Anthony Albanese wants Australian schools to teach massacres on Aboriginals by British settlers
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Anthony Albanese has expressed his support for schools to teach about the massacres of Indigenous peoples by British settlers in a way that does not ‘shame’ Australians of British descent.
The Prime Minister said it is important for children to learn the truth about Australia’s history, including the atrocities committed against some Indigenous communities.
“Part of learning about our history is also telling the truth,” he said in an interview on 4BC radio’s breakfast show Tuesday morning.
Anthony Albanese (pictured) has expressed support for schools to teach about the massacres perpetrated by settlers against indigenous peoples
“And the truth is that the indigenous people have suffered a lot. Not all, but many do. There were massacres (that) took place.”
“And we have to be honest about that. Not as a way to be ashamed, but just as an honest dinkum. It’s the Australian way,” he added.
Mr Albanese said he was in favor of incorporating that part of Australian history into the national school curriculum.
His response was prompted after a discussion about the Voice to Parliament, a proposed body that will advise the federal parliament on matters affecting indigenous peoples.
When asked about a possible date for a referendum, tThe prime minister explained that he is still “waiting for consultations”.
“We know how difficult it is to hold a referendum. But it’s a pretty simple proposition,’ he said.
“The Constitution is our national birth certificate. And right now it pretends nothing happened until 1788. And it’s good manners and it should also be a source of pride to recognize that we shared this continent with the oldest continuous civilization on the planet.”
The Prime Minister explained that Australians needed to be ‘true’ about the past when it came to the suffering of Indigenous communities, but not in a way that ‘shamed’ others (shown, 1852 lithograph of the Waterloo Creek massacre)
During his interview on 4BC radio, Mr Albanese was asked about the Voice to Parliament and a possible date for a referendum, at which the Prime Minister said he was still “waiting for consultations” (pictured, Mr Albanese at the Garma festival in northeast of Arnhem Landen in July)
It comes as the first ad campaign urging Australians to vote ‘yes’ to an Indigenous vote to parliament was released on Monday.
Shot near Alice Springs, the ad shows Pitjantjatjara and Nyungar playwright and actor Trevor Jamieson talking to a group of seated Indigenous children in an outback, as if they were sitting around a campfire.
‘I have a story to tell you. It’s a good one,” Jamieson says.
The first ad promoting a ‘yes’ vote in the upcoming indigenous vote to parliament referendum has been released
“It’s about how these people, the First People, got a voice.”
Scenes between an Asian grandmother cooking with her grandchildren and a father helping his son repair a bicycle, while later they talk about how they proudly voted ‘yes’ in the referendum.
Jamieson then says that Indigenous people have ‘no voice’. No control over matters that concern them. It wasn’t right.’
The ad shows a massive turnout of mostly young people showing their support for a yes vote by texting, calling, talking in the street and getting a tattoo.
“Everyone walked side by side,” says the older Asian woman.
“And that’s how we changed this country for the better, how we made history,” Jamieson continues.
“Is that story true?” one of the kids asks Jamieson.
The ad stars Pitjantjatjara and Nyungar playwright and actor Trevor Jamieson as the ‘storyteller’
What appears to be an Asian grandmother tells her children how she proudly voted for a vote in parliament
With a longing expression, Jamieson replies, “Could be.”
The ad ends with a caption of the new campaign’s slogan “History Calls” and a final pitch for “Vote yes for a First Nations vote to parliament.”
Uluru Dialogue co-chair Pat Anderson, who is featured in the ad between two children, said: the guard the commercial was encouraged to get Australians talking about a better future.
“Silence never made history, and history calls,” Anderson said.
“It’s up to all Australians to answer. We call on the nation to walk with us on this final stretch toward a brighter future.”
Will Australians vote for an Indigenous vote in parliament?
An Australia Institute poll in July found strong support not only for the Voice, but also for its inclusion in the Constitution.
The poll showed that 65 percent would vote yes, up from 58 percent when the same poll was held in June.
About 14 percent said they would vote no, while the other 21 percent would be undecided.
Support was strongest among Greens voters, but even 58 percent of coalition parties would vote yes.
About 59 percent of One Nation voters would vote yes, despite its leader Pauline Hanson leading the charge against the country. In June it was still 35 percent.
For a referendum to pass, a majority of states must also vote yes, but the poll showed that too was easily covered.
All four largest states had a comfortable majority with Victoria at 71 percent, Queensland 66 percent, WA 63 percent and NSW 62 percent.
Support was highest at 85 percent for Australians aged 18-29, but for those over 50 it was still over 50 percent.