Australian Identity
What is a true blue Aussie? We are all here today celebrating our country’s birthday because we are all true blue Aussies. No longer is the definition of an Australian just a flip-flop wearing, zinc-nosed beachgoer, yet a large portion of the population still see it as so. Evidently, as a nation, we have remained in the history books, seemingly incapable of redefining what we consider to be Australian. So what should the new definition of a contemporary Australian identity be? We have always had an identity and, as idealised as it may be, these characteristics were once true. Evident on the battlefield, mateship, courage and humour became our defining qualities. However, as the years have passed, this identity has been
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With this ignorance comes a large recall on our ‘lucky country’ label, as the description is now more likely to be used in an ironic sense. Questioning whether or not our nation is really a lucky country for the majority of Australian citizens. The recent legalization of same-sex marriage within America caused what should have been a ripple effect. However, this ripple was blown out of the water before it reached our island. The bill for equal rights, introduced by labour leader Bill Shorten, was immediately disregarded by our government. It seems as though Australians are fearful, but what of? We appear to be nervous of controversy but our evasion of important issues may be our undoing, as we become known as a nation of prejudice and ignorance. A misplaced ignorance considering Australia has an extremely well developed educational system, yet a vast majority of the population seem immensely ill informed. Our educational proficiency proves that contemporary Australia is capable of overcoming the sexism, homophobia and racism present within our society but only if we chose to pay attention. Despite being a young country we seem to be living in a political stone age. It is only when we begin to educate ourselves and accept these overarching topics that we will become a truly tolerant