Australia Day, a day celebrated on the backs of the massacred indigenous people of this sacred land. A day that not only brings back memories of the past but celebrates it, or so it is said. Celebrated every year on the 26th of January marking the anniversary of the day the British invaded Australia. I for one completely believe that it should be changed.
Why it needs to be changed??
Although the 26th of January is celebrated by some people, it is not celebrated by everyone so it overshadows the point of the so called holiday. Australia day is meant to celebrate the day we became a nation and it is celebrates our unity. But due to Aboriginals seeing the day as a day of loss rather than gain, it doesn’t make sense to celebrate it on this day.
Australia was actually founded on January 1st, 1901 and is much more of a better date to celebrate it. The reason this would be a better date is because it doesn’t ridicule or bring any form of disrespect to the indigenous people and is still able to be celebrated by others because it is the day Australia became Australia.
Another date which is widely being broadcasted is May 8th since it sounds similar to our overused Aussie slang word ‘mate’
So let me ask you this, should Australia day celebrate, the death of people, or the unity of this beautiful nation?You decide.
A way to help support the changing of Australia day is the changing it ourselves day which is an initiative where people celebrate the day on Monday the 28th of january. It is not an ideal solution to the problem but it is the day where no one is harmed and everyone can feel included. it is also going to be nominated as a new date to acknowledge Australia day and celebrate it in office. So stand together and change Australia Day.
Statement of Intent:
I choose to write about the Australia day epidemic because it caught my eye as an issue not really being touched on here in Australia due to a lack of support. I wrote my opinion piece in the form of a blog and elaborated on why the issue at hand is such an issue. I mostly focused on the purpose of the so called holiday and opened up on how Australia day, or rather january 26th doesn’t celebrate the purpose of multiculturalism and unity, but rather oppression and war. My target audience is the governing bodies of Australia overseeing this day. I began my blog by touching on the indigenous people’s views towards this day and tried to get an emotional appeal reaction out of my audience. I also showed them the reason behind indigenous people not being on the same spectrum as them and tried to provoke an understanding side from the opposing side. Furthermore i added a picture with facts and statistics to show a comparison between the views of both sides to get a sense of unity between the two sides and show just how much of an impact this date has on Aboriginal people. I used more of a stern tone to show a sense of seriousness towards the issue and keep my readers engaged and in elaboration i gave two different dates which would better coincide with the purpose of the day. I completed my blog by leaving 3 images specifically targeting the wider population of Australia to show them what they or rather we are celebrating. I also leave my audience with an audience with a question to leave them wondering or rather working towards a better resolution to this bitter argument.
YEAR 11 2E's CLASS BLOG 