A top lawyer has hit back after being accused of racism for refusing to take part in an Acknowledgment to Country proceeding at the Victorian Bar Council.
At meetings of the Victorian Bar Council, President Georgina Schoff prefaces matters with recognition of the Aboriginal group involved in the land on which it is held.
At a recent meeting, lawyer Lana Collaris instead recognized all Australians and then posted the minutes of the meeting on social media.
She soon faced a barrage of criticism, including being called a “racist,” a “visitor,” and an “introduced species.”
Ms Collaris was also attacked by two Bar Association colleagues and told by the Indigenous Justice Committee that she had brought the Victorian Bar into disrepute.
The lawyer under fire stood by her actions and told the story Sky News she could not tolerate the ubiquity of the Welcome to Country ceremonies.
“The reason why I decided that day to recognize all Australians is because I was fed up with this implicit relinquishment of sovereignty before every meeting, before every Zoom meeting, before every time we are on a Qantas flight,” Ms. Collaris said.
“I had enough of it and just wanted to take a stand against it.”
A top lawyer has hit back after she was accused of being racist for refusing to take part in a Welcome to Country proceeding at the Victorian Bar Council. A smoking ceremony and a Welcome to Country ceremony are depicted
She said the welcome messages implied that non-Aboriginal people have lower status, and that this violated the law she was sworn to uphold.
“It’s the constant repetition of this message that’s being given to us, that sovereignty somehow doesn’t exist within the Crown, and I have a problem with that.
“It’s wrong in law and it’s wrong in fact, and that’s why I’ve decided to take a stand.”
Ms Collaris said the response she received online was not a surprise.
‘I received fairly predictable personal attacks on me.
“And that made me think, ‘I’m going to sit down and I’m going to express my opinion clearly in writing,’ and that’s what I did.”
In that article, published by The Australianshe wrote that ‘recognition of a country is not about respect, but part of a political agenda.
“We show respect for Indigenous Australians by celebrating their culture and language, by valuing their historical knowledge and by holding them to the same standards as all other Australians, not by blanket recognition of their country.”
The lawyer said the “Welcome to Country” ceremonies go against “the fundamental guiding principle of our Constitution today (i.e.) the quality of citizenship.”
“If you’re going to take a position that’s different from this repeated recognition of the country, which repeatedly breaks down that sovereignty, then I think Australians have an instinct and know that something isn’t quite right and they understand that. there is a political impulse behind it.
“As long as people continue to make political statements through recognition of their country, I will continue to recognize all Australians, showing my support for an Australia where we are all equal and subject to the same laws, regardless of our race.”
But in a response to Ms. Collaris, also published in The Australianwrote Georgina Schoff, chair of the Victorian Bar Council, that the bar had “long prided itself on its strong relationships with the Indigenous members of our community.”
“The Victorian Bar is proud to be the first bar in Australia to have a Reconciliation Action Plan,” she said.
“Recognizing our country is a commitment we made in our Reconciliation Action Plan and it has become an honored and important feature of the functions of the Victorian Bar.”
Lawyer Lana Collaris (pictured) instead acknowledged all Australians and then posted the minutes of the meeting on social media
However, there was strong support for Ms Collaris in online forums.
“Too bad that standing up for what is right draws so much criticism from those who hate Australia and what the country stands for,” one wrote.
‘One country, one flag. The Australian national flag is for all Australians, not just a few,” said another.
A third wrote: ‘Majority backs Lana Collaris again! And a government that doesn’t want to listen, until the next elections!’