I don’t want to look back again at the time and consequences of the referendum vote. But we cannot maintain the status quo | Celeste Liddle

A A year has passed since the ill-fated referendum. During this period, and also in the period before the referendum itself, I have repeatedly expressed my views. There was so much that was wrong with the process, that was dehumanizing, and that was disturbing about the entire situation. But while members of the Indigenous community have had to pick up the pieces, regroup and begin discussions about how to proceed, the majority of Australia has maintained the status quo.

The voice would never be a miracle cure. No matter how hard the Albanian government tried to sell it as such, in reality what was on the table was a little better than nothing. However, the proposal still went too far for the majority of Australians when it came to recognizing the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

I don’t want to review the time and the consequences again. It is depressing to remember how readily large sections of the Australian public accept misinformation campaigns, or how readily they see Indigenous peoples gaining anything more than just “no power” as an existential threat. As I have also made clear, the misinformation was not just about the No camp – the Yes camp was more than willing to portray themselves as champions of anti-racism, when in reality there was no reform on the horizon to actually combat racism in Australia . It was simply eyewash.

However, at this time I would like to consider how Australia can move forward. The Heartfelt Uluru Declaration was, after all, a three-part proposal, and the goals of truth-telling and the Treaty must not fall by the wayside if voices are not raised, even if our Prime Minister shirks this responsibility.

Here are a few truths to begin the truth-telling process:

Firstly, the lack of basic civics education that Australians receive is telling. Furthermore, many Australians choose to remain ignorant of our political systems and structures throughout their lives. There’s a reason the Conservative No campaign slogan “If you don’t know, vote no” has been so successful – most Australians don’t know and aren’t particularly willing to find out. If they feel comfortable and safe in their own garden, there is really no reason to leave it.

I submit that many Australians went to the ballot box without knowing what they were voting for. Do you actually know what the constitution is and how it works? Do they understand Australia’s political system and how it would interact with a proposed body that had no political veto power?

Both sides of the debate relied on the public’s ignorance of the Constitution and alternately portrayed the document and our involvement in it as conciliatory and threatening. I find this frustrating. The Constitution is a still racist document that empowered a foreign regime without the consent of the indigenous population, but most people do not want to deal with it. Future generations must not grow up with the same ignorance.

Secondly, we will achieve nothing unless Australia becomes significantly more comfortable with engaging with its history and the ways in which that history shapes the present. It would be nice, for example, to see a double naming event in Australia that would be accepted as a symbol of pride, rather than an opportunity to complain on social media that such a move was “crazy political correctness.” .

Education about massacres, assimilation policies, the mission system, wage theft, the guardianship systems, land theft, etc. cannot remain the sole interest of those already at the table. There is a colonial arrogance in society that suggests that there is nothing to learn from the indigenous people, even though this country is home to the longest-standing cultures in the world. If we are to begin the process of moving forward, people must begin to open their ears and hearts.

Finally a mature nation must reach an agreement on how to proceed. This means that the Labor Government recognizes the contracting process which is part of the Uluru Declaration and which it has committed to implementing once elected. The Prime Minister tried to sidestep this by pointing out that treaty processes were already underway in some states and territories. However, in my opinion, this does not prevent the federal government from taking action, especially considering that they are the ones who have a direct connection to the Crown, under whose name this land was claimed as a colony.

At the federal level, decisions can be made about what would be non-negotiable in a treaty process – issues such as the right to land and compensation, the protection of language and knowledge, dual designation, equal service delivery, designated representative seats at all levels of government, no enforcement of policies without appropriate ones consultation, etc. There are so many ways this country could work toward not only a healthier and fairer future, but also a more tolerant and racially diverse society. It is time to remember that this country was founded on the eradication of those who were already here and to right this enormous historical wrong.

I truly hope we never face another damaging campaign like the referendum again in my lifetime. It’s a foolish hope – Australia loves to debate the humanity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and seems to find ways to put us back in our place. At the very least, it would be a welcome change if the population made more informed decisions after being educated and informed.