So, Australia Day. Here’s how I think the whole debate can be settled. We swap King’s Birthday and Australia Day.
King’s Birthday, which is universally acknowledged as no more than an excuse for a day off, falls very close to the anniversary of the date the Mabo decision was handed down. That would be a great date to celebrate the fact that our nation isn’t just a smidge over two centuries old, but many tens of thousands of years old. We still have major issues of reconciliation and treaty to deal with, but this could be a good step in that direction.
Now, we still need a holiday towards the end of January. How else will we know it’s time to go back to school, or which songs are considered hot? If we move the King’s Birthday to the last Friday in January (and remember, the King’s Birthday isn’t held on his birthday and the timing is essentially arbitrary) we still get a chance to celebrate whatever it is we celebrate then. We can still pop a side of lamb on the barbie, we can still watch the cricket… heck, we can still celebrate our love for our great nation by putting on a pair of flag budgie smugglers and running up Glenelg Jetty otherwise naked.
Thoughts?
Some protestors I saw interviewed on TV wanted to abolish Australia Day entirely which doesn’t seem right to me. Many countries have a date that celebrates nationhood. Also, good luck convincing Australians to have one fewer public holidays.
How about we have a public holiday for ‘Arrival Day’ and another for ‘Survival Day’? Two public holidays are better than one.