would have done it already. Changing the date of Australia Day will not reverse the suffering that the original custodians of this land were subjected to. Nor will it abolish the iron fist of racism that Australia seems to be gripped by.
The Australian War Memorial website has a section dedicated to the tradition of ANZAC Day which explains its cultural importance to Australians and the rituals which surround commemoration services
Since the time of federation the Aboriginal people have been fighting for their rights through protests, strikes and the notorious ‘day of mourning’. However, over the last century the Australian federal government has generated policies which manage and restrained that of the Aboriginal people’s rights, citizenships and general protection. The Australian government policy that has had the most significant impact on indigenous Australians is the assimilation policy. The reasons behind this include the influences that the stolen generation has had on the indigenous Australians, their relegated rights and their entitlement to vote and the impact that the policy has had on the indigenous people of Australia.
Anzac Day. On the 25th of April, 1915 Australian and New Zealand forces formed part of the allied expedition that set out to capture the Gallipoli Peninsula. Anzac day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand that commemorates the Australia New Zealand Army Corps (ANZACs) who served in all wars, battles and conflicts. Anzac day is an important day for many Australians and New Zealanders as it is a day where people take time to appreciate the soldiers who risked or gave their lives to represent and fight for our country in all the wars. Since Anzac day is celebrated so widely, there are many opinions that have developed over time. Some Australians and New Zealanders believe Anzac day shouldn’t be celebrated and others believe
Ever since the 1970s, Australia has become a multicultural nation. Australia’s multiculturalism is a way to explain the variety of ethnic backgrounds within the Australian people. “It implies that there are many ways of being Australian, not just one ‘Australian way of life’” (Carter 333). Multiculturalism has majorly changed the way that people view Australian history and identity.
It is impossible to celebrate when it brings to mind the deep hurt born by our ancestors and how that suffering continues to impact today.” According to Richard Weston, of the Healing Foundation. Today, we focus on the partying when instead it should be a day of mourning by all. The strong views of the Indigenous community should be taken into consideration, their views should be made a priority, to reach a resolution that will stop the hurt and anger fuelled protests. Michael Mansell’s suggest “Australia Day is a celebration of an invasion which resulted in the ethnic cleansing of Aborigines. To participate would be to abandon the continuing struggle of my people.” In the hope that we understand that from the landing in Sydney Cove on the 26th of January 1788, only brought misery to the Indigenous communities as trauma was caused by government policies, and conflicts between settlers. In recognition of the events that followed the landing on our beautiful Australian shores, we should be able to acknowledge that all views are as equally important. According to a recent poll, 56%, just over half the nation do not mind when the holiday is held, while only 23% choose the 26th as the best available date. Furthermore, while some say, 'it’s tradition’ and the day should be kept, in reality the public holiday has only been held on the 26th of January, nationwide since
This day is to remember and commemorate the mistreatment of the Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders. In Source A, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd had apologised publicly on behalf of what happened in the Stolen Generations and the Voting Rights in his speech. In Source A, Kevin Rudd had said “We reflect on their past mistreatment.”, this meant that Kevin Rudd was apologizing for what past White Australians had done.Aboriginal People had accepted the apology Mr. Rudd had given the Aboriginals. The Aboriginals have lived out the 5th Beatitude of “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.” Aboriginals had lived out this Commandment because they showed mercy and accepted the apology of Kevin Rudd. This is how Aboriginal People and Torres Strait Islanders had lived out the Beatitudes throughout their