Australian day debate Each year, the Australia Day holiday increasingly raises complex questions about our country’s national identity. This year has been no different. In August, the City of Darebin Council and Yarra Council both voted within the space of a week to end the formal celebration of Australia Day on 26 January. Then in September, a third Melbourne council Moreland voted in favour of dropping all references to Australia Day and joined the push to change the date of our national celebration. These moves followed the City of Fremantle 2016 decision to cancel its Australia Day fireworks display, in favour of a more ‘culturally inclusive’ celebration to be held on 28 January. Likewise, Flinders Island Council has celebrated Australia Day on an alternative date for several years. At the heart …show more content…
Like all national days, the way Australia Day is celebrated and the significance attached to it have changed considerably over time. In fact, it wasn’t until 1994 that 26 January became a national public holiday. A look back at the historical facts and what they continue to represent helps shed light on why the date remains divisive. History Arthur Phillip arrived at Sydney Cove and raised the national flag of the United Kingdom on 26 January 1788. In doing so, he founded the settler colony of NSW and, at the same time, commenced the dispossession and marginalisation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. The tradition of noticing 26 January began a few decades later, in the early 1800s, but only in NSW. It was referred to by various names in the following years,