I'll fight to move Australia Day, says legend
Jan 25, 2009 9:16am

By: Herald Sun


RON Barassi has called for Australia Day to be moved to May to mark the day Aborigines were given equal citizenship rights.
RON Barassi has called for Australia Day to be moved to May to commemorate the day Aborigines were given equal citizenship rights.
He said it was wrong to celebrate the day of the European invasion of Australia when "we took" this land from Aborigines.
Barassi, a hero who rushed to save mother-of-three Tess Green who was being bashed in St Kilda on New Year's Eve, said he was willing to take on this new fight even if people disagreed with him.
The 10-time premiership player and coach said Australia Day should be May 27 - the day in 1967 that clauses in the Constitution that discriminated against indigenous people were removed.
In the 1967 Referendum, 90.77 per cent of Australians - the biggest majority in a national referendum - voted to enable Aboriginal people to be counted in the census and to be subject to Commonwealth laws, rather than just state laws.
Barassi said recognising the May 27 date would be the next step on the path to reconciliation.
He said it would be a natural progression after Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said "sorry" to the indigenous population last year.
"Australia Day is the day put aside to focus attention on just what a great country this is. But I reckon we're celebrating the wrong day," he said.
"I think we should change the date of Australia Day. We were invaders and conquerors in 1788 when the First Fleet arrived and we took this land from the Aborigines.
"January 26 just doesn't sit right with me and I'd prefer it were changed."
Barassi, 72, said Australia's other cultural landmark, Anzac Day, would be an inappropriate swap.
"The national day couldn't be Anzac Day, because we were fighting a stupid war and we lost."
Barassi said the changing the day we celebrated our nationhood would be an important symbol to the indigenous population.
"I think the day we should dedicate as Australia Day is May 27, the day Aborigines were given citizenship rights," he said.
"I think it was the day that the native people of this land were treated as equals in our democratic country.
"It is a genuinely significant day in our history, one which we should celebrate, but which currently is totally overlooked."
Barassi admitted he expected criticism for his stand.

http://www.optuszoo.com.au/article/news/news_latest/news_latest_ndm/835

If you don't know who he is - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ron_Barassi

haha, what a moron.

stfu it's tomorrow, leave it at that you stooge. The Aboriginals get the day off as well!

HAHA im such a good aussie.

last edited by Skitza at 20:14:22 25/Jan/09

May 27, a very black day for Australia.

stfu it's today, leave it at that you stooge. The Aboriginals get the day off as well!

Actually, it's tomorrow.

lol skitza noob

Also, I think it's a good idea to have a holiday to commemorate that stuff for the Aborigines, but let's make a whole new holiday so we get the best of both worlds :p

They were standin' on the shore one day,
Saw the white sails in the sun
Wasn't long before they felt the sting,
white man, white law, white gun
Don't tell me that it's justified,
'cause somewhere, someone lied

Thats what 26th January means to Indigenous Australians.

Just like the Australian Flag it celebrates Englands reach during the time when it was a Great Imperialist Power.
We should have a day that represents Australians.

white man, white law, white gun

puts some spin on it why don't you? of all the indigenous peoples who met with western imperials they got the best treatment. european diseases and alcohol killed far more aborigines than violence by settlers.

the real tragedy for aborigines isn't how they were treated, but more because they were ignored. they didn't get the vote and they weren't counted in censuses because thats what the governments believed was best for them. as in leave the noble savages to their own devices and they'll be happier for it. its not action that lead to their current sorry state, its inaction.

Abo's don't need another holiday. They already have 365 of them a year.

yeah the date should be moved and his alternative is an interesting idea

surely we aren't that attached to january 26 specifically

I think he took a few too many hits to the head on New Years Eve.

No to change, leave it as is..

We need a new flag and a new Australia day that represents all of us.
and a Bill of Rights.

...like America?

Yes let's keep wringing our hands over past misdeeds. Please continue, it's so helpful.

Also all public holidays are s***. If you want a day off from work do it on your oiwn time.

We dont serve your country Dont serve your king Know your custom dont speak your tongue White man came took everyone

thread needed midnight oil for authenticity

and a Bill of Rights.

whats so wrong with polititians (who get democratically elected every 3-4 years) defining human rights, rather than putting some vague description down on paper and having judges interpret that without any comprehension of what public opinion says on the matter. and judges aren't voted into place, they are appointed. yet judgements they make become law.

how is that better for the people?

lets just have another holiday on his proposed date.
now that would be truly Australian


evil post

last edited by tequila at 23:26:42 25/Jan/09

Abo's don't need another holiday. They already have 365 of them a year.

ROFL that's call of the year right there.

Well i support poor old Ron's idea we already said sorry whats the big deal ???

here's hoping the bogans are extimct before the abos so some social justice can get done

I'm not aboriginal, the day they got the right to be counted really doesn't mean much to me. Sure its great, I'm not putting it down, but I don't really feel the need to celebrate it, and I don't really want to celebrate it.

I vote for an entirely new holiday, that always falls on a week day.

According to wikipedia:

The Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act (UK) passed on 5 July 1900 and was given Royal Assent by Queen Victoria on 9 July 1900.

If we HAVE to move Australia day I say, we still need a day that represents the creation of this nation in its current form, so I propose 5th July. As Khel says, May 27 means nothing to 97.5% of us.

Nathan has a point, but who the tuck wants Australia day in winter???

+1 for an extra holiday.

exactly, australia day needs to be in Summer and cant be around april/may too many holidays there already.

IF you think about it, it has to be january or february. The rest of the months are either not summery enough, have too many holidays already, or are too close before christmas.

IT also has to have Australia playing a cricket match, so cant be too late in february becuase the one-dayers would be finished.

26th of jan seems about the right date.

Why would we move it to a date that is just for aboriginals, yeah they were here first, but thats not what its about, its about all australians.

As for calling it invasion day, get over it we are here now, none of you (aboriginals) were even born when it happened.

last edited by `ViPER` at 13:51:49 26/Jan/09

IF you think about it, it has to be january or february. The rest of the months are either not summery enough, have too many holidays already, or are too close before christmas.

^

that's why my vote is for january 25

commemorating the last day that everything was still fine and dandy for the natives

If we're gonna move Australia Day then it needs to be into the latter half of the year - there's not enough public holidays in the 2nd half. Right around September/October which makes it perfect for a grand final long weekend.

How much more Australian can you get than 3 nights on the piss and a massive footy game?

Just bloody leave it as is..

Stuff those buggers..

January 25 sounds good to me, that would stick it to all those people having a cry saying its invasion day etc.

Hows this, give the aboriginals a choice, they can have that other day off for whatever they f*** they want to call it day, and the rest of us can have the 25th.

It wouldnt realy matter anyway, you have to have a job to have a day off, ohh thats harsh.

Well old mate ruddy has said piss off to calls to move australia day. Good on ya. Unless you want to move it to the day after the NRL grand final it can stay.

viper, they dont deserve it..Stuff them and stuff anyone who wants to change it.

AUSTRALIA DAY IS JANUARY 26..ALWAYS HAS AND ALWAYS WILL BE!

kruddler sort of ignored the entire objection but on him for being direct I guess

f*** Australia! What s*** hole!

so I propose 5th July

Which due to timezones, is the 4th of July in the US. Hooray.

also infi, f*** off you c***.

f*** Australia! What s*** hole!

That's gonna go down well ^.

only if someone bites, but its a little too obvious

I know, i just wanted to quote it for accuracy.

If the aboriginals wanted to really become part of australia, they'd just accept the heritage and importance of the day that is, jan 26th.

the day they got the vote or what ever, has no significance to me or to the nation as a whole, it has importance to a minor subset of the population.

Once again, a minority speaking out about acceptance and integration, with out doing either.

"Let me say a simple, respectful, but straightforward no,"

-Kevin Rudd

lol

If the aboriginals wanted to really become part of australia, they'd just accept the heritage and importance of the day that is, jan 26th.

lol, can't tell if this is a troll or not ..

No, it isn't a troll post at all. For once a minority (particularly this minority) should probably realise that not everything done in the entire world is done as a slight against them, and that they're not the most important people in the entire country, nor that they represent a majority.

yeah those abbos should be grateful we let them migrate here.

I think the best thing about Australia Day is it is a day, really, about nothing.

If we moved it, what would it achieve? Ivory tower types would be pleased, but personally I might harbor a bit of malcontent about the move. Plus it's smack bang in Summer!

thank you faceman

Faceman your ideas are intriguing to me and I'd like to sign up to your news letter.

What's your nationality? feel free to pm me.