News about Australia

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Australia Day: The ‘quiet rebranding’ of a controversial national holiday

On 26 January every year – which marks the 1788 landing of Britain’s First Fleet in Sydney Cove – two competing stories about Australia are told.

One is of nation-building and achievement; the other is of the displacement and dispossession of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

While many Indigenous Australians protest or sit the day out, this year Dennis Kickett is co-hosting a celebration like few others.

“I imagine I’ll cop some flak,” says the Noongar elder. “But I don’t see the date as a barrier.”

For the first time, his community of York near Perth will combine three days of Indigenous storytelling with the annual Australia Day festivities. It will include a BBQ with traditional bush tucker and the raising of Australian and Aboriginal flags to welcome new citizens.

Mr Kickett’s aim is to use the gathering to explain what happened on 26 January.

“For us to move forward we all have to acknowledge the past. We live in the same community, and we’re all striving for the same things,” says the 70-year-old, who made the decision with fellow Ballardong traditional owners.

“There’s no point segregating ourselves. On that date we will have an audience, so why not educate them?”

The Ballardong First Festival is one of hundreds of gatherings this weekend funded by the National Australia Day Council (NADC) – the body tasked with organising celebrations.

In recent years it has shifted away from patriotic pageantry towards events which “acknowledge past wrongs” and the “survival, resilience and enduring culture” of Indigenous communities.

But as more people and businesses quietly opt out, and annual “Invasion Day” protests gather steam, some experts say it’s unclear if revamping Australia Day will help future-proof it.

A shift among brands and councils
The controversy stems from a debate over the appropriateness of celebrating Australia on a day when Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people began being stripped of their lands and cut off from their culture.

Polls show about 60% of Australians see no issue with keeping the holiday as is.

But in recent years, they have suggested small shifts in public sentiment in favour of finding an alternative date – particularly among young people.

Why young Aussies are shunning their national holiday
And the list of celebrities, sporting stars, and big-name brands distancing themselves from the holiday grows.

Earlier this month the nation’s largest retailer, Woolworths, announced it was axing its Australia Day merchandise – such as caps, tattoos, and plastic flags – due to a “gradual decline in demand”.

Australian men’s cricket captain Pat Cummins also recently threw his weight behind finding “a more appropriate day to celebrate”, as did his deputy Steve Smith.

Other critics of the day take even more staunch views.

But many Australians also proudly celebrate it, decking themselves out in flags and other regalia to attend sporting events, BBQs, concerts and firework displays across the country.

Demand from councils and community groups seeking funding to host festivities is “as high as it’s ever been”, according to the NADC.

And it says a years-long campaign aimed at increasing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander participation and “setting a new tone for Australia Day” has been a “great success”.

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