Aboriginal activist calls out constant ‘Welcome To Country’ ceremonies
Aboriginal activist says ‘Welcome To Country’ ceremonies are becoming so frequent they are losing meaning – and calls for them to be scrapped at football games and corporate events
- Kiescha Haines-Jamieson is an outspoken No lawyer
- She says there are too many Welcome to Country rituals
Welcome to Country ceremonies are so common that they lose the full force of their meaning and make the general public ‘apathetic’ towards Indigenous Australians, according to a popular critic from Voice to Parliament.
Kiescha Haines-Jamieson is an outspoken No advocate from Western Australia, who has amassed over a million views on TikTok about her opposition to the referendum.
She is also concerned that the once sacred Welcome To Country ritual is “losing its cultural significance” because it is now so “mainstream.”
“It was never intended for opening football games or corporate and social events,” she said.
“It was actually a practice used to secure permission and safe passage to and through tribal boundaries and now it’s becoming so mainstream that it has left people apathetic.”
Kiescha Haines-Jamieson is an outspoken No advocate from Western Australia, who has amassed over a million views on TikTok and discusses her opposition to the referendum
Ms. Haines-Jamieson said it was devastating to see something with “such a special purpose” lose meaning to something as simple as over-saturation in everyday life.
Welcome to Country practices have grown significantly over the last decade, everywhere from the workplace and seminars to national sporting events.
Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price has made similar arguments about the overuse of Welcome to Country ceremonies.
She has previously said she was fed up with being “symbolically recognized,” explaining that First Nations people wanted to be recognized and respected for their character rather than their race.
“Personally, I’m more than tired of being recognized symbolically,” she said.
Ms Haines-Jamieson said it was appalling to see something with “such a special purpose” lose meaning to something as simple as over-saturation in everyday life
After watching the Welcome to Country ceremony ahead of the second State of Origin match, Ms Nampijinpa Price told 2GB’s Ben Fordham that she found such ceremonies “a bit narcissistic”.
After watching the Welcome to Country ceremony ahead of the second State of Origin match, Ms Nampijinpa Price told 2GB’s Ben Fordham that she found such ceremonies “a bit narcissistic”.
She said, “I am tired of these acknowledgments because of nothing more than my racial origins.
“It’s every day that I acknowledge and pay my respects and recognize Indigenous First Nations people in the room, for what?
“What for you doesn’t even know everyone in the room and why are we singled out purely because of our race, it’s divisive.”
A Welcome to Country can only be performed by traditional owners or managers of the land on which an event is taking place
A smoking ceremony takes place outside the old parliament building in Canberra
A Welcome to Country can only be performed by traditional owners or managers of the land on which an event is taking place. In circumstances where a traditional owner is not available, a recognition of the land may be performed instead.
According to Reconciliation Australia, an acknowledgment of the country ‘must be issued at important/major internal meetings or meetings with external participants’.
It is intended to emphasize the area’s significance to First Nations people.
A Welcome to Country ceremony will be held at Adelaide Oval for the Australia v West Indies cricket test match on December 8