The group Change for the Future is run by individuals who feel that Australia Day marks positive development of only a section of the society. The group believes that the day can only be seen as positive by racists who annexed the country and imposed themselves on the rest of the population. The argument used in the ‘Change for our future’ leaflet is built on the premise that British invasion that took place on 26th January 1788 marked the beginning of a period of oppression. On the leaflet, the group also argues that the day is irrelevant to the rest of Australians who came from other parts of the world after the British invasion. It also argues that the day is unpopular among the larger Australian society as most people cannot associate it with any significant development of Australia.
The Argument Used in The ‘Pride in Australia’ Leaflet
According to ‘Pride in Australia’ group, most of the media is left-leaning and has been pushing for Change for the Future’s argument. The leaflet Pride in Australia encourages the people to remain faithful to Australia Day and mark it as a national day of celebration. According to the leaflet, the left relies on conspiracies to push for their agenda. The left is made up of a minority group of ‘professional’ trouble-makers who are committed to changing the nation for their personal and selfish agenda. Doing away with Australia day will give the left an opportunity to go further and eradicate other factors that bring the country together, such as ANZAC Day. The leaflet concludes with an insistence on the need to preserve the day as a symbol of unity among Australians.
Strengths and weaknesses of ‘Change for Our Future’ Argument
According to Change for our Future, the call for a new national day celebration are made by the entire Australian citizenry. This is a fallacy and the group should be challenged into either substantiating its claims or shedding them altogether. The group’s leaflet presents contempt for Australia day as a shared feeling among Australians. They group claims that the entire public is committed towards scrapping of Australia day and its replacement with a day that is of relatively more national significance.
Change for Future makes some valid points which should be considered by the authorities and key stakeholders. Though the number of Australians who oppose the holiday is overstated in the leaflet, it is significantly high. In the research by the Australia Institute, 37% of the respondents agreed that the date on which the current Australia Day is set is offensive to indigenous Australians.
The article It’s Time for Change states that January 26 is irrelevant to Australia as a nation. The argument forwarded on this point is that Australia is a multicultural society and many people may not directly identify with the events of 26th January 1788. The argument advanced here is valid and should be given attention by both sides. The natives may find the day offensive because their forefathers lost their freedom and land when Britain annexed the country. There are other ethnic groups that arrived in the country after the day. They view it as of little or no importance to them. It is debatable on whether the day was beneficial or detrimental on social, political and economic development of the country. However, historians are likely to agree that the landing of the first British fleet is an event of Historical significance in Australia’s development. Therefore, it can be remembered without necessarily being termed as a celebration. It can simply be marked as an important day in Australia’s history without necessarily hurting the emotions of the groups that may find it offensive.
The statement that January 26 has no significant population backing is a fallacy. Change for Future should push its ideologies using proven facts rather than utilize propaganda and fallacies. The poll conducted by Research Now and released by Australia Institute showed that they felt that national days, including Australia Day was important to them. 56% indicated that they did not mind commemorating Australia Day, so long as people celebrated it in unity. Generally, the poll showed that the majority of Australians supported the day and felt that it is significant to Australia as a nation. The leaflet Its Time for Change does not cite the figures of the poll to show the percentages that support or oppose Australia Day.
The argument advanced in the leaflet Its Time for Change does not bring out the population’s contempt for Australia Day. Rather, Change for Our Future seems to explain how most Australians do not understand the essence of Australia Day. The leaflet cites the poll finds published by Research now which show that most people do not understand what is commemorated on 26 January. The leaflet also indicates that many people are unwilling to learn about the significance of January 26th. The leaflet could have strengthened the argument by comparing the level of knowledge of Australians on various national days. It is likely that a significant percentage of Australians does not recognize national days, including those whose significance is unquestionable, such as ANZAC Day.
The argument in It’s Time for Change is concluded by terming commemorators of Australia Day as ignorant racists. The use of such words is likely to polarize the population and set sections of the society against others. The argument on the leaflet is not objective, despite raising points that should be taken into consideration. Change for the Future could have expresses their opinions and feelings without using derogatory terms on people who they do not agree with. The group takes the feelings and opinion of a section of the society and generalizes it on the entire population as a way of validating its stand.
National days are of key importance to any country. They provide an opportunity for the people to get together and recognize factors that unite them. According to Change for the Future, national days should be marked by events that all people can celebrate. There no chances that an event in a country can be celebrated by all people. Most of the key events that mark key milestones in countries’ history are associated with social, economic and political justice. One group of the society has to give up its social, political and/or economic entitlements for the benefit of others. For the countries which initially formed colonies, the independence day is one of the most important national days. However, these countries have individuals whose roots are in the colonizing countries. Therefore, such sections of the society may not celebrate the day but can mark it. It is not likely that Australia can find a single day that all the people can identify with and celebrate.
Strengths and Weaknesses of ‘Pride in Australia’ Argument
According to the leaflet ‘Pride in Australia, Pride in Australia Day,’ Australia Day is a proud celebration to all Australians. The leaflet observes that most of the media in Australia is left-leaning. It portrays the media as an industry that has demonstrated commitment to forsake the national day, despite the vast support that the day receives from Australians.
Rather than fiving the strengths of the Australia Day as a national holiday, the leaflet by Pride in Australia is opened by questioning the strength of the argument of leftists. The survey by Institute for Public Affairs is cited in the leaflet, however, the facts are misrepresented as a way of strengthening the overall argument of the leaflet. According to the leaflet, 70% of Australians want those advocating for change on Australia day to stop their interference and leave the day as it is. However, the presentation of the poll results seems to have been done by an individual who is pushing for the right-wing agenda. From the wording of some of the statements in the document by Institute for public Affairs, the results are aimed at convincing the readers into supporting the right-wing rather than mere representation of facts as found in the research.
The question asked by the survey conducted by Australia Institute for Public Affairs was, “Do you think Australia Day should be celebrated on 26 January?” 70% of the sample agreed to the question. When presenting the results, the Institute states that “The poll confirms that the left-leaning elements of our politics and media are obsessed with identity politics…they want to divide rather than unite Australians.” Pride in Australia uses a study that lacks objectivity because it makes conclusions on issues that are not directly addressed by the prompts used in the research. Despite the use of persuading language to push for the agenda of the right-wing, the study’s findings show that majority of Australians support celebration of Australia Day as it has been done over the years.
Pride in Australia uses propaganda to defame the left-wing groups by portraying them as individuals with ill motives. For instance, the leaflet indicates that doing away with Australia Day is not the ultimate aim of the leftists. The leaflet indicates that the left-wing will go ahead eradicating national days, including those with clear significance such as ANZAC Day. The leaflet also states that in future, the leftists will call upon Australians to stop saluting the flag. Such statements can be treated as propaganda because there are no indicators that the left-wing is committed to doing away with factors that have a general positive impact on Australia as a nation.
According to Pride in Australia, there is evidence that groups similar to those against Australia Day have been trying to change ANZAC Day and the flag. However, the leaflet does not present the evidence. There is need that both sides bring out the facts by citing the original sources of mentioned evidence to strengthen their cases.
The leaflet by Pride in Australia attempts to counter some of the fallacies committed in the study published by Australia Institute. However, the writers of the right-wing leaflet also commit fallacies. For instance, the leaflet claims that Australia Institute suggests the day Australia became a republic as a national holiday. However, it is not the surveyor who suggested the day but rather individuals within the sample. Therefore, the left-wing simply brought out the fact that many Australians do not have a good understanding of the country’s history.
Misrepresentation of facts and issues discussed by the leftists weakens the argument advanced by the right-wing. Despite the leaflet looking at the leftist’s argument, it does not explore some of the alternatives offered by their opponents. The leftists argued that the national day should be put on a date that is significant to all Australians. The group should have the cognized that there are many other ways of fostering national unity that can be preserved while respecting the feelings of all Australians.
Pride in Australia presents valid arguments on why national unity is important and how it can be fostered through national days. There is need to preserve the history and pride if Australia as a country. Unity of Australians is important in fostering social, economic and political development of the entire country. The leaflet notes that debate on Australia Day is divisive and people should shun it and celebrate the day in line with the tradition. The group does not seem to recognize the diversity of the Australian community. It is important to recognize Australia Day held on 36th
January does not have positive memories for all Australians.
Recommendations
A significant number of Australians indicate that the Australia day is set on a date that is offensive to the indigenous people. Most people will agree that the day may not bring positive memories for all the Australians. However, there is a lot that Australians can look back to and celebrate the growth of the country. Both the leaflets, It’s Time for Change and Pride in Australia Day raise issues that should be subject to candid discussions. However, both leaflets are made up of many fallacies, understatement and overstatement of facts and issues. The misrepresentation of facts can be seen as an effort by each side to draw as many Australians as possible.
From the surveys cited by the leaflets spread by both groups, most Australians are misinformed or uninformed on the Australia day. It is important that people be educated on the historical events linked to Australia Day, the importance of the day as a national day, the general importance of national days, how various social, ethnic and racial groups are likely to relate to Australia day. It is important that both sides agree on why local councils should or should not hold citizenship ceremonies.
The solution to the standoff between Pride in Australia and Change for the Future is having an objective discussion on the arguments by both the right-winged and the leftists. Australia day is a significant national day and should be marked by Australians. However, it should not be treated as a celebration as it marks a day when many Australians lost their status due to invasion. The fay can also be moved to a date that raises less controversies. However, reforms towards popularizing the day should start with education of the masses to help them understand the significance of the day.
