A year has passed since the ill-fated voice referendum. In that time, and indeed in the time leading up to the referendum itself, I repeatedly expressed my views. There was so much that was wrong with the process, that was dehumanising, and that was distressing about the entire situation. But while Indigenous community members have had to pick up the pieces, regroup and begin discussions about the way forward, the majority of Australia has maintained the status quo.
The voice was never going to be a magic bullet. No matter how much the Albanese government attempted to sell it as such, the reality was that what was on the table was a smidgen better than nothing. Despite this, the proposal was still a bridge too far for the majority of Australians when it came to recognising the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
I don’t want to revisit the time and the fallout. It is depressing to recall just how readily vast proportions of the Australian public allow themselves to absorb misinformation campaigns, or how readily they see Indigenous people gaining a bit more than “no power” as an existential threat. As I have been clear too, the misinformation was not just in the no camp – the yes camp were more than willing to paint themselves as champions for anti-racism when the reality was that any reform to actually conquer racism in Australia was not on the table. It was window dressing, plain and simple.
I do, though, at this juncture want to look at how Australia can move forward. The Uluru statement from the heart was, after all, a three-part proposal, and the agendas of truth-telling and treaty cannot be allowed to fall by the wayside in the failure of the voice to get up, even if our prime minister is dodging these responsibilities.
Here’s a few truths to kick off the truth-telling process:
First, the lack of basic civics education that Australians receive is telling. Adding to this, many Australians choose to remain ignorant about our political systems and structures for their entire lives. There was a reason why the conservative no campaign’s “if you don’t know, vote no” slogan was so successful – most Australians do not know, nor are they particularly willing to find out. If they feel happy and secure in their own back yard, there really is no reason to step outside it.
I maintain that many Australians went to the ballot box having no clue what they were voting for. Do they actually know what the constitution is and how it works? Do they understand the political system Australia uses and how it would interact with a proposed body that had no power of political veto?
Both sides of the debate drew on public ignorance of the constitution, framing the document and our inclusion in it as alternately reconciliatory and threatening. I find this frustrating. The constitution is a still-racist document that reinforced a foreign regime without Indigenous people’s consent but this is something that most people don’t want to confront. Future generations cannot be allowed to grow up with this same ignorance.
Second, we will get nowhere unless Australia gets significantly more comfortable with confronting its history, and how this history informs the present. It would be nice, for example, to see a dual-naming exercise happen in Australia that is accepted as a symbol of pride, rather than an opportunity to jump on social media and complain about how any such move is “political correctness gone mad”.
Education about massacres, assimilation policies, the mission system, wage theft, the wardship systems, land theft, etc, cannot remain the sole interest of those already at the table. There is a colonial arrogance that permeates society suggesting there is nothing to be learned from its First Peoples, despite this country being home to the longest continuing cultures in the world. If we want to begin the process of moving forward, people need to begin opening their ears and their hearts.
Finally, a mature nation must come to an agreement on how to move forward. This means the Labor government honouring the treaty process that is part of the Uluru statement that they said they were committed to implementing upon their election. The prime minister attempted to dodge this by pointing out that treaty processes were already under way in a few states and territories. To my mind, though, this does not preclude the federal government taking action, particularly considering it is the one with the direct link to the crown under whose name this land was claimed as a colony.
Decisions can be made federally on what the non-negotiables would be in a treaty process – items such as the right to land and compensation, the protection of language and knowledge, dual naming, equal service provision, designated representative seats in all levels of governance, no imposition of policy without proper consultation, etc. There are so many ways this country could commit not only to a healthier and more equitable way forward but also to a more tolerant and racially diverse society. It is time to remember that this country was founded on the erasure of those who were already here and to rectify that enormous historical wrong.
I truly hope that in my lifetime we are never faced with another toxic campaign like the voice referendum again. It’s a fool’s hope – Australia loves to debate the humanity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and seems to find ways to put us back in our place. At the very least, a population making more informed decisions after some truth-telling and education would be a welcome change.
• Celeste Liddle is an Arrernte woman living in Melbourne. She is a freelance writer, social commentator and activist. Liddle was a Greens candidate for the seat of Cooper in the 2022 federal election. She left the party in February 2023
