An Aboriginal man who voted early in the Voice referendum has claimed he was humiliated by Yes campaigners in front of his wife and daughter.
Shane said his family traveled to a polling booth in Rockhampton, Central Queensland, but were chased away by activists on Tuesday.
“I went to vote early and when I went to the voting place I was abused because I took a pamphlet from the no vote and I didn’t take a pamphlet from the yes vote,” he told Brisbane 4BC host Sofie Formica. .
‘I left in disgust, as did my wife and my daughter.’
Formica felt sorry for the grandfather, saying, “The one thing about living in a democracy is that we all reserve the right to have that voice and vote the way we want.”
Shane continued, “The part that a lot of people don’t understand is that the people at the voting booth today said I’m a racist. I am also Aboriginal.
‘My wife is Aboriginal, my family is Aboriginal. We are proud Aboriginal Australians and I am being called a racist.
‘I’m disgusted, I feel like crying right now.
Radio presenter Sofie Formica (above) heard from an Aboriginal man who was called a ‘racist’ for accepting a Vote No pamphlet
‘I’m just tired of this country. I’m tired of the way we are divided. I’m tired of what it’s going to be like for my grandchildren and my children that come after.”
Shane’s experience comes at a time when the behavior of some campaigners is under scrutiny.
Two weeks ago, more than 1,000 No supporters attended the Adelaide Convention Center to hear Jacinta Nampijinpa Price and other No campaigners speak at the Fair Australia meeting.
But the event was foiled by Yes campaigners who branded attendees ‘racist’.
Liberal Senator Alex Antic filmed a crowd of protesters shouting at him as he walked into the event.
“F**k you, you racist dog!” someone shouted.
‘Racist pig!’ shouted another. ‘Crazy w****rs!’
Several Yes campaigners were also seen holding up banners with messages such as ‘No pride in genocide’ and ‘Always have been, always will be’.
Mr Antic wrote alongside the clip: “Is this the ‘unity’ the Australian Labor Party promised us with their referendum?”
Earlier this week, the Australian Electoral Commission reprimanded Yes campaigners for using signs (above) that resembled the official ‘Voting Centre’ signs
Even the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) had to scold Yes campaigners for using signs that resembled official AEC instructions.
Early vActivities in the Northern Territory, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia opened on Monday, while other states and territories have been postponed until Tuesday due to the Labor Day holiday.
A photo from outside the Mildura Senior Citizens Club in north-west Victoria shows a purple AEC sign sandwiched between two similar ‘Vote Yes’ signs.
The measure was dismissed as a dirty trick designed to confuse voters.
In a statement on Monday, the AEC revealed that it had asked the Yes23 campaign to remove signs that could “potentially mislead voters about the source of a campaign message.”
“This combination of using purple and white colors near AEC signage could mislead a voter as to the source of the signage, and by extension, the source of the message on the signage,” the statement said.
“Accordingly, when we were made aware of this signage, the AEC requested that the Yes23 campaign rectify the situation by ensuring that their signage is not placed in close proximity to the AEC voting center signage. ‘
Several No voters have reported clashes with Yes campaigners since early referendum voting began earlier this week
With official election day on October 14 just over a week away, polls show that support for The Voice is still below 50 percent.
Newspoll found support for The Voice had fallen to just 36 per cent, while Resolve found only 43 per cent of Australians plan to vote ‘yes’.
For the complete list of early voting center locations, opening days and hours, visit the AEC website.