The “yes” vote in Australia

Cannana

I have lived and worked in Alice Springs as a midwife and was saddened and shocked by the poor health outcomes of indigenous women I witnessed there. They are strong and beauty women who need a Voice. I will vote yes because Aboriginal people need the dignity of recognition in the Parliament surely it has got to be a step forward. There is a lot of misinformation out there lots of crazy ideas. I have stopped listening to the no debate it doesn’t make as much sense to me as the yes debate in fact I just get annoyed.

Thank you for that contribution - you know what you are talking about.

Sorry mistyped strong and beautiful women

I have lived and worked in Alice Springs as a midwife and was saddened and shocked by the poor health outcomes of indigenous women I witnessed there. They are strong and beauty women who need a Voice. I will vote yes because Aboriginal people need the dignity of recognition in the Parliament surely it has got to be a step forward. There is a lot of misinformation out there lots of crazy ideas. I have stopped listening to the no debate it doesn’t make as much sense to me as the yes debate in fact I just get annoyed.

If enough knowledge still remains i don't know
I hope so. I remain optimistic.

Not sure this referendum would help or not. There must be a better way.

The most I know about the original peoples of Australia came from reading Bruce Chatwin's Song Lines. I'm not sure if the answer should be "yes" or"no", I do know that there was a rich and complicated culture which was as different to our culture as it is possible to be. That it was a culture deeply embodied in nature and the land and had a spiritual connection with the land. It would seem to me that as the dreadful damage we have done to the earth continues, reconnecting with that culture is highly desirable. If enough knowledge still remains i don't know. If this vote could help to do that I don't know. But surely something is better than nothing

Oreo

Just read all the comments on this thread and what sticks out a mile is that the posters who know nothing about Australia or this proposal are all shouting their condemnation of so called colonisers and praising the Voices proposal.🤣You gotta laugh!
It’s their referendum and they are the ones who’ll decide based on actual knowledge of what goes on in their country.
There’s even a ScotNat rant about England thrown in for good measure.

I don't confess to knowing as much about this as several others on the thread, or those on here who will be voting.

What I do know is that it will change the Constitution, could be challenged in court and that Yes/No referenda can be divisive.
It is already causing division even amongst those who will be most affected by it.

Compromises to the referendum question are being suggested and it will be interesting to see if Albanese listens to these suggestions.

Haha Rosie, you’re right. I also have German heritage. The surname Harbach really does give it away, but we knew anyway.
I’m not giving anything away re putting that surname in as it is no longer in use in our family. It was the name of one of my great grandfathers.

That was to maddyone and * Callistemon*

Aren't most of us mongrels to a larger or lesser extent? DH has done research on our family trees, and I have English, Irish, Danish, German and Welsh ancestry for sure. Having surnames of Smith, Brown and Jones in amongst those really didn't make it easy lol.

Good post Oreo.

Seriously some people need to learn about the people who have gone to live in Australia. Over the many years British, Chinese, African, European, and American people have emigrated to Australia. Australia, much like America, has people living there from just about every country in the world. The so called colonisation of Australia is not down merely to the British, and is certainly not down to anyone who is alive today. This has happened and it can’t be undone. It’s got nothing to do with those of us who are not Australian and they will decide for themselves what their future will be. It’s none of our business.

Just read all the comments on this thread and what sticks out a mile is that the posters who know nothing about Australia or this proposal are all shouting their condemnation of so called colonisers and praising the Voices proposal.🤣You gotta laugh!
It’s their referendum and they are the ones who’ll decide based on actual knowledge of what goes on in their country.
There’s even a ScotNat rant about England thrown in for good measure.

maddyone

I’m a quarter Welsh too Callistemon.

Maybe we’re cousins.

I'm sure we're all related, surprising who you find when you research the family history which is not an easy task in Wales!

I’m a quarter Welsh too Callistemon.

Maybe we’re cousins.

Jannicans

I will vote NO.

I think many will, Jannicans which is why many are in disagreement about this referendum.

What is wrong with appointing specialised Government advisers to present the problems and advise the Government on the best way forward for different communities?

SueDonim

Thank goodness no Scotsman ever raped or pillaged or stole anyone’s wealth, eh, *Callistemon! 🤣

Yes, thank goodness, it was just the dastardly English which is why nowhere in the 'colonies' (sic) has a Scottish or Welsh name 😂😂😂

x.com/D4444Syd/status/1688449297421848576?s=20

Daniel Defoe on Scots at Westminster ! Says it ll and NOTHING has changed

I will vote NO.

A quick google search shows that the U.K. has been invaded at least 70 times, not including minor invasions in the south east, much pillaging etc. was involved…

Thank goodness no Scotsman ever raped or pillaged or stole anyone’s wealth, eh, *Callistemon! 🤣

Excuse typos, I am just 🤔😁

Good grief!

I am a quarter Welsh 😁
Am I counted as a native or a colonist?

Britain aka England aka the UK is no longer a world power
What has that comment got to do with the decision Government of Australia to hold a referendum? 🤔

Should no-one migrate at all?
Should the Aboriginal peoples not have left Africa and travelled to Australia?
Should we not have travelled north to Europe all those thousands of years ago?

Some people never ove further from their village, others explore the word. Takes all sorts.

The problem is akin to Stockholm syndrom there will always be people who form relationships with the "invaders" we have it here,Unionists who see nothing wrong with the inequality in numbers or language of English parliamentarians in WM against the ELECTED Scottish ones.Really offensive things they think are funny that the "speaker" never seems to hear .
Penny Mordaunts speaking of Scotland and Wales as " the territories,The Fraser woman who wants Scots exported as slaves "like they did in the past .The comments from Lisa Nandy who thinks Scots who favour Independence should be treated the way Spain treated the Catalans with truncheons and kicks. Then there's the eegits on the tory benches who shouted at Ian Blackford to "fuck off back to Skye" But hey thats not colonialism..is it? Thats just banter from ignorant self important imperialists who think they have rights over the rest of the world.They need to learn, as some on here do too, that the Empire is long dead and the indiginous people shouldn't NEED to integrate in THEIR countries thats up to the immigrants /colonialits to do.
Britain aka England aka the UK is no longer a world power and it should realise that ,The indiginous Americans and Aborigines have a lot of grievances built over centuries ,like much of the world against the white men who raped and pillaged and stole their wealth ...and people complain about them getting some kind of reparation or compensation .

their deep and spiritual relationship with their land
Thank goodness there is now more being learnt about this, more respect for the original way of life and an understanding of what we can all learn from the ancient knowledge being passed down the generations.

They should be given a voice. I have a sister and son in Australia with their families

It's interesting, though, that Aboriginal leaders themselves do not agree on whether or not this referendum and the proposals are a good idea as I mentioned earlier.

Are your sister, son and families Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanders, EmilyHarburn? Or do they have friends and neighbours who are?
There is much discussion and disagreement on the right way forward in Australia at present.
From your post it sounds as if there is at present no representation in Parliament and that activists such as Noel Pearson have been silenced until now.
That is not the case. I know he is an advocate for the referendum but I wonder if the outcome will be favourable.
The problem is that, if the referendum result is negative, other strides forward could be abandoned.

Successive governments don't seem to have got this right for anyone.